Iowa Landscaping Licensing Law

Iowa Code · 2 sections

The following is the full text of Iowa’s landscaping licensing law statutes as published in the Iowa Code. For the official version, see the Iowa Legislature.

Iowa Code § 105.11

The provisions of this chapter shall not be construed to do any of the following: 1. Apply to a person licensed as an engineer pursuant to chapter 542B, licensed as a manufactured home retailer or certified as a manufactured home installer pursuant to chapter 103A, licensed as an architect pursuant to chapter 544A, or licensed as a landscape architect pursuant to chapter 544B who provides consultations or develops plans or other work concerning plumbing, HVAC, refrigeration, sheet metal, or hydronic work and who is exclusively engaged in the practice of the person’s profession. 2. Require employees of municipal utilities, electric membership or cooperative associations, public utility corporations, rural water associations or districts, railroads, or commercial retail or industrial companies performing manufacturing, installation, service, or repair work for such employer to hold licenses while acting within the scope of their employment. This licensing exemption does not apply to employees of a rate-regulated gas or electric public utility which provides plumbing or mechanical services as part of a systematic marketing effort, as defined pursuant to section 476.80. 3. Prohibit an owner of property from performing work on the owner’s principal residence, if such residence is an existing dwelling rather than new construction and is not larger than a single-family dwelling, or farm property, excluding commercial or industrial installations or installations in public use buildings or facilities, or require such owner to be licensed under this chapter. In order to qualify for inapplicability pursuant to this subsection, a residence shall qualify for the homestead tax credit. 4. Require that any person be a member of a labor union in order to be licensed. 5. Apply to a person who is qualified pursuant to administrative rules relating to the storage and handling of liquefied petroleum gases while engaged in installing, servicing, testing, replacing, or maintaining propane gas utilization equipment, or gas piping systems of which the equipment is a part, and related or connected accessory systems or equipment necessary to the operation of the equipment. 6. Apply to a person who meets the requirements for a certified well contractor pursuant to section 455B.190A while engaged in installing, servicing, testing, replacing, or maintaining a water system, water well, well pump, or well equipment, or piping systems of which the equipment is a part, and related or connected accessory systems or equipment necessary to the operation of the water well. 7. Require a helper engaged in general manual labor activities while providing assistance to an apprentice, journeyperson, or master to obtain a plumbing, mechanical, HVAC-refrigeration, sheet metal, or hydronic license. Experience as a helper shall not be considered as practical experience for a journeyperson license. 8. Apply to a person who is performing work subject to chapter 100C. 9. Apply to an employee of any unit of state or local government, including but not limited to cities, counties, or school corporations, performing work on a mechanical system or plumbing system, which serves a government-owned or government-leased facility while acting within the scope of the government employee’s employment. 10. Apply to the employees of manufacturers, manufacturer representatives, or wholesale suppliers who provide consultation or develop plans concerning plumbing, HVAC, refrigeration, sheet metal, or hydronic work, or who assist a person licensed under this chapter in the installation of mechanical or plumbing systems. 11. Prohibit an owner or operator of a health care facility licensed pursuant to chapter 135C, assisted living center licensed pursuant to chapter 231C, hospital licensed pursuant to chapter 135B, adult day care center licensed pursuant to chapter 231D, or a retirement facility certified pursuant to chapter 523D from performing work on the facility or requiring such owner or operator to be licensed under this chapter; except for projects that exceed the dollar amount specified as the competitive bid threshold in section 26.3. 12. Apply to a person who performs the laying of pipe that originates or connects to pipe in the public right-of-way or property that is intended to become public right-of-way, even if such pipe extends under the property and up to the building. However, the person shall not make any interior pipe connections within a building under this exemption. This exemption

§105.11, PLUMBERS, MECHANICAL PROFESSIONALS, AND CONTRACTORS 2

does not restrict local jurisdictions from requiring licensure under this chapter if required by local ordinance, resolution, or by bidding specification. 13. Prohibit a rental property owner or employee of such an owner from performing routine maintenance on the rental property. 14. Apply to a person who is performing work on a volunteer, non-paid basis or assisting a property owner performing non-paid work on the owner’s principal residence. 2007 Acts, ch 198, §11; 2008 Acts, ch 1032, §104, 202; 2008 Acts, ch 1089, §4, 5, 10, 12; 2009 Acts, ch 151, §11 – 13; 2011 Acts, ch 100, §7, 15; 2013 Acts, ch 77, §12, 36; 2017 Acts, ch 131, §7; 2023 Acts, ch 71, §26, 48, 49 Referred to in §105.10 2023 amendment to subsection 3 applies retroactively to assessment years beginning on or after January 1, 2023; 2023 Acts, ch 71, §49

Iowa Code § 542B.2

As used in the chapter, unless the context otherwise requires: 1. “Board” means the engineering and land surveying examining board provided by this chapter. 2. “Design coordination” includes the review and coordination of technical submissions prepared by others, including as appropriate and without limitation, consulting engineers, architects, landscape architects, land surveyors, and other professionals working under the direction of the engineer. 3. “Engineer intern” means a person who passes an examination in the fundamental engineering subjects, but does not entitle the person to claim to be a professional engineer. 4. “Engineering documents” includes all plans, specifications, drawings, and reports, if the preparation of such documents constitutes or requires the practice of engineering. 5. “Engineering surveys” includes all survey activities required to support the sound conception, planning, design, construction, maintenance, and operation of engineered projects, but excludes the surveying of real property for the establishment of land boundaries, rights-of-way, easements, and the dependent or independent surveys or resurveys of the public land survey system. 6. “In responsible charge” means having direct control of and personal supervision over any land surveying work or work involving the practice of engineering. One or more persons, jointly or severally, may be in responsible charge. 7. “Land surveying documents” includes all plats, maps, surveys, and reports, if the preparation thereof constitutes or requires the practice of land surveying. 8. “Land surveyor” means a person who engages in the practice of professional land surveying. Unless the context otherwise requires, any reference in this chapter to “land surveyor” or “land surveying” means “professional land surveyor” or “professional land surveying”. 9. a. “Practice of engineering” means any service or creative work, the adequate performance of which requires engineering education, training, and experience in the application of special knowledge of the mathematical, physical, and engineering sciences, such as consultation, investigation, evaluation, planning, design and design coordination of engineering works and systems, planning the use of land and water, performing engineering surveys and studies, and the review of construction for the purpose of monitoring compliance with drawings and specifications, any of which embraces such services or creative work, either public or private, in connection with any utilities, structures, buildings, machines, equipment, processes, work systems, projects, and industrial or consumer products or equipment of a mechanical, electrical, hydraulic, pneumatic, or thermal nature, insofar as they involve safeguarding life, health, or property, and including such other professional services as may be necessary to the planning, progress, and completion of the services identified in this subsection. b. A person is construed to be engaged in the practice of engineering if the person does any of the following: (1) Practices any branch of the profession of engineering. (2) Makes a representation by verbal claim, sign, advertisement, letterhead, card, or other manner that the person is a professional engineer. (3) Uses any title which implies that the person is a professional engineer or that the person is certified under this chapter. (4) The person holds the person’s self out as able to perform, or who does perform, any service or work included in the practice of engineering. 10. a. “Practice of land surveying” includes providing professional services such as consultation, investigation, testimony, evaluation, planning, mapping, assembling, and interpreting reliable scientific measurements and information relative to the location of property lines or boundaries, and the utilization, development, and interpretation of these facts into an orderly survey, plat, or map. The practice of land surveying includes but is not limited to the following: (1) Locating, relocating, establishing, reestablishing, setting, or resetting of permanent

§542B.2, PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERS AND LAND SURVEYORS 2

monumentation for any property line or boundary of any tract or parcel of land. Setting permanent monuments constitutes an improvement to real property. (2) Making any survey for the division or subdivision of any tract or parcel of land. (3) Determination, by the use of the principles of land surveying, of the position for any permanent survey monument or reference point, or setting, resetting, or replacing any survey monument or reference point excluding the responsibility of engineers pursuant to section 314.8. (4) Creating and writing metes and bounds descriptions as defined in section 354.2. (5) Geodetic surveying for determination of the size and shape of the earth both horizontally and vertically for the precise positioning of permanent land survey monuments on the earth utilizing angular and linear measurements through spatially oriented spherical geometry. (6) Creation, preparation, or modification of electronic or computerized data, including land information systems and geographical information systems, relative to the performance of the activities identified in subparagraphs (1) through (5). b. This subsection does not prohibit a professional engineer from practicing any aspect of the practice of engineering. A land surveyor is not prohibited from performing engineering surveys as defined in the practice of engineering. c. A person is construed to be engaged in or offering to be engaged in the practice of land surveying if the person does any of the following: (1) Engages in land surveying. (2) Makes a representation by verbal claim, sign, advertisement, letterhead, card, or other manner that the person is a land surveyor. (3) Uses any title which implies that the person is a land surveyor or that the person is licensed under this chapter. (4) Holds the person’s self out as able to perform, or who does perform, any service or work included in the practice of land surveying. 11. “Professional engineer” means a person, who, by reason of the person’s knowledge of mathematics, the physical sciences, and the principles of engineering, acquired by professional education or practical experience, is qualified to engage in the practice of engineering. Unless the context otherwise requires, any reference in this chapter to “engineer” or “engineering” means “professional engineer” or “professional engineering”. [C24, 27, 31, 35, 39, §1855; C46, 50, 54, 58, 62, 66, 71, 73, 75, 77, 79, 81, §114.2] 84 Acts, ch 1104, §2 C93, §542B.2 94 Acts, ch 1107, §13; 95 Acts, ch 65, §2, 3; 98 Acts, ch 1037, §1; 2012 Acts, ch 1009, §11; 2012 Acts, ch 1023, §140 Referred to in §459.102

The law belongs to the people. Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 590 U.S. (2020)