A.R.S. 32-1154: Grounds to Suspend or Revoke a Contractor License

Subsection A opens with the rule that a license holder must not do the acts on the list:

The holder of a license or any person named on a license pursuant to this chapter may not commit any of the following acts or omissions:

The list is long. Here are the grounds that matter most for plumbing work.

Walking off the job. Paragraph 1 covers leaving a job or refusing to start:

Abandonment of a contract or refusal to perform after submitting a bid on work without legal excuse for the abandonment or refusal.

Bad workmanship or code violations. Paragraph 2 covers a material departure from the plans, the specifications, or the building code that is prejudicial to another person. In plain terms, work that breaks code or fails the agreed plan can be grounds.

Breaking a rule. Paragraph 3 is short:

Violation of any rule adopted by the registrar.

Fraud and false statements. Paragraph 5 covers a misrepresentation of a material fact used to get the license. Paragraph 6 covers fraudulent acts that cause substantial injury to another person. Paragraph 7 is blunt:

Conviction of a felony.

Not paying or not finishing. Paragraph 8 covers a failure to finish a job for the contracted price. Paragraph 10 covers a failure to pay for materials or services when the amount owed is more than $750.

Deceptive ads. Paragraph 15 covers:

False, misleading or deceptive advertising whereby any member of the public was misled...

A catch-all, paragraph 12, also applies: a "failure in any material respect to comply with this chapter."

These grounds are the backbone of most ROC complaints. A few plumbing examples:

• A contractor takes a deposit and then never returns. That points to abandonment under paragraph 1.
• A plumber installs a water heater with no permit and against code. That can fall under paragraph 2.
• A contractor does not pay the supply house for parts over $750. That can fall under paragraph 10.
• A contractor lies on an invoice or an ad to win the job. That can fall under the fraud and advertising grounds.

You describe what happened, and the ROC decides which grounds fit.

If a licensed plumber did you wrong, this statute is the "why" behind a complaint. Your job is to file on time and describe the facts.

Two other pages help here. To learn the filing steps and the deadline, see A.R.S. 32-1155 and the complaint process and our guide on how to file a complaint against a contractor in Arizona. Before you hire, it also pays to confirm the license is real and active. See how to verify a plumber's ROC license in Arizona.

One key limit. This statute applies to licensed contractors. If the person was never licensed, a different path applies. Our page on licensed contractor versus handyman in Arizona explains the line.

Confirm the current text before you rely on it. The grounds and the $750 figure above reflect A.R.S. 32-1154 as published on the Arizona Legislature's site as of this writing. The list is amended from time to time, so check the current statute before you file.

The quoted lines above come from the official Arizona Revised Statutes, a public-domain government work. Read the full section, with all of its numbered grounds, on the Arizona Legislature's site: A.R.S. 32-1154 on azleg.gov. For the complaint process that uses these grounds, see A.R.S. 32-1155.

This page explains a general Arizona statute and is not legal advice. Whether a contractor's conduct meets a specific ground depends on the facts, so confirm your situation with the Arizona Registrar of Contractors or a qualified attorney before you rely on it.