Florida’s Mold: In the Eye of the Storm

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August 25, 2005

Florida's Mold: In the Eye of the Storm

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Florida's Mold: In the Eye of the Storm

by Ed Ziegler, Pure Air Control Services, Inc.

Tallahassee, FL -- The national mold storm's eye has moved over

Florida's Department of Business and Professional Regulation

(DBPR). At Governor Jeb Bush's request, a series of meetings by

industry stakeholders are taking place with the goal of shaping the

regulatory and legislative landscape for the assessment and

remediation of mold.

Mold is a major global issue and has become a multi-billion dollar

industry with repercussions in health, education, construction,

legal, and real estate. Nationally, powerful lobbies have moved

quickly to protect their interests, which have resulted in several

state agencies enacting mold policies or legislation that have, in

many cases, abandoned the consumer.

Florida has long been on the front lines of the mold battle. Just

last year, a single insurer had over 250,000 insurance mold claims

filed. All of those claims were the result of water damage from

hurricanes. A year later, many of those prior claims have resulted

in legal action against contractors due to poor workmanship and lack

of standards during the mold remediation processes. With the DBPR's

latest actions, Florida is moving into the forefront of the national

mold debate by actively engaging in addressing its regulatory

shortcomings. Much of the " mold is gold " crowd has been operating

under the radar of regulatory agencies within Florida's state

boundaries as unlicensed contractors. These unmonitored operations

have resulted in too many consumers and businesses being fleeced.

Florida's legislative past efforts have included two different mold

bills. The various industry lobbies were in full tilt and heavily

influenced both bills. The first bill in 2004 did not come to a

vote before the legislative body. This year, the second attempt at

a mold bill passed both the Florida House and Senate only to be

vetoed by Governor Bush in June. The Governor felt the bill was too

vague in some areas and would have an adverse effect by placing an

unreasonable burden for reputable firms currently providing services

to Floridians.

The various industries that have a vested interest in the assessment

and remediation of mold are having a hard time finding common

ground. In the mold industry's current state, professional experts

have difficulty defining what " mold " is, whether it's toxic, what

the occupancy exposure levels are, investigation and remediation

protocols, procedures, clearances, qualifications of personnel who

provide these services, … and the list goes on.

This week's meeting in Tallahassee focused on mold assessment. The

Governor's special counsel, and DBPR's CLIB Executive

Director Tim Vaccarro moderated the meeting. The attendees were

comprised of individuals from construction, contractor,

environmental, legal, education, and special interest groups.

Associations represented at the workshop included: American

Industrial Hygiene Association, Indoor Air Quality Association,

American Society for Safety, Environmental Solutions Association,

among others. The more vocal inputs were provided by the diagnostic

sciences and construction industries that are both pressing

for " control " over mold issues.

Photo courtesy of Pure Air Control Services, Inc.

DBPR's CLIB Executive Director Tim Vaccarro (left) and the

Governor's special counsel (right) moderated the

meeting.

Diagnostic sciences professionals are requesting more stringent

qualifications for assessors and suggesting independent third-party

testing for clearance of remediation projects. Their interests

include broadening the issue beyond mold to other microbiological

contaminants, which will reoccur if not addressed properly.

Construction industry pundits requested they be allowed to address

mold issues within the scope of their trade. They contend the

current problem has been exacerbated by unlicensed contractors and

not by reputable, licensed contractors. It was suggested that

qualifications of persons addressing mold issues should credit

experience, and that special training should be prescribed to assist

the trade professionals. They were opposed to the expansion of the

issue beyond mold and believe that expansion beyond the current

scope of mold as described in the most recent legislative bill would

provoke another gubernatorial veto.

Most who attended the stakeholders meeting did agree that licensed

contractors should address mold issues, and that persons managing

mold projects should receive more education and training.

More meetings are scheduled in the coming weeks and a new

legislative bill is slated to be introduced during the legislature's

next session. The task before the Florida legislature, DBPR,

Governor, and industry stakeholders is great. Nationally, federal

and state legislative bodies and agencies are closely watching the

developments in Florida.

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Pure Air Control Services, Inc.

1-800-422-7873