Vetting a Subcontractor in California: License, Bond, Workers' Comp and Real Work
A solar company that brings in a roofer or an electrician puts its own jobs, customers and license behind that sub's paperwork. Five checks cover the risk: the license is active; its class matches the work (C-39 for roofing, C-10 for electrical); the contractor bond is in force; workers' compensation is either insured or legitimately exempt — and an "exempt" sub who shows up with a crew is a problem; and the sub has permitted work of that kind, recently and nearby. All five come from public records: the Contractors State License Board for the first four, city and county permit portals for the last. The free license check in Cali-Graf — the platform built by Cali Energy, a Los Angeles solar and roofing contractor — puts them on one page for about 20,000 solar, roofing and electrical contractors in Southern California, as of October 2026; for anyone else, and before any contract, confirm on cslb.ca.gov.
The five checks
| Check | What to look for | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Status | Active. A suspended license can't legally take new work | CSLB record |
| Class | Roofing — C-39. Electrical — C-10. Solar — C-46, C-10 or B | CSLB record |
| Bond | A contractor bond in force: amount, start date and the bonding company | CSLB record |
| Workers' comp | Insured (insurer and end date), or exempt — declared no employees | CSLB record |
| Real work | Permits for that kind of work, in your area, in the last few years | City and county permit portals |
Suspensions: what actually goes wrong
Among the solar, roofing and electrical licenses in Cali-Graf's directory, 20,030 are active and 895 suspended as of October 2026. The most common reasons are paperwork, not discipline:
| Suspension | Licenses |
|---|---|
| Contractor bond suspended | 508 |
| Workers' comp suspended | 264 |
| Liability insurance suspended | 27 |
A bond or workers' comp lapse can happen between the day you check and the day the crew arrives, so check close to the start date and again for long jobs. A profile shows the date it was last checked against CSLB; the CSLB record is the live source.
Workers' comp: what "exempt" means
Exempt means the contractor told CSLB it has no employees. It's legal for a one-person business — and common: 42% of active licenses in Cali-Graf's directory are exempt. Three things make it matter for a subcontract:
- Roofers can't be exempt. State law doesn't allow the no-employee exemption for C-39 roofing licenses, so a roofer has to carry workers' comp — as do concrete (C-8), HVAC (C-20), asbestos abatement (C-22) and tree service (D-49) licenses.
- An exempt sub with a crew is a red flag. If helpers show up, ask who covers them before work starts.
- The rule is changing. California has set January 1, 2028 as the date workers' comp becomes required for all licensees, employees or not, after delaying it from 2026.
Real work: the check a license can't give you
A license says a company may do the work; permits show that it does. On a Cali-Graf profile, Work history shows permits by year, the kinds of work and the most recent permits with dates and ZIP codes; Where they work shows the jurisdictions and ZIP codes where permits were issued — not the office address. A C-10 electrician with years of panel upgrades in your county is a different hire from one whose last permit was three years ago in another county. Permit coverage depends on which city and county portals are loaded; each profile shows the period for each jurisdiction. Lists are ordered by permitted work, and nobody can pay to appear or move — including Cali Energy, which develops Cali-Graf.
Unlicensed work: the $1,000 line
California's minor-work exemption covers only a job whose total price for labor and materials is under $1,000 and that doesn't need a building permit — and splitting a job into small contracts to stay under it doesn't count. Above that line a license is required, and a contractor who wasn't licensed can't go to court to collect payment for the work. Any solar job needs a permit, so every sub on it needs the right license.
How to run the check in Cali-Graf
Open the license check, type the license number (the first few digits are enough) or words from the business name, and open the profile. The License, bond & insurance card has the status, every class, the bond amount, start date and company, and the workers' comp type, insurer and end date, with a link to the full record on CSLB. Contractors outside the directory — other trades or other parts of the state — are checked directly on the CSLB website. For homeowners checking an installer, the same steps are in how to check a solar contractor's license; the trade-specific checks are in how to check a roofer's license and hiring an electrician for a panel upgrade.
Have the sub's license number? Run the five checks now on one page.
Frequently asked
How do I check a subcontractor's license in California?
What does "exempt from workers' comp" mean on a contractor license?
Can a roofer be exempt from workers' compensation in California?
What license does a solar subcontractor need?
Is work under $1,000 exempt from licensing?
Related reading
Sources & methodology
Product facts on this page come from Cali-Graf's own help center and the pages linked below; figures in examples come from the stated inputs. Features, limits and supported utilities change; each was verified October 16, 2026.
- Cali-Graf — Check a contractor license
- Cali-Graf — How rankings work
- Contractors State License Board — License check
- California Business & Professions Code §7125 — workers' compensation certificate and exemption
- California Business & Professions Code §7048 — minor work exemption
- California Business & Professions Code §7031 — unlicensed contractors and compensation
- Contractors State License Board — Workers' compensation stakeholder meeting packet, November 2024
Check your next sub before the contract
Type the license number into Cali-Graf's license check: status, classes, bond, workers' comp and the permits they pulled, on one page with a link to the CSLB record. Cali-Graf is developed by Cali Energy (CSLB #1032379). General information, not legal advice; confirm on cslb.ca.gov before signing.
Prepared by Cali Energy, October 16, 2026. This article is for general educational purposes only and is not legal, tax, financial, engineering, or utility advice. Rates, incentives, codes, permit requirements, equipment specifications, prices, and program terms may change; figures and timelines are estimates, not guarantees. Confirm current requirements with the applicable utility, AHJ, program administrator, manufacturer, or a licensed professional. See our Content Disclaimer. Cali Energy · 19201 Parthenia St, Unit E, Northridge, CA 91324 · CSLB #1032379 (B, C-10, C-39)