The All-Important Social Safety Net
The All-Important Social Safety Net - Remember, the regulatory state exists to protect you, the citizen. In Kissimmee, Florida, they are especially keen to protect you from unlicensed friends:
Arzoomanian had taken over the home after his mother died in May and had not had time to get homeowners insurance. His 4,000-square-foot shingled roof had taken a beating, and after the numerous Florida contractors he had called said they couldn’t help him immediately, Howell offered to take a week off work to help.
So Arzoomanian paid for the $400 plane ticket and picked up his friend of 15 years at the airport on Aug. 16.
They began repairing the roof the next day.
“The roof was completely damaged,” Howell said. “It needed to be redone. There was a lot of water damage. We caught it in the nick of time. He could have lost his ceilings and his personal effects, stuff that can’t be replaced.”
Three days into the job, Howell was approached by two deputies from the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office and two investigators from the state’s Department of Business and Professional Regulation, who gave him a cease-and-desist order.
Under Florida law, only contractors licensed by the state may engage in roof repair. It carries up to a $5,000 fine. Not to mention that the practice of unlicensed contracting becomes a third-degree felony when the governor has declared a state of emergency.
All this was told to Howell and Arzoomanian during the 45 minutes when the two tried to explain to the officials that he was “just a friend helping a friend,” Arzoomanian said.
Vicious official dumbasses.
Via Reason Express.
