WASHINGTON, D.C. – May 29, 2014 – (RealEstateRama) — Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy is expected to sign into a law a bill that will change the state’s real estate appraiser and appraisal management regulations to bring them into compliance with federal requirements, Valuation Review reported May 21.
Senate Bill 205, which was introduced Feb. 19 and sent to the governor May 14, seeks to implement recommendations from the Trade Practices Real Estate Unit of the state’s Department of Consumer Protection. The new law will eliminate obsolete references to limited appraiser and appraiser licenses and make conforming changes based on those eliminations. The DCP ceased issuance and renewal of those licenses in 2006 and 2003, respectively.
DCP Commissioner William Rubenstein earlier warned that if Connecticut failed to make the referenced changes, it could jeopardize the future of DCP-licensed appraisers, Valuation Review reported.
The bill requires all 50 Connecticut schools offering real estate appraisal courses to be registered with the Real Estate Appraisal Commission before they can offer courses in appraisal prerequisites or continuing education. Registration of each course must be sought separately; registrations expire after two years but can be renewed. Courses also must be approved by the commissioner and not just the commission.
The bill also defines the license issued to provisional appraisers working under direct supervision of certified appraisers and notes that the annual registry fee certified appraisers must pay to the commission be set by the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council’s appraisal subcommittees, not the commission, as currently constructed.
Applicants for appraiser licensure will be required to take tests within one year of paying the application fees and are limited in how often they can take a test within one year.
Valuation Review reported that the new law should give Connecticut a revenue gain of $25,000 in fiscal year 2015 and $10,000 in fiscal year 2016. If approved by the governor, the bill will go into effect July 1.
