Home construction regulators say a new city requirement forcing many Houston builders and remodelers to register with the state will give greater protection to consumers.

Consumer groups are glad to see the new requirement, but they say registering with the Texas Residential Construction Commission won't do much for consumers.

Nevertheless, many of the state's largest cities have been requiring the registration for a while now, said Patrick Fortner, spokesman for the commission, adding that the process adds one more layer of protection for consumers.

In Houston, most builders and remodelers will have to register with state regulators before they can get a permit from the city starting Sept. 18.

The city hopes the requirement will help it screen builders and allow the city to take advantage of the three-year-old commission, said Andy Icken, the city's deputy director of public works.

"We heard about some complaints that had come up with homeowners, and we investigated the process," Icken said, noting the city talked to the commission, the Greater Houston Builders Association and the Better Business Bureau before deciding on the requirement. "They told us the TRCC had a very forthright and robust process in place and had dealt with many problems."

Consumer groups agree the city's check will give the state one more way to prevent the unregistered from building, but they warn consumers not to expect a lot.

"It's worthless and it's meaningless, except cities can say you can't take this permit out unless you're registered," said Janet Ahmad, head of HomeOwners for Better Building. The Better Business Bureau echoed those sentiments, saying that while the registration doesn't give the consumer much power, it's better than nothing.

But Alex Winslow of Texas Watch noted it doesn't take much to be registered in the state. There aren't any tests or continuing education requirements.

"It doesn't mean consumers are being protected," Winslow said. "In fact, we think it gives consumers a false sense of security, because all you really have to do is pay a fee and you're registered. There aren't any standards to be met."

Of the builder registration applications, 25,109 have been approved, 40 have been denied and three have been revoked, according to the most recent data available from the commission.

Consumer groups have long said the commission was created at the behest of builders, for builders.

The 2003 law that created the commission requires home buyers to go through a commission-run inspection and dispute resolution process before they can proceed to binding arbitration or file lawsuits against builders.

Builders, who lobbied heavily for the law, said the process would reduce lawsuits and help resolve disputes quickly and less expensively.

But consumer groups say it created a powerless agency and an expensive and bureaucratic roadblock for homeowners seeking help.

Currently the agency can assess fees capped at $5,000 per violation of commission rules, revoke registrations and can ask the state attorney general to file injunctions against those who violate the rules. But it can't force builders to make repairs to defective homes.

The commission has had 2,364 complaints as of Aug. 24, and 517 have gone through the agency's dispute resolution process. The commission found construction defects in 370 cases, and 104 are still open.

Fortner said the agency has been stepping up enforcement efforts in the past year and is "going after every case we feel we have statutory authority to pursue."

But some lawmakers recognize that authority doesn't go very far.

"I'm interested in giving the commission more teeth to do their job and get the bad builders out," said state Rep. Allan Ritter, D-Nederland, who sponsored the bill that created the commission in 2003. He added that he's working on a bill to give the agency more power.

This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/4162878.html