City council approves first reading of Contractor Registration Ordinance

KIMBALL -- The city council unanimously approved the first reading of the Building Contractor Ordinance No. 484 in the meeting Tuesday evening with one change from previous discussions. 

The council began the process of updating the existing ordinance in December to be more detailed and precise.

“This goes back to discussion with the building permit process and making sure that contractors are registered and viable contractors,” said City Administrator Annette Brower. “This will basically require all contractors in town to register with the city, then we will verify that they are registered with the State of Nebraska as well and that they are properly insured – not just for city purposes but for the homeowners as well.” 

One major change from previous discussions is that landlords are exempt from the contractors licensing requirements. 

A previous version of the ordinance indicated that while homeowners will be exempt from the contractor registration fee, landlords would need to register with the city if they are doing significant remodeling or construction on the property.

City officials decided to reverse that and include landlords in the homeowner exemption portion, which states: “Exemptions may be issued for corporate or individual owners of rental properties and investment homes who intend to perform work on their owned property as their own contractor. Homeowners and landlords acting as their own contractor must still apply for permits where permitting is required by the City of Kimball ... providing that all work may be inspected for approval by the City Building Inspector.” 

The council will have two more readings of the ordinance before it is officially passed.