California Contractor Insurance Research

California Contractor Workers' Comp 2028 Report: 113,190 Licenses Must Get Coverage

Name: California contractor licenses exempt from workers' compensation, by county and classification (2026)
Creator: Asena Capital Insurance Services
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

By Asena Capital Insurance Services (CA License #6008596) · Data: CSLB public license file, current as of 2026-09-24 · Published September 2026

Key findings

113,190 active California contractor licenses (50.0%) are on file with CSLB as exempt from workers' compensation. Under SB 1455, each will need a workers' comp policy by January 1, 2028; only joint-venture licenses remain exempt.
California has 226,463 current (unexpired) contractor licenses; 106,385 carry a workers' comp policy.
66.4% of the 16,468 licenses issued in the last 12 months filed as exempt — so the number facing the deadline is still growing.
66.6% of exempt licenses are sole owners — the one-person contractors most likely to need a policy for the first time.
Los Angeles County has the most exempt licenses (24,071), followed by San Diego County (10,564, 51.2% of its licenses).
B general building contractors account for 58,597 exempt licenses (58.1% of B licenses); B-2 residential remodelers have the highest exempt rate (73.3%).
The five classifications already barred from the exemption — C-8, C-20, C-22, C-39 and C-61/D-49 — are nearly all compliant: just 35 C-8, C-20, C-22 and C-39 licenses still show an exemption on file.
Right now 2,590 licenses are suspended for workers' comp and 8,768 for contractor bond problems.

What changes on January 1, 2028

SB 216 (2021) originally required every active CSLB license to carry workers' compensation starting January 1, 2026, whether or not the contractor has employees. SB 1455 (2024) moved that date to January 1, 2028. After that date, the no-employee exemption ends for all classifications; joint-venture licenses are the only exception. C-8 concrete, C-20 HVAC, C-22 asbestos abatement, C-39 roofing and C-61/D-49 tree service contractors already cannot file the exemption.

A license without required workers' comp on file is suspended, and a suspended license cannot legally contract.

Exempt licenses by county (top 15)

County	Active licenses	Filed exempt	% exempt	Suspended (workers’ comp)
Los Angeles	47,783	24,071	50.4%	536
San Diego	20,638	10,564	51.2%	232
Orange	19,426	9,451	48.7%	225
Riverside	15,817	7,609	48.1%	203
San Bernardino	10,812	5,421	50.1%	144
Sacramento	9,543	5,133	53.8%	114
Santa Clara	9,463	4,233	44.7%	108
Contra Costa	7,334	3,620	49.4%	73
Alameda	7,264	3,418	47.1%	94
Ventura	6,328	3,100	49.0%	70
Sonoma	5,404	2,515	46.5%	69
Placer	4,582	2,504	54.6%	49
San Mateo	4,564	2,199	48.2%	42
San Luis Obispo	3,317	1,917	57.8%	37
San Francisco	3,742	1,855	49.6%	34

Exempt licenses by classification (top 15)

Class	Name	Active licenses	Filed exempt	% exempt
B	General Building Contractor	100,900	58,597	58.1%
C-10	Electrical Contractor	26,741	13,849	51.8%
C-36	Plumbing Contractor	17,189	8,863	51.6%
C-33	Painting and Decorating Contractor	15,279	8,170	53.5%
A	General Engineering Contractor	13,326	4,781	35.9%
C-27	Landscaping Contractor	11,934	4,757	39.9%
C-15	Flooring and Floor Covering Contractors	6,635	3,212	48.4%
C-54	Ceramic and Mosaic Tile Contractor	5,943	3,205	53.9%
C-6	Cabinet, Millwork and Finish Carpentry Contractor	4,121	2,201	53.4%
C-7	Low Voltage Systems Contractor	4,275	1,755	41.1%
B-2	Residential Remodeling Contractor	1,684	1,235	73.3%
C-9	Drywall Contractor	3,135	1,227	39.1%
C-53	Swimming Pool Contractor	2,796	1,182	42.3%
C-17	Glazing Contractor	2,880	1,033	35.9%
C-12	Earthwork and Paving Contractors	2,287	862	37.7%

What a currently-exempt contractor should do

Confirm your license's current workers' comp status on CSLB's Instant License Check.
If you have no employees, ask about a workers' comp policy for owners with no payroll — pricing depends on classification and carrier.
Line up the policy before your renewal or before January 1, 2028, so CSLB receives the certificate in time.
If you hire anyone before then, your exemption is no longer valid — you need a policy immediately.

Methodology

Asena Capital Insurance Services analyzed CSLB's public Master License file (downloaded from the CSLB Public Data Portal; last update 2026-09-24). We counted licenses with an expiration date on or after that date and a California address — 226,463 licenses. Workers' comp status is CSLB's recorded coverage type for each license ('Exempt', 'Workers' Compensation Insurance', leasing firm, self-insured, or no current coverage). Classification counts include every license holding that class, so a multi-class license is counted in each of its classes. County is the county of the license's business address. Figures will change as CSLB updates its file.

Download the data

How to cite this report

Asena Capital Insurance Services, “California Contractor Workers' Comp 2028 Report,” analysis of CSLB public license data (as of 2026-09-24), https://asenainsurance.com/california-contractor-workers-comp-2028-report. Journalists and associations may reuse the figures with a link to this page.

Frequently asked questions

How many California contractors need workers' comp by 2028?

113,190 active licenses were on file as exempt as of 2026-09-24; each will need a policy by January 1, 2028 unless it is a joint-venture license.

Can a California contractor with no employees still be exempt from workers' comp?

Until January 1, 2028, yes — except C-8, C-20, C-22, C-39 and C-61/D-49 licenses, and licenses qualified by an RME. From January 1, 2028, only joint-venture licenses can be exempt.

What happens if a contractor doesn't have workers' comp on file?

CSLB suspends the license, and contracting on a suspended license is illegal.