§3816. Special provisions

            The following provisions shall supersede the requirements and provisions of this Chapter:

            (1) An individual performing certain gardening activities, such as mowing, edging, hand weeding, or trimming of hedges and shrubbery, under the direction and responsibility of the owner of the property, shall not be required to obtain any license required by this Chapter to practice his occupation.

            (2) An individual who prunes a tree, under the specific direction and responsibility of the owner of the property, in which the branch to be removed is two inches or less in diameter and is within ten feet of ground level, shall not be required to obtain any license required by this Chapter.

            (3) The provisions of Paragraphs (1) and (2) of this Section shall not apply to services performed for commercial establishments.

            (4) A landowner or homeowner doing work on his own property, a land surveyor practicing his profession, land clearing operations, forestry operations, and utility companies doing work in emergency situations or in the preventing of emergency situations, for the restoration of service, or for the installation of individual service lines by an installer repair technician, shall not be required to obtain a utility arborist license as required by this Chapter.

            (5) A person who constructs, installs, connects, repairs, maintains, improves, or alters an irrigation system used for agricultural or forestry purposes or on property owned, managed, or leased by that person or his employer shall not be required to obtain a landscape irrigation contractor license as required by this Chapter.

            (6) The provisions of this Chapter shall not supersede local ordinances adopted by local governing authorities regarding the installation of backflow prevention devices.

            (7)(a) In the event of a catastrophe and a declaration of emergency, the commissioner may issue a temporary arborist license authorizing a person to perform the measures specified by R.S. 3:3808(A).

            (b) Applicants for a temporary arborist license shall:

            (i) Be licensed in another state as a result of passing a state examination or have acquired International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) Certification.

            (ii) Present proof of license in another state or proof of ISA Certification.

            (iii) Present a certification of insurance as provided in LAC 7:XXIX.117(E)(2).

            (iv) Pay a fee of one hundred fifty dollars.

            (c) The temporary arborist license shall be applied for within ninety days of the declaration of emergency and shall be in effect for a period of ninety days from the date of issuance.

            (d) If the holder of the temporary arborist license desires to continue performing measures specified in R.S. 3:3808(A) beyond the ninety-day period, he shall be required to obtain an arborist license through normal procedures established by the Louisiana Horticulture Commission for such license.

            (8) A contractor that is licensed pursuant to R.S. 37:2156.1 and is performing repair work within a right-of-way that covers less than five thousand square feet shall not be required to obtain any license required by this Chapter. For the purposes of this Section, "repair work" means the restoration or replacement of sod disrupted during the course of performing work within the scope of a construction contract or permit.

            Acts 1987, No. 874, §1; Acts 1992, No. 60, §1; Acts 2004, No. 810, §1, eff. July 12, 2004; Acts 2010, No. 34, §1; Acts 2020, No. 308, §1, eff. June 12, 2020.