# Retrieval workbook

These are original learning scenarios mapped to the public CSLB domains. They are not actual or recalled exam questions. Cover the explanation, answer aloud, then write the trigger and rule you used.

## 1 — Minor-work conditions

A person agrees to complete an $800 repair. No permit is required, but the person brings a paid helper and advertises “licensed-quality contractor work.”

**Retrieve:** Is price alone enough for the minor-work exemption?

**Explanation:** No. The price must be less than $1,000 **and** every condition must hold: no permit, no employees, no licensed-contractor advertising, and no job splitting. The helper and advertising facts each defeat the shortcut. [S12, S27]

## 2 — Qualifier control

An RMO owns 20% of two companies but never reviews bids, visits jobs, checks workmanship, or participates in technical or administrative decisions.

**Retrieve:** Does 20% ownership complete the qualifier duty?

**Explanation:** No. Common ownership can satisfy one multiple-firm relationship, but it does not replace supervision and control. “License renting” is not authorized. [S04, S27]

## 3 — Markup versus margin

Direct job cost is $20,000. The company adds a 25% markup on cost.

**Retrieve:** What is the selling price, and is the resulting margin also 25%?

**Explanation:** Price is `$20,000 x 1.25 = $25,000`. Gross margin is `($25,000 - $20,000) / $25,000 = 20%`. Markup divides by cost; margin divides by selling price. **Derived practice mapped to S01 Business Finances.**

## 4 — Cash is not profit

A contractor begins with $18,000 cash, collects $42,000, and pays $49,000 during the month.

**Retrieve:** What is ending cash, and what conclusion may you draw?

**Explanation:** Ending cash is `$18,000 + $42,000 - $49,000 = $11,000`. That arithmetic describes cash movement; it does not by itself prove the month was profitable. **Derived practice mapped to S01 Business Finances.**

## 5 — Hiring sequence

A new employee begins work today. The company has not yet set up the worker in its payroll records and plans to “fix the paperwork next month.”

**Retrieve:** What kind of answer should rank first?

**Explanation:** Choose the answer that correctly classifies, documents, reports, and places the worker into compliant payroll and coverage processes before relying on informal payment. California new-hire reporting is due within 20 calendar days, but that is not permission to postpone the rest of employer setup. [S13, S14, S18]

## 6 — Overtime scope

An answer choice says, “California overtime is always after eight hours, without exception.”

**Retrieve:** What is wrong with the wording?

**Explanation:** Eight hours in a workday and 40 hours in a workweek are the general baseline, but wage orders and lawful alternative schedules or other exceptions affect scope. Prefer the accurate rule with conditions over an absolute slogan. [S16]

## 7 — Three protections

A customer asks whether the contractor license bond will pay every accidental property-damage claim.

**Retrieve:** Which protection is being confused?

**Explanation:** The statutory license bond protects eligible parties against specified license-law or wage violations. Commercial general liability addresses covered third-party injury or property-damage risks. Workers' compensation addresses employee work injury. They are not interchangeable. [S05, S18, S31]

## 8 — Conditional versus unconditional release

A subcontractor receives a check that has not cleared and is asked to sign an unconditional release.

**Retrieve:** Which release matches the payment state?

**Explanation:** Use a conditional release when payment is promised or not yet confirmed. Use an unconditional release only after the funds have actually cleared. [S11]

## 9 — Two thresholds

A licensed contractor agrees to a $750 home repair that otherwise fits the definition of a home-improvement contract.

**Retrieve:** Which threshold controls the written contract?

**Explanation:** The over-$500 home-improvement contract rule controls the writing question. The less-than-$1,000 minor-work exemption answers a different question—whether an otherwise unlicensed person can use that narrow exemption. [S12, S32]

## 10 — Down payment cap

A $7,500 home-improvement contract requests $1,000 down.

**Retrieve:** Maximum lawful down payment?

**Explanation:** Ten percent is $750. The cap is $1,000 or 10%, whichever is less, so the maximum is $750. [S09, S32]

## 11 — Change order pressure

The owner asks verbally for a larger window. The crew can start immediately, and the office can price it tomorrow.

**Retrieve:** What sequence protects both sides?

**Explanation:** Define scope, price, and schedule effect in a written change order and obtain signatures before performing the changed work. [S09, S32]

## 12 — Senior cancellation

A 67-year-old homeowner signs a covered home-improvement contract at home.

**Retrieve:** Which age and time trigger matters?

**Explanation:** A buyer age 65 or older receives the five-business-day cancellation period where the statutory right applies. The ordinary period is three business days. [S10, S32]

## 13 — Public works ladder

Three public projects are priced at $900, $12,000 for maintenance, and $30,000 for construction.

**Retrieve:** Which numbers must be checked before bidding and payroll setup?

**Explanation:** Check the prevailing-wage baseline above $1,000 and the registration exemptions at $25,000 or less for construction and $15,000 or less for maintenance. Scope and other public-works duties still matter; do not reduce the domain to price alone. [S19, S20]

## 14 — Serious event

A work-connected serious injury occurs. A supervisor wants to finish the shift, then decide whether to call.

**Retrieve:** What is the priority order?

**Explanation:** Protect people, secure the hazard, get emergency help, and report to Cal/OSHA as soon as practical—no later than eight hours absent the stated exigent-circumstances extension. [S22]

## 15 — One-best-answer discipline

Two answers are legal-sounding: one starts work immediately and documents later; the other verifies authority, puts the agreement in writing, and then schedules work.

**Retrieve:** Which structure usually wins?

**Explanation:** Unless an immediate safety response controls, the answer that preserves licensing, written authorization, scope, cost, and documentation generally outranks speed. This is a learning heuristic derived from the official domains, not a statute. [S01]

## Miss log

For every miss, record only:

| Trigger I missed | Rule with scope | Why I missed | Shortest next retrieval |
|---|---|---|---|
|  |  | knowledge / reading / calculation / sequence |  |