Mike Holt’s State Rating of the Electrical Industry - 2014
As part of our ongoing commitment to safety in the electrical community, we annually update our report that assigns a safety grade to each of the U.S. states based on points* for state-wide adoption and enforcement of the following electrical standards:
- The most current NEC®
- State licensing requirements for Apprentice, Journeyman, Master, Contractor, Inspector, Engineer
- Continuing Education requirements for license renewal
THE CURRENT NEC®
The 2014 NEC® became effective on August 21, 2013. Congratulations to the two states that have taken the lead with early implementation:
Massachusetts – effective January 1, 2014
Nebraska – effective April 2, 2014
For this report, we have assigned points to those states that have already voted to adopt the 2014 NEC® and have set an implementation date. These states are Colorado, Idaho, Kentucky, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Texas and Washington.
There are also several states that have commenced the review process to update administrative rules to reference the 2014 NEC®. The list of states can be found on The Electrical Code Coalition (ECC) web page by following this link: http://www.electricalcodecoalition.org/state-adoptions.aspx. We have indicated these states by showing the projected effective dates in the chart below.
“A+” [HIGHEST] RANKING
Maine, Nebraska and South Dakota - a ‘full house” of points due to adoption of the 2014 NEC®, and meeting the state mandated requirements on all the categories evaluated for this analysis.
HERE’S THE RANKING
Click Here for a complete history since 2007, and details of how the points are assigned.
STATE |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
2014 change |
WHAT UPDATED SINCE 2013 REPORT
[Note: -1 will show for any state that has not adopted 2014 NEC, and has no other change] |
ALABAMA |
C- |
B- |
C+ |
-1 |
|
ALASKA |
A- |
A+ |
A |
-1 |
|
ARIZONA |
D |
D |
F |
-1 |
|
ARKANSAS |
A- |
A+ |
A |
-1 |
|
CALIFORNIA |
A- |
A- |
A- |
0 |
2011NEC 1/1/14 |
COLORADO |
B |
B+ |
B+ |
0 |
2014 NEC effective 7/1/14 |
CONNECTICUT |
B+ |
B+ |
A- |
+1 |
2011NEC 2/28/14; CC program for electricians |
DC |
C |
C |
C+ |
+1 |
2011 NEC 3/28/14; INSP req. certification |
DELAWARE |
A- |
A |
A- |
-1 |
|
FLORIDA |
B |
B |
B- |
-1 |
|
GEORGIA |
C+ |
B- |
C+ |
-1 |
Projected 2014 NEC effective 1/1/15 |
HAWAII |
C |
B- |
C+ |
-1 |
|
IDAHO |
A- |
A- |
A |
+1 |
2014 NEC eff. 7/1/14 [from 2008 NEC] |
ILLINOIS |
D+ |
D+ |
D |
-1 |
|
INDIANA |
C- |
C- |
D+ |
-1 |
|
IOWA |
A |
A+ |
A |
-1 |
Projected 2014 NEC effective 1/1/15 |
KANSAS |
D |
D |
F |
-1 |
|
KENTUCKY |
A- |
A |
A |
0 |
2014 NEC effective 7/1/14 |
LOUISIANA |
C+ |
B- |
C+ |
-1 |
|
MAINE |
A |
A+ |
A+ |
0 |
2014 NEC effective 7/1/14 |
MARYLAND |
D+ |
C- |
D+ |
-1 |
|
MASSACHUSETTS |
A |
A |
A |
0 |
2014 NEC as of 1/1/14 |
MICHIGAN |
A- |
A- |
A |
+1 |
2011 NEC as of 7/1/13; Engineer CE req. |
MINNESOTA |
A+ |
A+ |
A |
-1 |
Projected 2014 NEC effective 7/1/14 |
MISSISSIPPI |
D+ |
D+ |
D |
-1 |
|
MISSOURI |
D |
D |
F |
-1 |
|
MONTANA |
A- |
A |
A- |
-1 |
Projected 2014 NEC effective 9/1/14 |
NEBRASKA |
A |
A |
A+ |
+1 |
2014 NEC as of 4/9/14; INSP req. CEUs |
NEVADA |
D+ |
D+ |
D |
-1 |
|
NEW HAMPSHIRE |
A- |
A- |
A- |
0 |
2014 NEC effective 1/1/15 |
NEW JERSEY |
A- |
A |
A- |
-1 |
|
NEW MEXICO |
B+ |
A- |
B+ |
-1 |
Projected 2014 NEC effective 7/1/14 |
NEW YORK |
C- |
C- |
D+ |
-1 |
|
NORTH CAROLINA |
B |
B+ |
B |
-1 |
|
NORTH DAKOTA |
A+ |
A+ |
A |
-1 |
Projected 2014 NEC effective 9/1/14 |
OHIO |
B |
B+ |
B |
-1 |
Projected 2014 NEC effective 1/1/15 |
OKLAHOMA |
A |
A+ |
A |
-1 |
|
OREGON |
A+ |
A+ |
A |
-1 |
Projected 2014 NEC effective 10/1/14 |
PENNSYLVANIA |
C |
C+ |
C |
-1 |
|
RHODE ISLAND |
A |
A |
A |
0 |
2014 NEC effective 7/1/14 |
SOUTH CAROLINA |
B- |
B- |
B- |
0 |
2011 NEC as of 7/1/13 |
SOUTH DAKOTA |
A+ |
A+ |
A+ |
0 |
2014 NEC effective 7/1/14 |
TENNESSEE |
B- |
B |
B- |
-1 |
|
TEXAS |
A- |
A- |
A- |
0 |
2014 NEC effective 9/1/14 |
UTAH |
A- |
A+ |
A |
-1 |
|
VERMONT |
A |
A |
A- |
-1 |
Projected 2014 NEC effective 6/1/14 |
VIRGINIA |
A- |
A- |
B+ |
-1 |
|
WASHINGTON |
A- |
A- |
A |
+1 |
2014 NEC effective 7/1/14 [from 2008NEC] |
WEST VIRGINIA |
B |
B |
B |
0 |
2011 NEC as of 9/1/13 |
WISCONSIN |
C |
A- |
A- |
0 |
2011 NEC as of 12/1/13 |
WYOMING |
A+ |
A+ |
A |
-1 |
Projected 2014 NEC effective 7/1/14 |
*HOW THE POINTS ARE ASSIGNED
One point is assigned to each element of the licensing type, and one point for each element of the continuing education requirements for that license type. To see details of the points behind the grades Click Here
The number of points assigned for adoption of the most current NEC is 3. This year 2014 NEC=3 points, 2011 NEC=2 points, 2008 NEC=1 point, 2005 NEC = 0 and prior NEC or local adoption = -1 point. States that have not adopted a newer edition of the NEC since the last report will automatically slide down one point due to the new scale.
Important note: We know that there are many safe counties and municipalities that take licensing and enforcement seriously. This will not be reflected in the data reported here because this analysis is based on a uniform standard that is the State adoption of the requirements, regardless of whether local counties and municipalities have their own high standards.
WE APPRECIATE YOUR FEEDBACK!
If you have any updated information that you feel would change our rankings on this year’s report, please post your comment – we appreciate your feedback to help keep this analysis accurate and current.
ARCHIVE OF PAST REPORTS
2013 Data
2012 Data
2010 Data
2009 Data
2007 Data
We acknowledge and congratulate all those states, counties and local municipalities that continue to set high standards in electrical safety.
NEC® is a registered trademark of the National Fire Protection Agency.
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