AUGUSTA — Lawmakers delayed voting Thursday on a measure that would establish a licensing program for home contractors.

The proposal by state Rep. W. Bruce MacDonald, D-Boothbay, would require residential general contractors to be state-licensed.

Proponents, including the Maine Association of Realtors, say the licensing is necessary because of the frequency of complaints in the home-contracting business.

Opponents, which include the Associated Builders and Contractors of Maine and the Associated General Contractors of Maine, say it would place a financial burden on small businesses and wouldn’t do much to help consumers with complaints.

Some building professions such as architects, engineers, plumbers, electricians and manufacturers are licensed in Maine. Home contractors, despite being one of the top three most-complained-about businesses, according to the Attorney General’s Office, have continued to stay off the list.

During the past two years, the Consumer Protection Division of the Maine Attorney General’s Office began the mediation process on nearly 300 home construction complaints. Nearly 100 were resolved, but about 200 were not resolved.

Based on testimony taken at the public hearing before the Legislature’s Business, Research and Economic Development Committee, Rep. MacDonald offered some changes to his original proposal, including putting off implementation until sometime in 2012.

“A major objection to this whole idea has been the timing,” he said. “I would have it take effect 12 months after the date that the (Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code) takes effect for all Maine communities or July 1, 2012, whichever occurs sooner.”

The code, which was passed into law previously but still is being defined, is a key component to the licensing process, said Anne Head, commissioner of the Department of Professional and Financial Regulation.

“The code is critical to the success of this particular kind of regulatory program,” she said. “Licensure brings with it a permission to practice a certain profession. There are educational standards, experiential standards, a specific exam and compliance with a certain professional code of conduct or code of business.”

Head told lawmakers she was open to the idea of a licensing program for home contractors, but the current legislation lacks necessary details.

“We are dabbling around the edges of a very significant program that in its various iterations and versions still does not contain what I view as basic decisions about the policy of how to regulate a profession,” she said. “How do you want to protect the public and from what? When you get down to that level, the bill that we have in front of us doesn’t help me at all. We need to know what is going to be regulated and how you want us to do it.”

As the person in charge of advising the board that would be in charge of regulation, Head said she had to be clear on the lawmakers’ intent.

“I am afraid of not being able to articulate to the people who are going to be regulated, and when you have a scope of practice, that means that there are individuals out there who will be put out of business,” she said.

The committee must vote on the bill by March 5.

rmetzler@sunjournal.com

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