Slab to Statute

Welcome #

This wiki takes you from zero construction-industry knowledge to a passing score on the Louisiana contractor licensing exams. It assumes nothing. If you have never read a statute, never poured a slab, and never priced a job, you are the reader it was written for.

Louisiana licenses contractors through the Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors (LSLBC). To get a commercial general contractor license, one person at your company, called the qualifying party, must pass two exams: the Business and Law exam and a trade exam in your classification. Both are open book. Both are passable by a prepared novice. This wiki teaches the content of both, plus the licensing system that wraps around them.

How to use this wiki

• Part I, The System. Who needs a license, how to apply, and what the exams look like. Read this first so the rest has a skeleton to hang on.
• Part II, Business & Law. The eleven content domains of the Business and Law exam, from entity choice to lien deadlines to OSHA fines.
• Part III, The Trade Exam. The technical knowledge on the Building Construction and Residential trade exams: dirt, concrete, block, steel, wood, roofs, and the safety numbers.
• Part IV, Passing It. Open-book strategy, an eight-week study plan, a scored practice exam, and every primary source in one place.
• The flashcard deck. A companion page with the numbers, deadlines, and dollar figures drilled as tap-to-flip cards. Use it daily once you finish a chapter.

Why Louisiana licenses contractors #

This chapter explains where the licensing system came from and why it is shaped the way it is. Knowing the "why" makes the rules easier to remember, and the exam writers pull questions straight from the purpose language.

The origin

The Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors was created in 1956 by Act No. 233 of the regular legislative session (LSLBC, About Us). The legislature's stated purpose, codified at R.S. 37:2150, is "the protection of the health, safety, and general welfare of all those persons dealing with persons engaged in the contracting vocation," giving the public "an effective and practical protection against the incompetent, inexperienced, unlawful, and fraudulent acts of contractors."

In plain terms: construction defects are expensive and often hidden until it is too late. A homeowner cannot inspect a foundation after the slab is poured, and cannot judge a contractor's finances before handing over a deposit. Licensing substitutes the state's up-front screening, an exam, a minimum net worth, and insurance, for due diligence the buyer cannot realistically do alone. It also gives the buyer remedies after the fact: board discipline, fines, and criminal penalties.

Why the thresholds scale the way they do

The statute never says why the dollar lines sit where they sit, but the structure follows one principle: regulatory burden scales with the risk of the transaction. Small jobs (under $7,500 home repair, under $10,000 electrical, mechanical, or plumbing work) are left to market forces and local permits, because state licensure would cost more than the work is worth. The $50,000 commercial line catches projects big enough that a failure seriously hurts an owner. And hazardous-materials work is licensed from one dollar, because the harm from mishandled asbestos does not shrink with contract size. A small abatement job done wrong is exactly as dangerous as a large one.

A system that grows by scar tissue

The licensing law has been amended in more than sixty separate acts since 1956, and the pattern is consistent: each wave of amendments answers a new material, trade, or fraud pattern. Hazardous-materials licensing followed federal and state environmental law, layered on Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) credentials. Mold remediation became its own classification after hurricane seasons made mold fraud a statewide problem. Solar-equipment rules arrived in 2014 (Act 862) as rooftop panels spread. Most recently, Acts 239 and 422 of 2025 created a Residential Roofing classification (effective January 1, 2026) and mandatory roofing permits and inspections (effective August 1, 2025), a direct response to post-hurricane storm-chaser fraud (LSLBC memo, Aug 2025).

Why the exams are open book

A working contractor always has references at hand: the statute, the code, the contract. The state cares whether you can find and correctly apply the rule under time pressure, not whether you memorized it. So the exam hands you the book and tests navigation and judgment. (This rationale is the standard one licensing boards give nationally; Louisiana's statute does not state it explicitly.) The practical consequence for you: preparing the book, tabbing it, and knowing its structure is half the exam. Part IV teaches exactly that.

Who needs a license #

This chapter answers the most-tested fact pattern on the whole exam: which jobs require which license, at what dollar value. Every value counts labor, materials, rentals, and all direct and indirect expenses (R.S. 37:2150.1(3)).

What counts as commercial

"Commercial" is defined by exclusion: everything that is not a residence. The statutory definition of a residential structure covers a building intended primarily as a residence with no more than four separate dwelling units per the statute text, though the Board's FAQ paraphrases it as two. The statute is the safer answer; a five-plex is commercial either way.

The nine major classifications

Louisiana licenses by classification under R.S. 37:2156.1 and LAC 46:XXIX §301: Building Construction; Highway, Street and Bridge; Heavy Construction; Municipal and Public Works; Electrical; Mechanical; Plumbing; Hazardous Materials; and Residential Construction. Mold Remediation functions as a tenth, freestanding classification (24 hours of approved training instead of a written exam).

Building Construction is the commercial general contractor ticket. It covers building, repair, raising, leveling, development, and demolition of structures, and a holder may self-perform its roughly 27 subclassifications (drywall, roofing, masonry, steel erection, painting, foundations, pile driving, and more) without separate licenses. Residential Construction does not work that way: a residential licensee still needs the specific classification for electrical, mechanical, plumbing, mold, or hazardous-materials scopes. That asymmetry is a favorite exam question.

Home Improvement is a registration, not a license. No exam is required, only registration, insurance, and a financial statement. Building Construction and Residential Construction licensees are exempt from registering separately.

Who is exempt

R.S. 37:2157 exempts, among others: government entities; regulated utilities; owners supervising work on their own property not for sale or rent; farmers building on their own land; employees of a contractor; and homeowners building their own personal residence, limited to one per year. Landscaping-only and interior painting-only work is exempt from home-improvement registration.

What happens if you skip the license

Unlicensed contracting is a misdemeanor: up to $500 per day of violation or up to three months in jail (R.S. 37:2163). The board can also fine up to 10 percent of the contract value plus costs and attorney fees (R.S. 37:2164), issue cease-and-desist orders, and bar you from applying for a license for up to a year. An unlicensed home-improvement contractor also loses the right to file a lien for unpaid work (R.S. 37:2159(D)). Chapter 05 covers the full enforcement picture.

The application #

This chapter walks the path from "I want a license" to "the Board approved me to test." Everything files online through the LSLBC contractor portal.

What you submit

• Identity and entity. Legal name, EIN, and Social Security numbers and birth dates for all owners, officers, or members and for the qualifying party. Entities (LLCs, corporations) must be active and in good standing with the Louisiana Secretary of State; out-of-state corporations need a certificate of authority first.
• Financial statement. Every applicant submits the LSLBC Financial Statement form, current within twelve months, with its Section A completed by a CPA, accountant, or bookkeeper. The current form (revised September 2025) requires net worth of at least $50,000 for Commercial and Residential applicants (except Labor Only) and $25,000 for Home Improvement, Mold Remediation, and Labor-Only. Short of the floor? An irrevocable letter of credit can cover the difference. Older statute text said $10,000; the form's figures are what the portal enforces today. No fresh financial statement is needed at renewal.
• Insurance. Residential and Home Improvement applicants show workers' compensation coverage plus general liability of at least $100,000. Mold Remediation needs at least $50,000 liability. Straight commercial applicants have no insurance filing requirement at application (workers' comp law still applies to anyone with employees; see Chapter 13).

The qualifying party

Every license names a natural person, the qualifying party, who personally passes the exams. Eligible: a sole proprietor or spouse; an employee with 120 consecutive days of full-time employment immediately before applying; any stockholder, officer, or incorporator; any partner; any LLC member or manager (R.S. 37:2156.1(D)). One person can qualify multiple affiliated companies. If your qualifying party leaves, you must notify the board in writing within 30 days and qualify a replacement within 60 days, or the license faces suspension.

Fees

The statute caps the board's fees at $100 for a license, $100 for renewal, $50 per exam, $50 for home improvement, and up to a $400 surcharge for out-of-state applicants (R.S. 37:2156(C), (D)). Since the August 2025 testing transition, the exam itself is paid to the testing vendor PSI at its own rates: $175 for the Building Construction exam and $140 for the Residential exam per the March 2026 Candidate Information Bulletin. Do not let the two fee schedules confuse you: the statutory numbers are board caps, the PSI numbers are what you actually pay to sit the test. All fees are non-refundable.

Timeline

The board meets at least monthly in Baton Rouge, and its Residential Subcommittee at least every other month, to approve licenses (R.S. 37:2154, 2155). The board publishes no guaranteed processing time; plan on submitting a complete application and resolving deficiencies through the portal. Once approved to test, your eligibility with PSI lasts one year.

Every form named in this chapter is worked field by field, with a filled example and the reasoning behind each, in Chapter 03A.

The portal forms, worked #

This chapter walks every form in the LSLBC licensing system: what it asks, why the Board asks it, and a worked example of what a completed one looks like. The application itself lives in the LSLBC Contractor Portal; the supporting PDFs live in the forms library and inside the portal under Forms.

How the portal flow runs

You file the application online and pay the fees. The Board emails you portal credentials from noreply@lslbc.louisiana.gov. From then on the portal is the whole relationship: you check status there, answer deficiency notices there, upload documents there, and print your certificate there the moment you are approved (What Happens After I Apply). Deficiency notices arrive by email, name the exact missing form, and link the portal. Respond through the portal, not by mail; the Board itself says portal responses process faster. The reasoning behind the whole design: one accountable record per applicant, with every exchange logged.

1. The online application

What it asks. Full legal name (or business name plus EIN), physical and mailing addresses, phone and email, the Secretary of State charter number with active "in good standing" status for entities, parent company name and EIN if one exists, and the Social Security number and date of birth of every owner, officer, partner, member, manager, and qualifying party (LSLBC checklist). Entities upload their organizing documents: articles of incorporation with bylaws, articles of organization with the operating agreement, or the partnership agreement, plus all amendments.

Why. The license attaches to a legal person, so the Board verifies that person exists (Secretary of State standing), who owns and controls it (SSNs and DOBs let the Board run its background and financial reviews), and what its governing documents actually say. Chapter 05's enforcement machinery only works if the Board knows exactly who it licensed.

Worked example. Business name: Bayou Crescent Builders LLC. EIN: 72-1234567. Charter: 12345678K, status Active, In Good Standing. Mailing address: 4500 Example Ave, Baton Rouge, LA 70808. Members listed: Marie Dupre (member/manager, SSN and DOB entered), Paul Dupre (member). Upload: Articles of Organization plus the Operating Agreement. Classification requested: Building Construction. Qualifying party designated: Marie Dupre.

2. The Financial Statement form

What it asks. One page, two sections (Financial Statement PDF, revised September 2025). Section A must be completed by a CPA, accountant, or bookkeeper: name of applicant, date prepared, total assets, total liabilities, net worth. Section B is the certification: the applicant (or an owner or officer, for entities) signs on the left, the preparer prints, signs, and checks their title (CPA, Accountant, or Bookkeeper) on the right, both under penalty of perjury. The information must be current within twelve months of filing.

The minimums, current form. Residential and Commercial applicants (except Labor Only): net worth of at least $50,000. Home Improvement, Mold Remediation, and Commercial Labor-Only: at least $25,000. Fall short and the form allows an irrevocable letter of credit for the difference. Note the history here: the statute text compiled in the 2024 Blue Book said $10,000, and the September 2025 form raised the working requirement to these figures. The form is what the portal enforces today, so plan against $50,000/$25,000 and treat the $10,000 figure as superseded.

Why. Chapter 11 explains the mechanics: construction pays slowly while payroll bills weekly, and undercapitalized contractors fail mid-job, which is exactly the harm licensing exists to prevent. The net-worth floor is the Board's crude but effective working-capital screen, and the third-party preparer requirement stops applicants from grading their own homework.

Worked example. Name of Applicant: Bayou Crescent Builders LLC. Date prepared: 07/10/2026. Total Assets: $142,500 (two trucks, tools, $38,000 operating account, receivables). Total Liabilities: $61,300 (truck note, supplier credit line). NET WORTH: $81,200. Clears the $50,000 commercial floor. Section B: Marie Dupre signs for the LLC; preparer Lynn Boudreaux signs and checks Bookkeeper.

3. The Qualifying Party Application

What it asks (application_QP.pdf, one per qualifying party). Six sections: A, eligibility category (sole proprietor; incorporator, stockholder, or officer; partner; member or manager; or full-time employee as the IRS defines it). B, identity and contact, with the warning that all exam approval letters go to the email listed. C, which classifications this person will represent. D, whether this person represents the company for Louisiana Business and Law, which the form describes as an online course with an exam at its conclusion; every licensee must have at least one Business and Law qualifier, no exceptions. E, three legal questions: unresolved child-support delinquency (disqualifying until resolved), felony or non-traffic misdemeanor convictions (explain), and pending liens or judgments in any state (provide a release or a current payment plan). F, an eight-point affidavit signed under penalty of perjury, covering the duty to notify LSLBC on leaving the company, keeping outside credentials active, monitoring the listed email, reporting address changes within 30 days, and obeying the licensing law. Point 8 applies only to employee qualifiers: the employer also signs, certifying full-time employment.

Why. The qualifying party is the human being whose competence the license borrows, so the Board vets the person, not just the company: the eligibility category enforces the statutory relationship from Chapter 03, the legal questions test fitness and financial entanglements, and the affidavit makes the ongoing duties personally binding. The employer counter-signature exists because employee-qualifier arrangements are where license-renting abuse happens.

Worked example. A: Member or Manager (LLC) checked. B: Marie Dupre, Bayou Crescent Builders LLC, SSN and DOB entered, mailing address in Baton Rouge, email marie@example-bayou.com. C: Building Construction. D: Yes, Marie represents Business and Law. E: No, No, No. F: statements 1 through 7 agreed, printed, signed, dated. Statement 8 skipped because Marie is a member, not an employee.

4. Qualifying Party Verification (portal only)

What it is. After the application names a qualifier, that person receives an email titled "Qualifying Party Verification" with individual portal credentials. The qualifier logs in and completes an online verification, basic information plus an attestation. The Board will not start processing the qualifying-party file until this is done.

Why. It proves the named human actually consented and controls the email that exam approvals go to. Without it, a company could name a qualifier who never agreed to serve.

Example. Marie receives the email, logs in the same day, confirms her identity fields, and attests. Skipping this step is the single most common self-inflicted delay in the process.

5. Certificates of insurance

What is required. Not a form you fill in. Your insurance agent emails certificates to insurance@lslbc.gov showing general liability of at least $100,000 plus workers' compensation for Residential and Home Improvement applicants, or $50,000 plus workers' comp for Mold Remediation. Straight Commercial applicants file none at application (Chapter 03), though the workers' comp law of Chapter 13 still applies once you have an employee.

Why. A license tells consumers the contractor can answer for mistakes. Liability coverage and workers' comp are the two answers that matter most on residential jobs, where the customer is least able to absorb the loss.

Example. Not needed for Bayou Crescent's commercial application. If it later adds a Residential license, its agent sends a certificate naming Bayou Crescent Builders LLC as insured, $100,000 GL, plus its workers' comp policy, direct from the agent's office.

6. Reciprocity Request and Verification of License

What they are. An out-of-state licensee seeking to skip the trade exam submits a Reciprocity Request form that is completed by the reciprocal state's board, plus a Verification of License, requested through the portal. Chapter 04 covers what reciprocity can and cannot waive.

Why. Louisiana will take another state's word that you passed a matching trade exam without waiver, but only in writing, board to board. Nothing waives Business and Law or the financial and insurance requirements.

The fee wrinkle. When no trade exam is needed because of reciprocity, NASCLA credit, or a previously passed exam, LSLBC charges an Exam Research/Waiver Fee of $150 after the qualifier is approved, before they are added to the license (per the January 2026 form revisions).

7. Adding a Classification to an Existing License

What it asks (form PDF). License number and company identity at top, then per classification: the classification name, the qualifying party who will represent it (name, SSN, DOB, email), and whether that person also represents Business and Law. Page 2 asks whether you claim reciprocity or NASCLA, and whether the qualifier is already active on your license; if not, a full Qualifying Party Application rides along. A Business and Law fee of $150 applies when a new Business and Law qualifier is needed; trade exam fees are paid to PSI at registration.

Why. Each classification is a separate competence claim, so each needs a qualified human attached. The form exists so a growing company can widen scope without refiling the whole application.

Example. Two years in, Bayou Crescent wants Highway, Street and Bridge. Form lists the new classification with qualifier Paul Dupre, who must pass that trade exam through PSI; Business and Law box No, because Marie already covers it.

8. Adding a Qualifying Party to an Existing License

What it asks (form PDF). For a classification already on the license: the new qualifier's name, up to six classifications they will represent, the Business and Law question, and the reciprocity/NASCLA question. Each new qualifier also files the full Qualifying Party Application from section 3. This is the form the Board's deficiency emails point to when a renewal or change stalls for want of a qualifier.

Why. Redundancy. Chapter 03's rule gives you only 60 days to replace a departed qualifier, and a company with one qualifier per classification is one resignation away from suspension. Adding a second qualifier before you need one is cheap insurance.

Example. Bayou Crescent adds Paul as a second Building Construction qualifier. Form: Paul Dupre, classification Building Construction, Business and Law No, reciprocity No. Attached: Paul's Qualifying Party Application. Paul takes the trade exam through PSI.

9. Disassociation of a Qualifying Party

What it asks (form PDF). The departing qualifier's name, the date they left, and the classifications they held. Then the pivot question: is another qualifying party already listed for all of those classifications? Yes means stop, you are done, no fee. No means the rest of the form names the replacement, who files their own Qualifying Party Application.

Why. The license borrows its competence from named people, so the Board must know within 30 days when one leaves (Chapter 03) and how the gap will be covered. The stop-here design rewards companies that kept a spare qualifier.

Example. Paul later leaves the company. Form: Paul Dupre, date left 03/15/2028, classification Building Construction. Another qualifier listed for all classifications? Yes, Marie. Stop, sign, submit to licensing@lslbc.gov.

10. Name and/or Structure Change

What it asks (form PDF, $100 fee). Which change you are reporting: name change, ownership change, merger, conversion, state-of-incorporation change, or FEIN change. Every change must be filed with the Louisiana Secretary of State (or the IRS, for FEIN) first, and this form must match those records. Two traps printed on the form: a sole proprietor cannot convert to an LLC or corporation on the same license, that takes a new application; and in a merger, if the surviving entity is unlicensed it must apply fresh, while a non-surviving licensee's license terminates.

Why. The license attaches to a specific legal person. When that person changes identity, the Board re-anchors the record rather than letting the license drift to an entity it never vetted. Sole-proprietor-to-LLC is a new legal person, hence a new application.

Example. Bayou Crescent rebrands to Crescent Gulf Builders LLC. Order of operations: amend with the Secretary of State first, then file this form with the new name, matching SoS records exactly, with the $100 fee.

11. The Self-Reporting Form

What it asks (form PDF). Licensee identity, the reportable event type (arrest, criminal charge or conviction, administrative action by another board, discipline in another jurisdiction, civil judgment or lien, bankruptcy, no-contest plea, other), and the incident details: date, place, court or agency, case number. R.S. 37:2156.2(B) gives every licensee a continuing duty to notify the Board in writing within 30 calendar days of any change to application information and any criminal, civil, or administrative action involving the licensee or any principal.

Why. Licensing is a continuing judgment, not a one-time gate. The Board would rather hear it from you, with your context attached, than from a court record two years later; unreported events look like concealment, which is its own ground for discipline.

Example. A supplier wins a $9,000 judgment against Bayou Crescent in a delivery dispute. Within 30 days: form filed to licensing@lslbc.gov, event type Civil Judgment or Lien, with the docket number and a note that a payment plan is in place and current.

The exams at a glance #

This chapter maps the two exams you must pass, who runs them, and the rules of the room. Since August 5, 2025, all LSLBC exams are administered by PSI Services LLC at in-person, computer-based test centers; there is no remote option (LSLBC, Test Registration). Centers: Baton Rouge (two), Lafayette, Lake Charles/Sulphur, Metairie, Monroe, Pineville/Alexandria, and Shreveport.

A commercial general contractor's qualifying party passes Business & Law plus the Building Construction trade exam. A residential contractor passes Business & Law plus the Residential trade exam, unless the applicant already holds Building Construction, in which case the board exempts the residential test on request (R.S. 37:2156.1(D)(3)). Exams include a 15-minute untimed tutorial and may seed one to ten unscored experimental questions. Per the 2026 LSLBC forms, the Business and Law requirement is delivered as an online course with the 50-question exam at its conclusion.

Room rules that decide outcomes

• Bring your own reference books. Highlight, underline, annotate, and tab them before exam day; you may not write in them during the exam.
• Permanent adhesive tabs only. Sticky notes are prohibited and get removed at check-in.
• No loose papers. Anything printed from the web must be bound or in a binder.
• Calculator: non-programmable, silent, battery powered, no alphabet keys. No scientific calculators.
• One current photo ID with signature; arrive 15 minutes early.

Failing, reviewing, retaking

Fail and you wait 30 days to retake (LAC 46:XXIX §111). If you scored within 10 points of passing, you may request an exam review within 60 days, which then locks you out of retaking for 14 days after the review. A no-show forfeits the fee.

The NASCLA shortcut and reciprocity

Louisiana accepts the NASCLA Accredited Examination for Commercial General Building Contractors in place of its own Building Construction trade exam. NASCLA (the National Association of State Contractors Licensing Agencies) runs one exam accepted by roughly 15 to 18 states, so passing it once opens multi-state doors. Louisiana also holds formal reciprocity agreements with Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Utah, and will consider any state's matching exam score earned without waiver. But hear the statute clearly: reciprocity and NASCLA credit waive only the trade exam. The Louisiana Business & Law exam, the financial statement, insurance, and qualifying-party rules are never waived (R.S. 37:2153(F)(5)).

The licensing law #

This chapter covers what the licensing statute itself demands of a working contractor. The law lives at Louisiana Revised Statutes Title 37, Chapter 24 (R.S. 37:2150 through 2192), compiled with the board's rules in the LSLBC Blue Book, which is a book you can bring to the exam.

The rules that show up on exams and job sites

• License number on the bid (R.S. 37:2165). Bid specifications must require your active license number on the bid envelope, or with the digital signature on an electronic bid. A bid without it is automatically rejected unread. The trap: the number goes on the bid submission itself, not just the later contract.
• Both directions of licensure (R.S. 37:2163). Contracting without a license is unlawful, and a subcontractor who bids to an unlicensed or inactive prime is itself exposed to penalties. Check the license of everyone above and below you on the LSLBC's online lookup.
• Recordkeeping (LAC 46:XXIX §129). Keep all contracts, subcontracts, and compliance records for 5 years and produce them within 72 hours of a board request.
• Change notices (LAC 46:XXIX §107). Report changes of address, officers, ownership, EIN, or qualifying party within 30 days.
• Renewal (R.S. 37:2156(H)). Choose a 1, 2, or 3 year term. Notices go out 60 and 15 days before expiration. Up to 15 days past expiration the board may still renew you at its discretion with a penalty; more than one year lapsed means you start over as a new applicant. Only residential licensees carry continuing education: 6 hours annually (LAC 46:XXIX §505), waived if you also hold an active commercial license.

Discipline

The board may suspend or revoke a license, issue cease-and-desist orders, and debar contractors from public work (R.S. 37:2153, 2158). Grounds that recur in board practice: project abandonment, diverting contract funds or failing to pay labor and suppliers, gross negligence or incompetence, willful departure from plans or code, fraud in obtaining the license, and aiding unlicensed activity.

Penalties, in one table

Business organization #

This chapter covers the four ways to organize a contracting business and the two axes the exam tests them on: personal liability and tax treatment.

An S corporation is a tax election, not an entity type. An eligible corporation or LLC elects S status with the IRS to restore pass-through taxation while keeping the liability shield, and a reasonable-salary-plus-distribution split can trim self-employment tax. The exam pattern: more shield means more paperwork and potential double tax; less structure means more personal exposure.

Estimating & bidding #

This chapter teaches how jobs get priced and how public work gets bid in Louisiana. It contains the single most-missed math on the exam: markup versus margin.

Three estimate types, by precision

• Square-foot estimate. Historical cost per square foot times area. Fast, rough, for feasibility only.
• Unit-price estimate. Cost per unit of work (per cubic yard, per linear foot). Used when quantities are unknown at bid time, common on public infrastructure.
• Detailed takeoff. Count every stud, sheet, fixture, and labor-hour off the plans and price each line. The standard behind a firm lump-sum bid.

Direct costs trace to one job: labor, material, equipment, subs. Indirect costs (overhead) run the company: office rent, staff, insurance, vehicles. Overhead gets allocated across jobs, typically as a percentage of direct or labor cost, so every project carries its share.

Markup vs margin

Markup is a percentage added to cost. Margin is profit as a percentage of price. They are different numbers and the exam exploits the confusion.

Price  = Cost × (1 + markup)
Margin = (Price − Cost) ÷ Price

Job cost $80,000, target 25% MARGIN:
  0.25 = (P − 80,000) ÷ P  →  0.75 P = 80,000  →  P = $106,667

Same cost with 25% MARKUP:
  P = 80,000 × 1.25 = $100,000  →  margin = 20,000 ÷ 100,000 = only 20%

A 25% markup yields a 20% margin. To hit a 25% margin you need a 33.3% markup (0.25 ÷ 0.75). Bidders who treat the words as synonyms systematically underprice their own profit target.

Louisiana Public Bid Law (R.S. 38:2211 et seq.)

• Threshold. Public work above the statutory limit must be advertised and let to the lowest responsible and responsive bidder. The limit is CPI-adjusted annually (reported around $260,000 effective February 2026); confirm the current year's figure with the Legislative Auditor's Public Bid Law FAQ rather than memorizing one.
• Bid security. Certified check, cashier's check, or bid bond, typically not more than 5% of the bid.
• Withdrawal. Bids are held open by the security. The narrow exit: within 48 hours of opening, on clear and convincing sworn written evidence of a patently obvious clerical or mathematical error. Withdraw that way and you cannot re-bid the project or supply the winner.
• Award clock. State agencies award or reject within 30 calendar days, political subdivisions within 45, extendable by mutual written consent.
• License number on the envelope, or the bid is rejected unread (Chapter 05).

Contracts & project management #

This chapter covers contract types, the clauses that allocate risk, scheduling, and retainage. One Louisiana rule here reverses what most national study material teaches.

Contract types and who eats the overrun

• Lump sum. One price for a defined scope. Contractor bears cost overruns; owner gets certainty.
• Cost-plus. Owner reimburses actual cost plus a fee. Owner bears overrun risk.
• Guaranteed maximum price (GMP). Cost-plus with a ceiling; contractor absorbs overruns past the GMP, often with a savings split below it.
• Unit price. Pay per measured unit when quantities are unknown; standard on highway and utility work.

Clauses the exam tests

• Changes. Scope, price, or time move only by written change order. Extra work on a verbal promise is how contractors donate labor: get it signed before the work proceeds.
• Differing site conditions. Allocates risk when subsurface reality differs materially from the documents. Without it, a lump-sum contractor owns the surprise.
• Liquidated damages. A pre-agreed per-day amount for late completion. Enforceable when it is a reasonable pre-estimate of harm, not a penalty.
• Indemnity, the Louisiana reversal. The Construction Anti-Indemnity Act, R.S. 9:2780.1 (contracts from January 1, 2011), makes clauses requiring you to indemnify another party for that party's own negligence null and void, and likewise voids forced insurance for someone else's negligence. National study guides teach that broad-form indemnity is common; in Louisiana it is unenforceable. Expect a question written to catch cold-memory answers.

Critical path scheduling

A Critical Path Method (CPM) schedule links activities by dependency and duration, then finds the longest path through the network. That path sets the minimum project duration, and its activities have zero float: delay any one and the whole job slips. Activities off the path have float and can slip within it. The exam usually asks you to identify the concept, not run a full forward and backward pass.

Retainage

Lien law: the Private Works Act #

This chapter covers the machinery that secures payment on Louisiana jobs: the Private Works Act (R.S. 9:4801 et seq.) for private work, and bond claims under the Public Works Act for public work. The deadlines here are the most memorization-heavy material on the exam. Louisiana calls a lien a "privilege" or "statement of claim"; same animal.

Who can lien, and who cannot

General contractors, subcontractors, laborers, material suppliers, equipment lessors, and design professionals can. Suppliers to suppliers cannot. That exclusion is a stock exam question (Levelset, Louisiana lien FAQ).

The Notice of Contract pivot

Every deadline turns on whether a Notice of Contract was recorded in the parish mortgage records before work began. A GC should record one on any contract over roughly $100,000; it also secures the GC's lien priority.

Notices that come before the lien

• A sub-subcontractor (no contract with the GC) must notify the GC at least 30 days before filing suit, stating the amount and the intermediate sub's name.
• A supplier to a subcontractor (where a Notice of Contract exists) must send nonpayment notice within 75 days after the end of the delivery month.
• Equipment lessors: notice within 30 days of placing equipment on site. Design professionals: within 30 days of engagement.

The claim itself must be written, signed, describe the property by full legal description, and state the amount and nature of the debt. Once filed, you must sue to enforce within one year or the privilege lapses.

Public work: bond claims instead of liens

You cannot lien a courthouse. The Public Works Act (R.S. 38:2241 et seq.) substitutes a payment bond: on every public contract over $25,000 the contractor posts a bond of at least 50% of the contract price. The public entity records acceptance within 30 days of completion; claimants then file a sworn statement of amount due within 45 days of that recordation. Same tiering logic as private work, different remedy.

Warranty & payment law #

This chapter covers two statutes with numbers the exam tests cold: the New Home Warranty Act's 1/2/5 structure and the prompt-payment penalty formula.

The New Home Warranty Act (R.S. 9:3141 et seq.)

Every new home in Louisiana carries a mandatory statutory warranty that cannot be waived by contract (LSLBC, NHWA text). Three tiers, all running from the warranty commencement date (generally closing or occupancy):

Prompt payment

Both prompt-pay statutes share one penalty architecture: 0.5% per day, capped at 15% of the amount due, plus reasonable attorney fees. What differs is the trigger.

• Private jobs (R.S. 9:2784, excludes residential). When a contractor receives payment from the owner, it must pay its subs and suppliers within 14 consecutive days. Miss it without reasonable cause and the penalty formula runs. File a meritless claim and the fee-shifting reverses onto you.
• Public jobs (R.S. 38:2191). Progress payments as they come due; final payment including retainage within 45 days of a certified request or clear lien certificate. A public entity that misses the window owes the same 0.5%/day, 15% cap, plus fees.

Financial management #

This chapter covers the accounting concepts on the exam and the one that kills real contractors: cash flow.

The two statements

• Balance sheet. A snapshot at one moment: Assets = Liabilities + Owner's Equity. What you own and owe right now. This is where the LSLBC's $10,000 net-worth requirement is read from.
• Income statement (profit and loss). A flow over a period: Revenue − Expenses = Net Income. Whether you made money over the quarter or year.

Working capital = Current Assets − Current Liabilities. It is the cushion that pays crews and suppliers while you wait on draws. Thin working capital is the most common cause of contractor failure, because construction pays slowly (monthly draws, retainage held to the end) while payroll bills weekly.

Revenue recognition on long jobs

• Percentage-of-completion (PCM). Recognize revenue and profit as the job progresses, in proportion to cost incurred versus total estimated cost. Smooths income and is what the IRS generally requires for long-term construction contracts.
• Completed-contract (CCM). Defer everything until the job finishes. Allowed only for small contractors (three-year average gross receipts at or under the indexed threshold, historically $25 million) on contracts expected to finish within two years, and for certain home-construction contracts. Defers tax, but makes interim financials lumpy.

Job costing and the cash gap

Job costing tracks actual against estimated cost by job and cost code (labor, material, subs, equipment) so you catch an overrun while there is still time to react, instead of discovering it at year end. And keep the cash-flow truth in view: a job can be profitable on paper and still sink you, because you pay labor now and collect later. Retainage delays a slice of every draw until closeout. Bridging that timing gap is what working capital is for.

Taxes & payroll #

This chapter covers employer tax obligations and the sales-tax rule that makes Louisiana different from the states most study guides assume.

Federal obligations

• Form 941, quarterly. Reports income tax withheld plus Social Security and Medicare (FICA) from paychecks, and the employer's matching FICA share.
• Form 940, annual. Federal unemployment tax (FUTA). The employer pays it; nothing comes out of the employee's check.
• W-2 employee vs 1099 independent contractor. The IRS test weighs behavioral control (do you direct when, where, and how, not just the result), financial control (who bears investment and profit-or-loss risk), and the relationship type (contracts, benefits, permanency). Misclassifying employees as 1099 labor to dodge FICA and FUTA is a heavily tested trap and a real enforcement target.

Louisiana obligations

• State unemployment (SUTA) through the Louisiana Workforce Commission, at an experience-rated percentage of wages, on top of FUTA.
• State income tax withholding from employee wages, separate from federal.

Sales tax: the contractor is the consumer

Under R.S. 47:301(9), a contractor is treated as the consumer of the materials it builds into real property, not a retailer. Two consequences (Louisiana Department of Revenue):

• You pay sales tax on materials at purchase, and you do not charge your customer sales tax on the finished job.
• Labor to construct, install, remodel, or repair immovable (real) property is not taxable at all.

The statewide rate has moved between 4.45% and 5% through recent legislation; confirm the current rate with the Department of Revenue rather than memorizing one. Louisiana also grandfathers signed lump-sum, unit-price, fixed-fee, and GMP contracts against mid-contract rate increases when the contract was bid at the old rate (with a 90-day window), so a rate hike does not eat a job you already priced.

Labor law & workers' comp #

This chapter covers wage-and-hour law, minors on site, federal prevailing wage, and Louisiana's aggressive workers' compensation rule.

Overtime under the FLSA

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires non-exempt workers be paid 1.5 times the regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek (DOL Fact Sheet #1). Louisiana has no daily-overtime rule; the trigger is weekly only.

Laborer at $22/hour works 46 hours:
  First 40:      40 × $22.00 = $880
  Overtime rate: $22 × 1.5   = $33/hour
  Overtime:       6 × $33.00 = $198
  Gross pay:                   $1,078
Trap answer: 46 × $22 = $1,012 (ignores the premium, short $66)

Minors, Davis-Bacon, right to work

• Child labor. Sixteen is the floor for most non-hazardous work; under 18 is barred from the hazardous-occupations list, which covers most active construction tasks including roofing and excavation equipment (DOL guidance).
• Davis-Bacon Act. On federal and federally assisted construction contracts over $2,000, every laborer on site gets at least the locally prevailing wage and fringes. Louisiana has no state prevailing-wage law, so a purely state-funded job carries none unless the contract adds it.
• Right to work. Louisiana (R.S. 23:983 et seq.): union membership cannot be a condition of employment.

Workers' compensation (R.S. 23:1035)

• Required from the first employee, full-time, part-time, or seasonal, on every job type.
• A corporate officer owning at least 10% may exempt themselves by written election to the insurer.
• The statutory-employer rule. Hire an uninsured subcontractor and you inherit workers' comp responsibility for that sub's injured employees. This is why GCs demand certificates of insurance before a sub mobilizes.
• Penalties: up to $250 per employee on a first violation, $500 per employee repeat (capped at $10,000), stop-work orders, and loss of the exclusive-remedy defense, which lets an injured worker sue in tort for full damages.

OSHA paperwork clocks

Employers with more than 10 employees keep the OSHA 300 log, a Form 301 per recordable case, and post the 300A annual summary each February 1 to April 30. Separate and faster: report a work-related fatality within 8 hours; an in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or eye loss within 24 hours (OSHA recordkeeping).

Insurance & bonding #

This chapter sorts the four insurance policies and four bonds the exam tests, by the one question that matters: who does each protect?

Insurance: protecting against loss

• General liability (GL). Third-party bodily injury and property damage from your operations. The "someone got hurt because of my work" policy.
• Builder's risk. The structure and materials under construction, against fire, theft, and weather, for the build duration only.
• Workers' compensation. Your own employees' injuries, in exchange for the exclusive-remedy shield (Chapter 13).
• Commercial auto. Business vehicles. Personal auto policies exclude business use.

Bonds: guaranteeing performance

A bond is not insurance for you; it is a surety's guarantee to someone else, and the surety collects from you after paying out.

Performance and payment bonds usually issue together ("P&P"), at a premium of roughly 1 to 3% of contract value. Keep premium and face value straight: the premium is what you pay; the face value is the surety's maximum exposure. And remember the through-line from Chapter 09: on public work, the payment bond is the lien substitute.

Safety & risk (OSHA) #

This chapter covers how the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) enforces, what citations cost, and the competent-person concept. The field-side safety numbers (fall protection, trenches, ladders) live in Part III, Chapters 18 and 23.

Inspection priorities, highest first

1. Imminent danger situations
2. Fatality and catastrophe investigations (triggered by the 8-hour and 24-hour reports from Chapter 13)
3. Complaints and referrals
4. Programmed inspections of high-hazard industries, and construction ranks among them
5. Follow-up inspections verifying abatement

Citations and 2026 penalty ceilings

These are inflation-indexed and move every January; learn the ratio (willful is ten times serious) and look up the current figures rather than memorizing them (osha.gov).

The competent person (29 CFR 1926.32(f))

A competent person is one capable of identifying existing and predictable hazards and authorized to take prompt corrective action. Both halves are required. Training without stop-work authority fails the definition; authority without hazard-recognition skill fails it too. A certificate alone does not make someone competent; the employer designates based on demonstrated capability (OSHA, competent person). Excavation, scaffolding, and fall-protection standards each demand one on site.

The trade exam blueprint #

This chapter maps the trade exams' content domains and, more importantly for an open-book test, the exact books you may bring. Source: the LSLBC/PSI Candidate Information Bulletin (March 2026) plus published vendor outlines.

Building Construction (commercial GC): the domains

Sitework; Concrete; Masonry; Metals; Carpentry; Thermal and Moisture Protection; Doors and Windows; Finishes; Safety; and General Code, Plan Reading, and Estimating. Official percentage weights are not published; treat all domains as fair game.

Approved references (bring your own copies): 2018 International Building Code; OSHA 29 CFR 1926; Technical Digest No. 9 (steel joists); Carpentry and Building Construction (2016 student ed.); Design and Control of Concrete Mixtures, 17th ed.; Pipe and Excavation Contracting, revised; Roofing Construction & Estimating, revised; Unbonded Post-Tensioning Level 1; Modern Masonry, 10th ed.; Placing Reinforcing Bars, 10th ed.

Residential Construction: the domains

Vendor-published weights (unofficial, directionally useful): Rough Carpentry 26%, Interior and Exterior Finish 20%, Concrete and Rebar 19%, Associated Trades 10%, Excavation and Sitework 9%, Roofing 6%, Masonry 5%, Plans and Specifications 5%. Carpentry plus concrete is nearly half the exam.

Approved references: 2018 International Residential Code; OSHA 1926; Contractor's Guide to Quality Concrete Construction, 4th ed.; Modern Masonry; Carpentry and Building Construction; BCSI (truss safety); Pipe and Excavation Contracting; Roofing Construction & Estimating.

Louisiana wind reality

The whole state sits in a hurricane-prone design region. Windborne-debris provisions (impact-rated glazing or opening protection) trigger within one mile of the coast at 130+ mph design wind speed, or anywhere at 140+ mph. Design speed is site-specific; look it up per project via the ASCE 7 hazard tool.

Plan reading & specifications #

This chapter teaches how a drawing set and a spec book are organized. It is the connective tissue of the whole trade exam: the domain list itself follows the spec divisions.

Sheet prefixes

A Architectural, S Structural, M Mechanical (HVAC), E Electrical, P Plumbing, C Civil/site. Also common: FP (fire protection) and G (general/cover).

Scales and views

• Floor plans typically at 1/4" = 1'-0"; overall plans of large buildings at 1/8"; details at 1/2" to 3" or full size. Civil sheets use engineer's scale (1" = 20', 30', and so on).
• A section cuts vertically through the building to expose the assembly. An elevation shows a face without cutting. A detail zooms into one condition at large scale.

CSI MasterFormat: the 16 divisions

The Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) MasterFormat organizes spec books. The classic 16-division numbering is still the mental model exams and reference books use (the modern format expanded to ~50 divisions in 2004):

Notice the exam's own domain list is essentially Divisions 2 through 9 in order. Chapters 18 through 23 of this wiki walk them the same way.

Sitework & excavation #

This chapter covers soil, compaction, and the trench-safety numbers from OSHA 1926 Subpart P that the exam tests relentlessly, because trench collapses kill.

OSHA soil types and maximum slopes

For excavations less than 20 feet deep (Appendix B):

Type A allows a short-term 1/2:1 (63°) slope in excavations 12 feet or less. Worse soil means flatter slope; south Louisiana's wet, sandy, high-water-table ground is very often Type C.

The trench rules

• The 5-foot rule. A protective system (sloping, benching, shoring, or shielding) is required at 5 feet or deeper, unless the cut is entirely in stable rock or a competent person finds no cave-in indication in a shallower cut (1926.652).
• Spoil setback. Excavated material and equipment stay at least 2 feet back from the edge (1926.651(j)(2)).
• A competent person (Chapter 15) classifies the soil and designs or approves the protective system.

Compaction and earthwork

The Standard Proctor test (ASTM D698) finds a soil's maximum dry density at its optimum moisture content. Structural fill is commonly specified to 95% of Standard Proctor; read the project spec for the actual number. Cut-and-fill balancing matches excavated volume to fill needed; hauling material in or out adds cost, which is why estimating questions love it. Excavation volume math is the same cubic-yard formula as concrete: length × width × depth in feet, divided by 27 (Chapter 24).

Concrete #

This chapter covers mix, testing, reinforcement cover, curing, and the volume math. Concrete plus rebar is roughly a fifth of the residential exam by vendor weighting, and a core commercial domain.

The mix

• Water-cement ratio is the master variable: lower w/c means higher strength and durability but stiffer, harder-to-place concrete. Structural mixes run about 0.40 to 0.60; severe-exposure work wants 0.45 to 0.50 or below.
• Slump test (ASTM C143) measures workability. A typical target is around 4 inches, acceptable range commonly 2 to 6 depending on mix and placement.
• Strength is verified by cylinder breaks at 7 days (a checkpoint, roughly 65 to 70% of design strength) and 28 days (the specified f'c). Typical structural concrete: 3,000 to 4,000 psi.

Rebar cover minimums (ACI 318)

Curing and weather

Concrete gains strength by hydration, a chemical reaction, not by drying. Keep it moist and at roughly 50°F or above for about 7 days on normal mixes. Hot weather, the Louisiana default, accelerates set and cracking: use chilled water or ice, pour early, use evaporation retarders, and cure promptly. Cold weather: protect from freezing until about 500 psi, using blankets, enclosures, or accelerators. Formwork resists fluid concrete's hydrostatic pressure; strip side forms early, but shoring under structural members stays until the member carries itself.

Volume math

Cubic yards = (L ft × W ft × D ft) ÷ 27

Slab 40' × 25' × 4" (0.333'):  40 × 25 × 0.333 = 333 ft³ ÷ 27 = 12.35 yd³
Footing 120' × 1.5' × 1':      180 ft³ ÷ 27 = 6.67 yd³
Order with 5-10% waste on top.

Masonry #

This chapter covers block, brick, mortar, and grout. The heaviest-tested idea is nominal versus actual dimensions, because it hides inside every masonry math problem.

Nominal vs actual

A "standard 8×8×16" concrete masonry unit (CMU) actually measures 7 5/8" × 7 5/8" × 15 5/8". The missing 3/8 inch is the mortar joint: unit plus joint equals the nominal module. Any question quoting an 8×8×16 block expects you to know which dimension to use before doing the math.

Mortar types (ASTM C270)

Memory hook: the letters come from alternating letters of "MaSoN wOrK," strongest to weakest.

Grout, coursing, lintels

• Grout is not mortar. Mortar bonds units to each other; grout fills CMU cells around reinforcing steel to tie the bar structurally into the wall (reinforced masonry, retaining walls, high-wind detailing that matters in Louisiana).
• Brick coursing: standard modular brick lays up 3 courses = 8 inches with 3/8" joints. Use it to lay out opening heights without cutting brick.
• Lintels carry the wall above an opening to the jambs. Adequate end bearing each side is required; roughly 4 inches is the common field rule of thumb, but the structural notes govern.

Steel & carpentry #

This chapter covers structural metals, then framing lumber. Rough carpentry alone is about a quarter of the residential exam, the single biggest domain.

Structural steel

• Shapes: W (wide flange, the workhorse beam and column), C (channel), L (angle), HSS (hollow structural section, tube), WT (tee cut from a W).
• Connections: bolted (high-strength A325/A490 bolts; fast to erect, easy to inspect) versus welded (continuous and stiff, but demanding quality control and often non-destructive testing).
• Decking spans between joists and beams, acting as the form for a composite slab or as the roof substrate.
• Fireproofing: steel loses strength fast in fire, so rated buildings wrap it, spray-applied fireproofing, intumescent paint, or encasement, to hit 1-to-3-hour ratings per tested UL assemblies.

Lumber: nominal vs actual

Visual structural grades run Select Structural, then No. 1, No. 2, No. 3. Gulf South framing lumber is mostly Southern Yellow Pine graded under the Southern Pine Inspection Bureau (SPIB).

Framing rules of thumb

• Studs, joists, and rafters commonly at 16 inches on center; 24" o.c. where span tables and engineering allow.
• Headers over openings: built-up dimension lumber or engineered beams sized to span and load; bigger spans push to engineered product.
• Sheathing (OSB or plywood) gives walls and roofs their diaphragm strength. Typical nailing: 6" on center at panel edges, 12" in the field, tightened (6"/6") in coastal high-wind zones. The exam expects you to read the value from IRC Table R602.3(1), not recall it.
• Engineered lumber: LVL (laminated veneer lumber) for headers and beams; I-joists for long, light, shrink-resistant floor framing; glulam and PSL for heavy members.

Board feet = (Thickness in × Width in × Length ft) ÷ 12
Twenty 2×6 × 12':  (2 × 6 × 12) ÷ 12 = 12 BF each × 20 = 240 board feet

Roofing & the envelope #

This chapter covers roofs, moisture, insulation, and fire-rated assemblies. It contains the exam's favorite climate trap, and in Louisiana the climate answer is reversed from the national default.

Roof slope decides the system

• Low slope (under 2:12): membrane systems only, built-up, modified bitumen, or single-ply.
• 2:12 up to 4:12: shingles allowed with double-layer underlayment.
• 4:12 and steeper: standard steep-slope territory, single-layer underlayment typical.
• Flashing goes at every penetration, valley, wall intersection, and chimney. When a roofing question asks "why did it leak," the answer is almost always flashing.

The hot-humid vapor trap

Louisiana sits in International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) Climate Zone 2 (hot-humid), with the northernmost parishes in 3A. Required insulation R-values come from the adopted IECC edition's table; look them up in the reference book you bring rather than memorizing one edition's numbers.

Gypsum and fire ratings

• Type X gypsum board (5/8", fire-resistive additives) is the baseline of most rated assemblies: one layer each side of studs commonly gives a 1-hour wall; double layers commonly give 2 hours. The rating belongs to the tested assembly (a specific UL or GA-600 listing), not to the board alone.
• Wet areas get water-resistant or cement board; regular 1/2" board is for non-rated work.
• Rated doors are rated assemblies: door, frame, and hardware carry the label together (20/45/60/90 minute). A rated door slab in an unrated frame fails the rating. Classic trap.

Work at height #

This chapter is the OSHA 1926 number set for falls, scaffolds, ladders, and cranes. Falls are construction's leading killer, so these numbers saturate both trade exams. Tab your OSHA 1926 copy at each of these sections.

Acceptable fall protection at 6 feet: guardrails, safety nets, or a personal fall arrest system; residential work may use a written fall-protection plan only where conventional systems are infeasible (1926.502(k)).

Cranes and signals

Crane hand signals follow the standardized chart referenced in 1926.1417 and must be given by a qualified signal person (1926.1428). Know the concept: one designated, qualified signaler; anyone can give an emergency stop.

Construction math #

This chapter is the formula sheet. Every one of these appears somewhere on the exams, always in feet-inches-yards unit games. Your calculator is basic (no scientific functions), so the arithmetic is simple by design; the traps are units and nominal dimensions.

Board feet        = (Thickness in × Width in × Length ft) ÷ 12
Cubic yards       = (L ft × W ft × D ft) ÷ 27
Square yards      = (L ft × W ft) ÷ 9
Percent grade     = (Rise ÷ Run) × 100
Markup price      = Cost × (1 + markup%)          [Chapter 07]
Margin            = (Price − Cost) ÷ Price

Worked examples

• Grade. A drive rises 3 feet over 60 feet: 3 ÷ 60 = 0.05 = 5% grade.
• Volume with unit conversion. A 6-inch slab is 0.5 feet deep, not "6." A 30' × 20' × 6" slab: 30 × 20 × 0.5 = 300 ft³ ÷ 27 = 11.1 yd³.
• Flooring. A 24' × 18' room needs 432 ft² ÷ 9 = 48 square yards of carpet.

Stairs: the IRC vs IBC trap

Residential stairs may be steeper (taller riser, shorter tread) than commercial. Within one flight, riser and tread variation is limited to 3/8 inch. A question giving a 7 1/2-inch riser is legal under the IRC and illegal under the IBC; the answer depends on which code the question scopes, which is exactly the point (IBC 1011.5.2).

Stair count example

Floor-to-floor 9'-0" (108"), residential:
108 ÷ 7.75 = 13.9 → round UP → 14 risers
Actual riser = 108 ÷ 14 = 7.71" (legal under IRC, over IBC's 7" max)

Open-book strategy #

This chapter turns the open-book format into your edge. The exam is open book because it tests navigation under time pressure; a prepared reference set is worth ten points.

Build the reference set

• Tab with permanent adhesive tabs only. Post-its are removed at check-in. Tab each book by exam domain, then sub-tab code chapters (IRC R311 stairs, R802 roof framing, R905 roof coverings; IBC Chapter 10 egress; OSHA Subparts L, M, P, X).
• Highlight and annotate before test day. Allowed and encouraged. Writing in the book during the exam is prohibited.
• Bind everything. Loose paper is confiscated; web printouts must be bound or in a binder.
• Calculator: basic, silent, battery powered, non-programmable, no alphabet keys, and not scientific. The wrong calculator can cost you the sitting.
• Tab the OSHA numbers from Chapter 23 individually. They are cross-referenced and slow to find cold.

Time management

Eighty questions in 180 minutes is 2.25 minutes each. Run three passes: first answer everything you know cold and flag the rest; second, work the flagged lookups in the book; third, use the last 10 to 15 minutes for a final sweep. Never spend five minutes hunting one obscure page; flag and move.

The six trap patterns

1. Wrong-code swaps. IRC numbers offered on an IBC question and vice versa (stairs are the classic, Chapter 24).
2. Nominal vs actual. A "2×4" or "8×8×16 block" that must convert before the math (Chapters 20, 21).
3. Climate inversion. Cold-climate vapor answers on Louisiana questions (Chapter 22).
4. Threshold boundaries. "At exactly 5 feet" style questions; check ≥ versus > (Chapter 23).
5. Memory vs reference. Answering from recall with the book open in front of you is the most avoidable failure mode there is. Look it up.
6. Unit mismatch. The answer in feet when the question asked yards; eliminate order-of-magnitude absurdities first.

The study plan #

This chapter is an eight-week plan that takes a working novice from zero to exam-ready. It assumes 60 to 90 minutes on weekdays and one longer weekend block. Adjust the pace, keep the order.

Practice exam #

Sixty-six questions spanning both exams. Tap an answer to check it; the explanation and running score appear as you go. Simulate the real thing: 2.25 minutes per question, book lookups allowed. The gate from Chapter 26: clear 80% twice before booking with PSI.

Resources & links #

This chapter collects every primary source in one place, plus the short list of facts you must re-verify before exam day because they change or conflict.

The board and the test

• LSLBC — applications, license lookup, classifications. Phone 225-765-2301.
• The Blue Book — the licensing law and rules, compiled. Bring it or the NASCLA statute supplement to the exam.
• PSI Louisiana portal and the Candidate Information Bulletin — scheduling, room rules, reference lists. The bulletin is the controlling document for exam mechanics.
• NASCLA Contractors Guide, Louisiana edition — the Business & Law reference book.
• NASCLA accredited exam state list.

The law

• Louisiana Legislature — R.S. 37:2150 et seq. (licensing), R.S. 9:4801 et seq. (Private Works Act), R.S. 38:2211 and 2241 (public bid and bond), R.S. 9:3141 (New Home Warranty), R.S. 9:2784 (prompt pay), R.S. 9:2780.1 (anti-indemnity), R.S. 23:1035 (workers' comp).
• New Home Warranty Act text (LSLBC).
• Legislative Auditor's Public Bid Law FAQ — the current bid threshold.
• Louisiana Department of Revenue — current sales tax rate and contractor rules. Louisiana Workforce Commission — SUTA and workers' comp.

Codes and safety

• OSHA 29 CFR 1926 — the construction standards. Competent person.
• ICC digital codes — IBC and IRC text. ASCE 7 hazard tool — site wind speeds.
• The 2025-2026 code overhaul explained (Acts 120 and 881).

Confirm these before exam day

And when the numbers start blurring together, drill them on the flashcard deck.