General Contractor - one who undertakes to construct or superintend the construction, alteration, maintenance, repair, rehabilitation, remediation, reclamation, or demolition of any building, highway, sewer, structure, site work, grading, paving or project or any improvement in the State of Alabama where the cost of the undertaking including labor and materials is $50,000 or more. Swimming Pool construction of $5,000 or more.

Subcontractors performing minimum contracts including labor and materials of $50,000 ($5,000 swimming pools) under contract to a licensed prime contractor must be licensed by the board.

Awarding Authorities

It is the duty of the awarding authority to ascertain if a contractor is duly licensed before permitting him to submit a bid or offer to construct a project involving fifty thousand or more ($5,000 for swimming pool contractors). All architects, engineers and awarding authorities shall include notification in their bid specifications that a general contractors license is required before a prime contractor can qualify to submit bids in the state of Alabama (34-8-8). A prime contractor may receive bids from unlicensed subcontractors, however the subcontractor must be licensed before beginning work (34-8-7).

A prime contractor awarding a subcontract becomes an awarding authority. Consequently, if a contract in the amount of $50,000 ($5,000 swimming pools) or more including material and labor is awarded by an awarding authority to an unlicensed contractor — or an unlicensed subcontractor is allowed to begin work, both the awarding authority, contractor, or subcontractor are in violation and are subject to penalties.

General Contractor Licensing Law

Chapter 8 of Title 34, Code of Alabama, 1975 as amended. Important sections of the code are listed below, however to get the latest information, check the Code of Alabama online at the ALISON system. Go to The Alabama Legislature's website and select the View option and scroll to Code section 34.

Click on a link to view law section:

34-8-1	“General Contractor” defined
34-8-2	Licensure and classification of contractors
34-8-3	Method of Examination
34-8-4	Revocation of License; charges; hearings
34-8-5	Effect of issuance of certificate of license
34-8-6	Prohibited Acts, Penalties
34-8-7	Exemptions; Subcontractor requirements
34-8-8	Awarding Authorities, Architects, Engineers
34-8-9	Issuance of Building Permits
34-8-10	Indictment or Complaint
34-8-20	Creation; composition; appointment and removal of members
34-8-21	Oath of Board
34-8-22	Officers; bonds; compensation & expenses; rules & regulations
34-8-23	Seal
34-8-24	Meetings; quorum
34-8-25	Records and accounts
34-8-26	Register of applicants; roster of contractors; annual report; investigation & report of complaints.
34-8-27	Appeals
34-8-28	Distribution of revenue from additional fees to public institutions of higher education; annual reports to board; administrative expenses of board.