SB-1222, As Passed House, June 29, 2004                                     

SUBSTITUTE FOR

SENATE BILL NO. 1222

                                                                             A bill to amend 1965 PA 285, entitled                                             

"Private detective license act,"                                            

by amending sections 9, 11, and 26 (MCL 338.829, 338.831, and               

338.846), as amended by 2002 PA 474.                                        

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

1       Sec. 9.  (1) The department, when satisfied of the                          

2   competency and integrity of the applicant, or if the applicant is           

3   a firm, partnership, company, limited liability company, or                 

4   corporation, of its individual members or officers, shall issue             

5   to the applicant a license upon the applicant's paying to the               

6   department an application processing fee of $150.00 and an                  

7   initial license fee of $600.00.  The applicant shall execute,               

8   deliver, and file with the department a bond in the sum of                  

9   $10,000.00, conditioned for the faithful and honest conduct of              

10  the business by the applicant, which bond shall be approved by              

1   the department.  The license is valid for 3 years but is subject            

2   to suspension or revocation at all times by the department for              

3   cause shown.  The bonds shall be taken in the name of the people            

4   of the state, and any person injured by the willful, malicious,             

5   and wrongful act of the principal may bring an action on the bond           

6   or insurance in his or her own name to recover damages suffered             

7   by reason of such willful, malicious, and wrongful act.  In lieu            

8   of a bond, the applicant may furnish a policy of insurance issued           

9   by an insurer authorized to do business in this state naming the            

10  licensee and the state as co-insured in the amount of $10,000.00            

11  for property damages, $100,000.00 for injury or death of 1                  

12  person, and $200,000.00 for injuries to or deaths of more than 1            

13  person arising out of the operation of the licensed activity.               

14  The license shall be in a form to be prescribed by the department           

15  and shall specify the full name of the applicant, the location of           

16  the principal office or place of business and the location of the           

17  bureau, agency, subagency, office or branch office for which the            

18  license is issued, the expiration date, and the name of the                 

19  person filing the statement required by this act upon which the             

20  license is issued.                                                          

21      (2) A licensee desiring to open a branch office or subagency                

22  shall receive a license for that branch or subagency upon payment           

23  to the department of an additional fee of $125.00 for each                  

24  additional license.  The additional license shall be posted in a            

25  conspicuous place in the branch office or subagency and expires             

26  on the date of the initial license.                                         

27      (3) If the license is suspended or revoked for any cause, the               

1   department shall not refund the license or application processing           

2   fee or any part of the license or application processing fee.               

3   (4) The changes regarding license and application fees                      

4   contained in subsection (1) do not require a person, firm,                  

5   partnership, company, limited liability company, or corporation             

6   holding a license under this act on the effective date of the               

7   amendatory act that added this subsection to pay the application            

8   processing and initial license fee imposed by the amendatory act            

9   that added this subsection.  A person, firm, partnership,                   

10  company, limited liability company, or corporation holding a                

11  license on the effective date of the amendatory act that added              

12  this subsection is only obligated to pay the renewal fee                    

13  described in section 26(1).

14  (4) Beginning the effective date of the amendatory act that                 

15  added this subsection, the department shall issue an initial or             

16  renewal license not later than 90 days after the applicant files            

17  a completed application.  Receipt of the application is                     

18  considered the date the application is received by any agency or            

19  department of the state of Michigan.  If the application is                 

20  considered incomplete by the department, the department shall               

21  notify the applicant in writing, or make information                        

22  electronically available, within 30 days after receipt of the               

23  incomplete application, describing the deficiency and requesting            

24  the additional information.  The 90-day period is tolled upon               

25  notification by the department of a deficiency until the date the           

26  requested information is received by the department.  The                   

27  determination of the completeness of an application does not                

1   operate as an approval of the application for the license and               

2   does not confer eligibility of an applicant determined otherwise            

3   ineligible for issuance of a license.                                       

4       (5) If the department fails to issue or deny a license within               

5   the time required by this section, the department shall return              

6   the license fee and shall reduce the license fee for the                    

7   applicant's next renewal application, if any, by 15%.  The                  

8   failure to issue a license within the time required under this              

9   section does not allow the department to otherwise delay the                

10  processing of the application, and that application, upon                   

11  completion, shall be placed in sequence with other completed                

12  applications received at that same time.  The department shall              

13  not discriminate against an applicant in the processing of the              

14  application based upon the fact that the license fee was refunded           

15  or discounted under this subsection.                                        

16      (6) Beginning October 1, 2005, the director of the department               

17  shall submit a report by December 1 of each year to the standing            

18  committees and appropriations subcommittees of the senate and               

19  house of representatives concerned with occupational issues.  The           

20  director shall include all of the following information in the              

21  report concerning the preceding fiscal year:                                

22      (a) The number of initial and renewal applications the                      

23  department received and completed within the 90-day time period             

24  described in subsection (4).                                                

25      (b) The number of applications denied.                                      

26      (c) The number of applicants not issued a license within the                

27  90-day time period and the amount of money returned to licensees            

1   and registrants under subsection (5).                                       

2       (7) As used in this section and section 26, "completed                      

3   application" means an application complete on its face and                  

4   submitted with any applicable licensing fees as well as any other           

5   information, records, approval, security, or similar item                   

6   required by law or rule from a local unit of government, a                  

7   federal agency, or a private entity but not from another                    

8   department or agency of the state of Michigan.

9       Sec. 11.  The department shall not refund a license fee                     

10  unless a showing is made of mistake, inadvertence,  or  error in            

11  the collection of the fee, or noncompliance with the time periods           

12  described in section 9(4).                                                  

13      Sec. 26.  (1) A license granted under this act may be                       

14  renewed upon application and the payment of a renewal fee of                

15  $300.00, unless reduced under section 9(5), and filing of a                 

16  renewal surety bond or liability insurance policy in the amount             

17  equivalent to that specified in section 9.                                  

18      (2) A renewal license shall be dated as of the expiration                   

19  date of the previously existing license.  For the renewal of a              

20  license, the licensee shall submit an application in such form as           

21  prescribed by the department.  Upon receipt of a completed                  

22  application, payment of the renewal fee subject to section 9(5),            

23  and proof acceptable to the department of bond or insurance, the            

24  department shall renew a license.  The department may defer the             

25  renewal if there are uninvestigated complaints then outstanding             

26  against the licensee or if there is a criminal complaint then               

27  pending against the licensee.