PSA: Found out most cities don't require drafters to be licensed

I was digging into job requirements for a gig in Phoenix last week and stumbled onto some data that caught me off guard. Only about 20 states actually have any kind of licensing rules for drafters, and even then it's usually just for certain types of work like structural or MEP plans. Made me wonder if I should even bother keeping up my certification from 2018. Has anyone else run into this and just decided to skip the extra paperwork?

3 comments

3 Comments

susan13027d ago

Honestly doubt it matters that much, most places just want you to know the software and not burn the building down.

the_robert27d ago

My old boss made us take a full day long fire safety course before he'd even show us the copier.

rubys8015d ago

Jump right into what susan130 said about not burning the building down lol. @the_robert would've had a field day with that fire safety course if he saw some of the drafting mistakes I've fixed. But seriously, most code enforcement barely checks who drew the plans anyway, especially for small residential stuff. I've seen guys with zero certs submit perfectly solid framing layouts while some licensed drafters mess up load paths. The real risk is if something collapses and they trace it back to an unlicensed drafter then you're looking at legal trouble plus a bad reputation.