10 Unlicensed Contractors Cited In Marin Co. House Painting Sting

NOVATO, CA - Ten unlicensed contractors were cited Thursday for allegedly bidding on a house painting job in Novato, the Contractors State License Board said.

The 10 prospective painters were cited for contracting without a license and false advertising by failing to state they are not licensed, the CSLB said. Eight of the unlicensed contractors allegedly submitted bids for painting work that far exceeded the legal limit before a state contractor's license is required.

The painting bids on the single-family house near Novato High School where the sting took place averaged around $3,300. The other two unlicensed contractors allegedly bid $1,500 for a fence project and $3,300 for a tree removal.

Unlicensed contractors can only perform construction-related jobs of less than $500 for materials and labor, Contractors State License Board spokesman Rick Lopes said.

The Marin County District Attorney's Office participated in the sting. Investigators posing as homeowners compiled a list of unlicensed contractors from Craigslist, business cards and referrals and contacted them for bids on painting, fencing, tree removal and landscaping work.

"This may be the lesson that drives them toward a legitimate career in the contracting industry," the CSLB Registrar Cindi Christenson said. "With a license and working out in the open, it's likely they'll find more jobs, and they'll pay less for a license than they will a fine for unlicensed contracting," Christenson said.

The unlicensed contractors cited in the sting are:

Jesus Magana Barragan, Barragan Tree Service, Sonoma; Giovanny Albert Garcia, Garcia Home Repair, Novato; Isidro Garcia Vidal, Novato; Alirio N. Avila, Avila's Maintenance, Novato; Steven Edmund Peltier, Kentfield; Stephen James Gillis, San Rafael; David Oliver Narin, Novato; Nicholas Michael Epple, Oakland; Victor Mauricio Rodas Mendes, San Pablo; and Dennis Patrick Malone, San Rafael.

They are cited to appear April 20 in Marin County Superior Court.

--Bay City News/Morguefile image