RIA Advocacy Success in Connecticut Public Act 26-100: Delivering Value for Emergency Restoration Services Members

Over the past year plus, RIA has been engaged in Connecticut to help state policymakers better understand the critical role emergency restoration services professionals play when families and businesses experience water, fire, storm, mold, and other property losses.

That work has produced a meaningful success for RIA members.

Through a focused advocacy effort, RIA worked with IICRC’s Robbie Bradshaw, our Connecticut lobbyist Liz Connelly of Capitol Consulting, and state policymakers to help advance legislation that strengthens professional standards and reinforces the importance of qualified restoration professionals. This effort also benefited from important contributions by RIA’s Nicole Sargent, whose support helped advance RIA’s member-focused advocacy work in Connecticut.

For RIA members, this matters.

Emergency restoration services contractors are often the first professionals called after a catastrophic property loss. Our members stabilize damaged properties, protect consumers, help prevent additional damage, and support the broader recovery process. Yet, too often, the restoration industry has not been fully understood or clearly recognized within state policy discussions.

Public Act 26-100 helps change that.

The new law recognizes restoration-related services within Connecticut’s consumer protection framework and raises the bar for mold remediation by requiring active industry certification and adherence to the ANSI/IICRC S520 Standard for Professional Mold Remediation. This is an important step forward for safety, quality, professionalism, and consumer protection.

For qualified RIA members, this creates real value.

It helps distinguish trained and certified emergency restoration services professionals from unqualified operators. It reinforces the importance of industry standards. It supports a more professional marketplace. And it gives RIA members a stronger voice when explaining their role to legislators, regulators, insurers, and property owners.

This success did not happen by accident. It is the result of consistent relationship-building, education, technical expertise, and advocacy. RIA and its partners worked to help Connecticut policymakers better understand who our members are, what emergency restoration services contractors do, and why the industry deserves a seat at the table when laws affecting restoration work are being developed.

That relationship continues to grow. On June 15, Connecticut state policymaker, Representative (D) Roland Lemar visited ERCOLANO Cleaning & Restoration a Guardian Restoration Services in North Haven, Connecticut, providing a firsthand opportunity to see the work of RIA members, meet restoration professionals, and better understand the operational realities of responding to property damage emergencies. RIA thanks ERCOLANO Cleaning & Restoration and General Manager Lee Keaffer for hosting this important visit.

“These visits are extremely beneficial to me and my peers, as are able to make better informed decisions for the people we represent when we have a clear understanding of how the job gets done’” said Representative Lemar.  

This is exactly the kind of value RIA advocacy is designed to deliver.

For Connecticut members, the takeaway is simple: RIA is not only monitoring legislation, but we are also building relationships, educating policymakers, advancing recognition of emergency restoration services, and working to ensure our members’ voices are heard before decisions are made.

RIA members in Connecticut should review their current contractor registration, confirm that any mold remediation services are supported by appropriate industry certification, and ensure their teams are prepared to follow the ANSI/IICRC S520 Standard. Members should also watch for additional guidance from the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection as the law is implemented.

We thank IICRC’s Robbie Bradshaw, Liz Connelly of Capitol Consulting, RIA’s Nicole Sargent, Connecticut state policymakers, and our Connecticut RIA members for helping advance this important step forward for professionalism, consumer protection, and qualified emergency restoration services providers.

This is a strong advocacy success for RIA members in Connecticut, and it demonstrates what can happen when our industry collaborates, is organized, engaged, and represented.