§444-2  Exemptions.  This chapter shall
not apply to:



(1)  Officers and employees of the United States, the State, or any county while in the performance of their governmental
duties;



(2)  Any person acting as a receiver, trustee in
bankruptcy, personal representative, or any other person acting under any order
or authorization of any court;



(3)  A person who sells or installs any finished
products, materials, or articles of merchandise that are not actually
fabricated into and do not become a permanent fixed part of the structure, or
to the construction, alteration, improvement, or repair of personal property;



(4)  Any project or operation for which the aggregate
contract price for labor, materials, taxes, and all other items is not more
than $1,000.  This exemption shall not apply in any case where a building
permit is required regardless of the aggregate contract price, nor where the
undertaking is only a part of a larger or major project or operation, whether
undertaken by the same or a different contractor or in which a division of the
project or operation is made in contracts of amounts not more than $1,000 for
the purpose of evading this chapter or otherwise;



(5)  A registered architect or professional engineer
acting solely in the person's professional capacity;



(6)  Any person who engages in the activities
regulated in this chapter as an employee with wages as the person's sole
compensation;



(7)  Owners or lessees of property who build or
improve residential, farm, industrial, or commercial buildings or structures on
property for their own use, or for use by their grandparents, parents,
siblings, or children and who do not offer the buildings or structures for sale
or lease; provided that this exemption shall not apply to electrical or
plumbing work that must be performed only by persons or entities licensed under
this chapter, or to the owner or lessee of the property if the owner or lessee
is licensed under chapter 448E.  In all actions brought under this paragraph,
proof of the sale or lease, or offering for sale or lease, of the structure not
more than one year after completion is prima facie evidence that the
construction or improvement of the structure was undertaken for the purpose of
sale or lease; provided that this provision shall not apply to residential
properties sold or leased to employees of the owner or lessee; provided further
that in order to qualify for this exemption the owner or lessee must register
for the exemptions as provided in section 444-9.1.  Any owner or lessee of
property found to have violated this paragraph shall not be permitted to engage
in any activities pursuant to this paragraph or to register under section
444-9.1 for a period of three years.  There is a presumption that an owner or
lessee has violated this section, when the owner or lessee obtains an exemption
from the licensing requirements of section 444-9 more than once in two years;



(8)  Any joint venture if all members thereof hold
licenses issued under this chapter;



(9)  Any project or operation where it is determined
by the board that less than ten persons are qualified to perform the work in
question and that the work does not pose a potential danger to public health,
safety, and welfare; or



(10)  Any public works project that requires additional
qualifications beyond those established by the licensing law and which is
deemed necessary and in the public interest by the contracting agency. [L 1957,
c 305, §1(s 2); Supp, §166A-2; HRS §444-2; am L 1969, c 163, §1; am L 1974, c
112, §1(3); am L 1975, c 128, §1; am L 1976, c 200, pt of §1; am L 1985, c 215,
§1; gen ch 1985; am L 1986, c 182, §1; am L 1989, c 142, §2; am L 1992, c 258,
§1 and c 269, §2; am L 1996, c 172, §3]



 



Case Notes



 



  Defendant's motion to dismiss denied; because it was feasible
that plaintiff's actions constituted that of a "professional engineer
acting solely in [its] professional capacity", it was not apparent that
[this chapter] barred plaintiff from bringing lawsuit.  216 F. Supp. 2d 1133.



  Promise by defendant to pay plaintiff for work performed and
moneys expended established an employment relationship and took matter outside
of chapter under paragraph (7).  58 H. 257, 567 P.2d 824.



  While a member of the public who violates the owner-builder
exemption under paragraph (7) (1993) by selling or leasing the subject property
within one year of completion is subject to the sanctions imposed under
paragraph (7), that party is not precluded from enforcing the underlying
contract with an unlicensed contractor. 92 H. 117 (App.), 987 P.2d 1015.



  Pursuant to paragraph (7), homeowners did not have the
benefit of, and, as to homeowners, contractor was not obligated to comply with,
the disclosure provisions of §444-25.5.  109 H. 96 (App.), 123 P.3d 691.