The Texas Electrical Safety and Licensing Act requires TDLR to adopt the revised National Electrical Code (NEC) as the electrical code for the state of Texas. In August 2017, the Texas Commission of Licensing & Regulation, TDLR’s governing body, adopted amendments to Chapter 73.100 of the Electricians Administrative Rules and established the 2017 NEC as the “minimum standard” for all electrical work in Texas covered by the Act. The effective date of the adoption was September 15, 2017.
Chapter 1305.201 of the Act provides municipalities the authority to make local amendments to the 2017 NEC; however, any proposal to amend these standards should be done in accordance with NEC 90.4 which stipulates, “the authority having jurisdiction may waive specific requirements in this Code or permit alternative methods where it is assured that equivalent objectives can be achieved by establishing and maintaining effective safety.”
Expectations are that any non-exempt electrical work started on or after September 15, 2017 will be installed in accordance with the 2017 NEC. The “start” of electrical work is the day the electrician begins installing electrical materials or equipment within the residential or commercial building structure. Inside the corporate limits of a municipality, electricians must abide by city permitting requirements and adhere to any local code amendments.
Beginning October 1, 2017, all examinations for state electrical licenses are based on the 2017 NEC. The state electrical exams are available through PSI, who contracts with TDLR to develop, maintain, and administer the state electrician licensing examinations. License candidates should review the Candidate Information Bulletin (CIB) which contains detailed information regarding the examinations that is vital to understanding the examination process.