Minnesota sees an outpouring of interest in alarm licensing exam

March 6, 2003 ST. PAUL, Minn. - Although Minnesota’s Alarm & Communication Contractors License is scheduled to expire at the end of April and be replaced with a new law, its termination may be delayed because so many people are showing interest in taking the A&C exam. According to John Schultz, executive secretary of the Minnesota Board of Electricity, the agency is receiving more than 100 applicants per day from people who want to take the A&C exam. By taking the A&C exam now, those who pass it and pay a $30 application fee can convert that license into the new license without needing to take another exam or meet other requirements. The new licensing requirements for a Technology System Contractor and Power Limited Technology calls for a new test and 36-months of occupational experience, along with other items. “ What’s happening is that every low voltage company, regardless of what business they do, are having all their technicians take it,” said Russ Ernst, immediate past president of the Minnesota Burglar and Fire Alarm Association and chairman of its legislative committee. “The state expects they’ll have 7,000 taking the test.” To accommodate those interested, Schultz said the state will likely extend the April 30 deadline for taking the A&C exam. Ernst said a new legislative initiative, that he characterized as a clean-up bill, is now underway. If passed, it would extend the A&C exam deadline to June 30. “ That’s dynamite,” said Ernst about the outpouring of interest. “That’s more competition.”