51
OtiPICE OP
THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
Ausmm, TEXAS
PRICE DANIEL
ATTORNEYGENERAL January 24, 1948
Mr. C. E. Belk, Administrator,
Board of PlumbingExaminers,
Austin, Texas
Opinion NO. V-481.
Re: Applicabilityof the
Plumbing License Law
of 1947 to the oper-
ator of an electric
sewer cleaner.
Dear Mr. Belk:
Your letter requestingour opinion states,
in part, as follows:
"(We3 have received several inqulr~ies
from companieswhose business It is to ma$n-
tain or clean out drain pipes, sewer pipes
and appurtenancescarryingwaste from build-
ings to the sewer line.
"In a majority of cases no plumbing
fixtures, pipes, or joints are removed, al-
tered, installedor repaired.
'Would you please give us an opinion
on the followingquestion: 'Would the oper-
ator of an electric sewer cleaner which does
not require the removal, installationor re-
pair of any fixtures, pipes, .jolntsor plumb-
ing appurtenances,constitutethe operator
thereof a person engaging in, working at, or
conductingthe business of plumbing, as de-
fined under the Plumbing License Law of 1947,
being Article 6243-101 of Vernon's Annotated
Civil Statutes?"'
The pertinent provisions of Article 6245
101, Vernon's Civil Statutes,are as follows:
522Mr...C.E.,Belk - Page.2 (v-481)
..
“SBC. 2. (a> The word or term
'plumbing',asused in this Act means
and shall inc.lude:(1) All piptng, fix-
tures, appurtenancesand.appliancesfor
a supply of ~wateror gas, or both, for
.a11personal or domestic purp~osesin and
about buIldlngswhere a person or per-.
sons live, work.or.assemble; all piping,
fixtures, ap'purtenances andappliances
out:sidea building connecting'thebuild-
ingwlth the:sourcs,ofwater or gas sup-
ply, or both, on the premises;.orthe.
main in the street, alley or at the curb;
all piping, fixtures,appurtenances,ap-
pliances, drain or waste pipes carrying.
waste water or sewage from or within a
building to the sewer service lateral at
the curb or in the street'oralley.or
other disposal terminal holding private
'or domestic sewage; (2) the~installation,
repair and maintenance of.al&.piping,
fixtures, appurtenancesand appliances
in and about buildingswhere a person or
persons live, work or assemble;for a
supply of gas, water, or both, or dispo-
sal of waste water or sewage. . . .
"Sec..3. The followingacts, work
and conduct shall be expresslypermitted
without 'license:. V .
"(c>. Plumbing work done by anyone
who is regularly employedas or acting
as a maintenanceman or maintenanceengi-
neer, incidentalto.and in connectionwith
the business in which he is employed or en-
gaged and who doesnot engage in the oc-
cupation of a plumber for the general pub-
lic;...
"Sec. 14. . . . no person, whether
as a master plumber, e . . employingplumb-
journeymanplumber, or otherwise, shall
Ziage.in work at, or conduct the business
oftplumb&g in this state or serve as a
plumbing inspector as herein,defined, ex-
cept as herein .specifically~exemptedfrom
53
Mr. C. E. Belk - Page 3 (V-481)
the provisionsof this Act, unless such
person is the holder of a valid license
as provided for by this Act; and . . .
it shall be unlawful for any personto
engage in, work at, or conduct the busi-
ness of plumbing in this state or serve
as a plumbing inspectoras herein de-
fined, except as herein specificallyex-
empted from the provisionsof,this Act,
unless such person is the holder of a
valid license issued under the provis-
ions of this Act and provided for~here-
by; and it shall be unlawful for any
person, firm, orecorporationsto engage
In or work at the business of installing
plumbing and,doing plumbing work:except
as specificallyherein provided unless
such installation,or plumbing or plumb-
ing work be under the supervisionand
control of a plumber licensed .underthis
Act. And it Is expressly'providedthat
the provisionsof Article 122 of the Pe-
nal Code of Texas shall apply to viola-
tions of this Act, and said Article 122
of the Penal Code and the penalties there-
in provided are hereby expressly referred
to."
Where a statute defines a word or group of
words, that definitionis binding on the courts (Hurt
v. Cooper, Tex. Sup. 110 S. W. (2d) 896 904), for in
all Interpretationsone should look diligently for the
Intention of.the Legislature. R.C,S. 1925, Art..lO,
Set,.6, P. C. Art. 7.
In State V. Gottstein, (Mix+) 228 R.W. '221,
125A'.L.R.~715,it was,held,thatone who was engaged In
cutting out'and removing from a house sewer the roots of
trees and shrubs which had gained ,entrancetherein and
obstructedthe flowof sewage therefrom Into the city
sewer, using for the purpose an electricallyoperated
cutting instrumentinserted in one of the basement clean-
outs in the drainage,system,wafter~removinga cleanout
cap or cover, the position of the tlles.in the'sewer be-
ing in no manner disturbed,and there being no alteration
or addition made in the structure of the tiles, could not
54 Mr. C. Z. Belk - Page 4 (v-481)
be convictedofviolating an ordinanceof the City of
Minneapoliswhich made it unlawful for an unlicensed
person to "construct,extend, alter.or repair any
plumbingwork or house drainage. . .I' Said the Court:
"The work which defendant did on
the occasion in question is not claimed
to have been a constructfon,extension,
or alteration of any plumbing or house
drainage system prohibitedby the ordi-
nance unless done by a licensed plumber.
But it is contended that it comes with-
in the meaning of the word 'repair'in
the ordinance. It 'iswell known that
in ~everyhouse plumbing and sewage sys--'~
ternthere are cleanouts providedwhere
by the use of an ordinarywrench the
cap or cover may be'removedand entrance
made to remove or clean out obstructions.
Often a simple contrivanceused by one
not a licensed plumber may remove the
clogging matter. Nothing in the system
is out of order or in need of repair.
Nothing need be done to the tile or pipe
in which the obstructionis found other
than remove the same, that is, clean.the
pipe or tile. . . .
"Cutting off and removing the roots
inside the tile did not make good any de-
fects in the tile itself."
You have further verbally informedus that
the electric sewer cleaner Is substantiallyof the same
general characteras the one described in the Gottstein
case and is inserted in the sewer system in the manner
hereinbeforedescribed. The only part of the sewer sys-
tem that is in anywise disturbed is the usual.metalclean-
out cap or plug found in the metal part of the sewer line
and so fastened or held in place that it may be easily
removed or replaced.
Subsection (21, Section 2, of the statute
describesthe term "plumbing"as follows:
"The installation,repair and main-
tenance of all piping, fixtures,appur-
tenances and appliances In and about build-
ings where a person or persons live, work
Mr. C. E. Belk - Page 5 (v-481) 55
or assemble, for a supply of gas, water,
or both, or disposal of waste water or,
sewage."
Section 14 makes It a penal offense for any
person to "engage in, work at, or conduct the business
of plumbing in this state. . . except as specifically
exempted from the provisionsof this Act, unless such
person is the holder of a valid license as provided by
this Act.
It is perfectly obvious that a person who
removes an obstructionfrom a sewer pipe or line by a
method "which does not require the removal, installa-
tion or repair of any fixture, pipes, joints, or plumb-
ing appurtenances,"other than the removal and replace-
ment of the usual clean-out cap or plug in the sewer
line, does not install or repair any piping, fixtures,
joints or plumbing appliances..State v:Gottstein, su-
pra.
'.The word %aintenance," contained~lnthe
above quoted statutorydefinitionof "plumbing,"is, In
our opinion, of no particular significance..That word,
as used in the statute,means the same thing as "main-
tain." These two words are frequentlyused in the sense
of keeping a thing in repair. E. R. Kelly.Co. v. United
States, 17 C. C. P. Ai, 30, 32: The words 9epair" and
"maintain"have often beenheld by,the courts of'this
and other jurisdictionsto.mean practicallythe~~same
thing. Missouri K. & T. Ry. Co. of Texas v. Bryan, 107
S. W. 572; McChesneyv. Village of Hyde Park, 37 N. E.
858, and authoritiesthere cited. Therefore, we con-
clude that the words "repair" and Qaintenance,llas used
in this statute,are.synonomousand mean the same thing
- "to restore to a sound or good,stateafter decay, in-
jury, dilapidation,or partial destruction,"one of the
definitionsgiven by Webster.
A sewer pipe or line cleaned by the method
and in accordancewith the facts stated is neither in-
stalled, repairednor maintained. The physical structure
of the drainage system is not materially disturbed. The
only reason why it does not properly function is due to
the presence therein of some substancewhich obstructs
the usual free flow of sewage through it, and not to the
decay, injury, dilapidation,or partial destructionof
the pipe or line. :'
56
Mr. C. E. Belk - Page 6 (v-481)
After a careful considerationof the stat-
ute, we have concluded that the cleaning of a sewer
pipe by a person using an electric sewer cleaner,which
does not require the removal, installationor repair of
any fixture, pipes joints, or plumbing apparatus,oth-
er than the removai of the usual clean-out cap or plug
of the sewer pipe .forthe purpose of insertingthe clean-
Erwin the pipe and the replacementthereof, does not
come within the meaning of *lplumbing,was that term is
defined in the statute. Therefore, the operator of such
a cleaner is neither engaged in, working at, or conduct-
ing the business of "plumbing"within the purview of The
Plumbing License Law of 1947, Article 6243-101,Vernon's
Civil Statutes.
SUMMARY
The operator of an electric sewer
cleaner which does not require the remov-
al, installationor repair of any fixtures,
pipes, or plumbing appliances,other than
the removal of the usual clean-out cap or
plug of the sewer pipe for the purpose of
insertingthe cleaner in the pipe and the
replacementof the-same, is not engaged
in, working at, or conductingthe business
'of "plumbing"within the meaning of that
term as defined in The Plumbing License
Law of 1947. Art. 6243-101, V.C.S; State
V. Gottsteln, 228 N. W. 221, 125 A. L. R.
715.
Yours very truly,
ATTORAEY GERRRAL OF TEXAS
BY
Bruce W. Bryant
WI'B:wb Assistant
APPROVED: