Cape Girardeau's board of examiners is about to revamp the city's ordinances governing such things as licenses for trades workers and construction permits.

I don't attend all city meetings, but this one might be worth a look for those of you in the construction business, or about to undertake some home improvement.

A few highlights (more in Friday's newspaper story):

-- Apprentices must be licensed. Tim Morgan, Cape Girardeau's inspector, said the provision has been in the ordinance in the past, but without a licensing process, it could not be enforced. Apprentices will be required to register by July 1 of each year and pay a $15 fee, a first, Morgan said. The cost of a full building trade license remains at $35.

-- Clarified penalties for those who allow their professional licenses to expire. Currently, the fine for renewing within 30 days of expiration is $10, and increases by $10 for each passing month. The proposed fine schedule would be: $10 for renewing in the first 30 days; $20 for renewing 31 to 60 days after a license expires; and $30 for those renewing a license 61 to 90 days after expiration. Beyond 90 days, a license would not be reissued without the person going through a full examination. Dan Stitz, a master plumber who has served on the board of examiners for more than five years, said he is still reviewing the latest draft of the proposed changes, but would have liked to see higher fines in this provision.

-- Trade workers licensed by other cities will be allowed to work on local buildings, unless that license is expired. In that case, the individual would have to follow Cape Girardeau's license renewal requirements, which may include a trip to the board of examiners. In the past, a trade worker could renew the license in the city without undergoing the examination process.

Stitz said another key language change requires homeowners to prove they will occupy a single-family dwelling being remodeled. He said in some cases, permits are given to people who actually intend to remodel and resell a home, a practice called flipping, or to those who plan to rent the home.

According to Morgan, only single-family homeowners are allowed to perform their own home renovations, which must meet city codes.

"If they are putting a member of the public in there, licensed contractors must be used," he said.

The one line no one was quite sure about is one that is being deleted from the ordinance. It reads: "Volunteers working for a not-for-profit organization need not be licensed."

Does that mean they do need to be licensed ... or was it just an unnecessary line? I asked. No one knew the answer, and city attorney Eric Cunningham had left the office, so I'll have to ask him tomorrow. If it means licensing, this could potentially apply to volunteers working on Habitat for Humanity homes or members of a congregaton helping build their church. Hope to learn what the intent of removing this line was before next week's meeting. I'll keep you posted.

The proposed ordinance reflects a new standards agency, the International Code Council. The ICC resulted from the merger of Building Officials and Code Administrators (BOCA National) with two other regional code organizations. The ICC promotes building standards for structural safety and fire prevention.

ICC spokesman Steve Daggers said the organization suggests minimum safety standards that allow individual communities some flexibility.

"You have national standards, plus you don't have the federal government forcing something on you with no funding," he said.

One example Daggers gave me is how, in some regions, cities are adopting construction standards which include seismic applications. In other areas, hurricane provisions are more important.

The ICC Web site was fun to check out. I found this factoid:

"The earliest known code of law--the Code of Hammurabi, king of the Babylonian Empire, written in 2200 B.C.--assessed severe penalties, including death, if a building was not constructed safely."

Cape Girardeau's board of examiners will have a public hearing on the proposed ordinance changes is at 7 p.m. Wednesday at city hall, 401 Independence St.