Kentucky access control installers and the electrical license

Electricians and electrical contractors get their licenses from the Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction (HBC). Any electrical work that falls under the National Electrical Code, as Kentucky has adopted it, counts as an electrical system under KRS 227A.010. Low voltage gets no special treatment under the law.

If a contractor isn't a master electrician itself, it has to keep at least 1 full-time master electrician on staff. A local card can supplement the state one, since cities and counties may also operate approved licensing programs of their own.

Some thin control cable that runs on a Class 2 or Class 3 transformer (low-voltage, power-limited wiring) gets an exemption under Kentucky law. Still, KRS 227A.030 releases that work only when the person doing it already carries certain other licenses. Alarm or security installers don't appear on that list.

Workers for a telecom company are also exempt when they stay on circuits of 50 volts or less. Your access control business doesn't count as a telephone provider; don't rely on that exemption. Because the statute never mentions access control by name, ask HBC which license your project calls for.

• Technicians who hold an HVAC master or journeyman license, while employed by a licensed HVAC contractor
• Contractors who install fire protection sprinklers
• Plumbers with a master or journeyman license
• Boiler mechanics, installers of manufactured housing and installers of sewage systems
• Electricians employed by a licensed electrical contractor

KRS 227.480 says you must get a permit from the state or your local government before beginning any electrical work. A permit is only issued once the applicant shows they are a licensed electrical contractor or an employee of one. The rule does not cover homeowners on their own property or people excused by KRS 227A.030.

To get licensed, the rule 815 KAR 35:060 requires a score of at least 70 percent on the exam. Once you pass, the score stays good for 3 years. The biennial license costs a contractor $400, and the contractor has to provide insurance documents showing HBC as the certificate holder.

Each license is valid for 2 years. Look up a name or license number on the HBC license search and verification page; it includes both electrical and fire license holders.

The 2018 edition of the Kentucky Building Code uses the 2015 International Building Code as its base, with Kentucky's own changes on top. An amendment that has been filed to that rule brings in the 2023 National Electrical Code. Together, those two codes control how a maglock or electric strike must let people out through an exit door.

Fire alarm contractors get their own HBC license or certification, separate from electrician credentials. When door locks are set to release from the fire alarm panel, find out who does the alarm work and check their license as well.