GA Code § 43-41-2 (2021)
2021 Georgia Code|Title 43 - Professions and Businesses|Chapter 41 - Residential and General Contractors|§ 43-41-2. Definitions

 As used in this chapter, the term:    "Board" means the State Licensing Board for Residential and General Contractors.   "Business organization" means any partnership, corporation, limited liability entity, business trust, joint venture, or other legal entity, other than an individual person, doing business or seeking, offering, or contracting to do business as a contractor or otherwise performing or acting as a contractor as defined in this Code section.   "Contracting" means performing or causing to be performed any of the activities set forth in paragraphs (4), (5), (9), (10), and (11) of this Code section which define the types of contractors. The offering of contracting services and the negotiation of or bid or proposal for engagement or a contract requiring performance of these services also constitutes contracting.   "Contractor," except as specifically exempted by this chapter, means a person who is qualified, or required to be qualified, under this chapter and who, for compensation, contracts to, offers to undertake or undertakes to, submits a bid or a proposal to, or personally or by others performs the construction or the management of the construction for an owner of any building, bridge, or other structure, including a person who installs industrialized buildings as defined in paragraphs (3) and (4) of Code Section 8-2-111, for the construction or improvement of, addition to, or the repair, alteration, or remodeling of any such building, bridge, or structure for use by the owner or by others or for resale to others. The term "contractor" for purposes of this chapter shall include a person who contracts to, undertakes to, or submits a bid or proposal to perform, or otherwise does himself or herself perform, for an owner:   Construction management services relative to the performance by others of such construction activities where the person performing such construction management services is at risk contractually to the owner for the performance and cost of the construction; and   Services of a contractor as part of performance of design-build services, whether as a prime contractor, joint venture partner, or as a subcontractor to a design professional acting as prime contractor as part of a design-build entity or combination.  Both residential and general contractors, in addition to contractors licensed under Chapter 14 of this title to perform such work or any component thereof, shall be permitted to construct storm-water management systems comprising any storm-water conveyance or storm-water detention facility that moves storm or surface water from a specific point on a wholly contained construction project site to another specific point on the same project site and which are wholly contained within the project site and are not part of or connected to any public or private water treatment system, waste-water treatment system, or storm-water system.      "General contractor" means a contractor whose services are unlimited as to the type of work which he or she may do, subject to the financial limitations as may be imposed by a subclassification created pursuant to paragraph (8) of subsection (b) of Code Section 43-41-5, and who may contract for, undertake to perform, submit a bid or a proposal or otherwise offer to perform, and perform any activity or work as a contractor requiring licensure under this chapter including within its scope any work requiring licensure under Chapter 14 of this title; provided, however, that any work contractually undertaken by a general contractor in the nature of electrical contracting, plumbing, conditioned air contracting, low voltage contracting, or utility contracting which falls within the licensing requirements of Chapter 14 of this title may not be performed by the general contractor but shall only be performed by a person who is duly licensed to perform such work under Chapter 14 of this title. The construction of all private, commercial, institutional, industrial, public, and other buildings and structures under contract with or engagement directly by an owner shall be undertaken by a general contractor, except as otherwise expressly set forth in or excluded from operation of this chapter.   An "owner" of real property means a person or entity that has a majority ownership interest in the real property to be improved and for whom an improvement is made or who contracts with or engages, directly or through an agent, the contractor to perform the construction work or services.   "Qualifying agent" means a person who possesses the requisite skill, knowledge, and experience and has the responsibility to supervise, direct, manage, and control all of the contracting activities within the State of Georgia of a contractor doing business in the form of a business organization, with which he or she is affiliated by employment or ownership; who has the responsibility to supervise, direct, manage, and control construction activities on any project for which he or she has obtained the building permit pursuant to Code Section 43-41-14; and whose technical and personal qualifications have been determined by investigation and examination as provided in this chapter, except as exempted under Code Section 43-41-8, as attested by the division.   "Real property" means the real estate, or an interest therein, that is improved, including leaseholds, tenements, and easements, and improvements constructed or placed thereon.   "Residential contractor" means any contractor who may contract for, undertake to perform, submit a bid or a proposal or otherwise offer to perform, and perform any activity or work as a contractor requiring licensure under this chapter for a fixed price, commission, fee, wage, or other compensation or who undertakes any activity or work on his or her own behalf or for any person or business organization that is not licensed as a licensed residential contractor pursuant to this chapter where such activity or work falls into the category of residential-basic contractor or residential-light commercial contractor as defined in this Code section and where the total value of the work or activity or of the compensation to be received by the contractor for such activity or work, whichever is the higher, exceeds $2,500.00. The term "residential contractor" shall include both a residential-basic contractor and a residential-light commercial contractor, except where otherwise expressly stated. The work or activity performed by a residential contractor may include within its scope any work requiring licensure under Chapter 14 of this title; provided, however, that any work contractually undertaken by a residential contractor in the nature of electrical contracting, plumbing, conditioned air contracting, low voltage contracting, or utility contracting which falls within the licensing requirements of Chapter 14 of this title may not be performed by the residential contractor but shall only be performed by a person who is duly licensed to perform such work under Chapter 14 of this title.   "Residential-basic contractor" means and encompasses a person who performs contractor work or activity relative to detached one-family and two-family residences and one-family townhouses not over three stories in height and their accessory buildings and structures.   "Residential-light commercial contractor" means and encompasses a person who performs any contractor work or activity performed by a residential-basic contractor and, additionally, shall include such contractor work or activity related to multifamily and multiuse light commercial buildings and structures, and their related accessory buildings and structures, which are less than four stories in height; less than 25,000 square feet in aggregate interior floor space, except as otherwise provided in this chapter; and are constructed of wood or light gauge metal frame, brick veneer, prefabricated, or manufactured type of construction; or are preengineered steel buildings not exceeding 50,000 square feet of interior floor space; provided that such buildings or structures are not of the type of building or structure that would constitute a special hazard to property or to life and safety of persons as defined in subparagraphs (A), (C), (D), (E), (F), (G), (G.1), (H), (I), and (J) and subparagraph (B), as it applies to a building of four or more stories, of paragraph (1) of subsection (b) of Code Section 25-2-13.   "Specialty contractor" means a contractor whose scope of work and responsibility is of limited scope dealing with only a specific trade and directly related and ancillary work and whose performance is limited to such specialty construction work requiring special skill and requiring specialized building trades or crafts, including, but not limited to, such activities, work, or services requiring licensure under Chapter 14 of this title.     (Code 1981, §43-41-2, enacted by Ga. L. 2004, p. 786, § 1; Ga. L. 2007, p. 569, § 1/SB 115; Ga. L. 2008, p. 324, § 43/SB 455.)   Code Commission notes.   - Pursuant to Code Section 28-9-5, in 2021, a period was substituted for a semicolon at the end of paragraph (10).   JUDICIAL DECISIONS   Contractors.    - Construction contract was not enforceable in law or in equity because O.C.G.A. § 43-41-2, defining contractors, would not be construed to mean that a person was a contractor only if the person had contractual risk to the owner for the performance and cost of the construction; the appellee was a contractor and was required to have a license as the appellee entered into a contract with the appellants to perform construction or improvement to two properties; the appellee did not have a contractor's license; and, even if all of the work done by the appellee was repair work, the exception regarding repair work did not apply as the appellee did not disclose to the appellants that the appellee did not hold a contractor's license. Fleetwood v. Lucas, 354 Ga. App. 320, 840 S.E.2d 720 (2020).   Unlicensed contractor could not recover against homeowner.    - Contractor's suit against a homeowner seeking over $33,000 for remodeling services was subject to summary judgment; the contract was void and unenforceable under O.C.G.A. § 43-41-17(b) because the contract provided for electrical and plumbing work and the contractor did not have licenses for electrical and plumbing work as required by O.C.G.A. § 43-14-8. It was inconsequential whether the contractor met the definition of a "specialty contractor" in O.C.G.A. § 43-41-2(12). Restor-It, Inc. v. Beck, 352 Ga. App. 613, 835 S.E.2d 398 (2019).