Bowerman Cleaning & Restoration eager to be among first New York mold remediation companies to comply with new statewide regulations
NEW YORK — On January 1, 2016, New York will introduce new statewide regulations for the mold remediation industry.
Bowerman Cleaning & Restoration – an Elmsford-based mold remediation company – is excited to comply with the new regulations and become one of New York’s first certified mold remediation companies under the new law.
The new “Mold Program” law requires that assessors, contractors, and their workers undergo licensing training through certified education programs. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the law earlier this year. Initially scheduled to go into effect in July 2015, the law will instead go into effect on January 1, 2016.
The law will be enforced by the Department of Labor as it falls under New York State Labor Law. New York joins California, Indiana, Texas, Florida, Maryland, and New Jersey as one of the few states that have passed laws governing mold and indoor air quality.
Bowerman Cleaning & Restoration, a family-owned cleaning and restoration business in operation since the 1970s, is looking forward to becoming one of the first companies in New York to be fully licensed under the new law.
“We’ve already started preparing our company to handle these changes,” said company owner Michael Bowerman. “Our employees are currently going through training to ensure they will be licensed and ready to go starting January 1.”
Bowerman added that all company employees involved in mold remediation work were already certified through the Institute of Inspection Cleaning & Restoration Certificate (IICRC). The IICRC is the best-known certification organization for the cleaning and restoration industry and has a presence in 25 countries worldwide.
Michael Bowerman also expressed several concerns about the new law, including that it could lead to higher insurance premiums for homeowners:
“This new law could significantly raise insurance premiums for New York homeowners. Additionally, homeowners will now have to hire a licensed mold assessor/hygienist to write a remediation plan before and do post clearance verification after the actual job. This could cost upwards of $1000-1500 depending on the size of the job. The extra costs will be felt by building owners, insurance companies, and homeowners.”
Bowerman also expressed his dissatisfaction over the timing of the law, which gives New York mold remediation companies just a few weeks to train and certify their employees in order to be compliant:
“Ultimately, the lack of detailed information is my main concern. Our company is fully prepared to comply with the new certification systems – we just need to know what those systems are. And, since the details of the law were just recently announced, some mold remediation companies may not be able to undergo training in time – especially since schools just began offering courses in November.”
Bowerman emphasized that despite the perceived shortcomings in the law, Bowerman Cleaning & Restoration would be ready to go starting on January 1, 2016.
About Bowerman Cleaning & Restoration
Bowerman Cleaning & Restoration is a cleaning and disaster restorationcompany based in Elmsford, New York. The company offers a variety of cleaning and restoration services including mold remediation throughout Westchester, Bronx, Putnam, Rockland, and Fairfield Counties.
