Chapter 2: Preparing For Your Application Setup

Personal History Questionnaire (Formally OL 29B)

Please note that the pictures of the forms are meant to help organize the information that you’ll need to input, the database will look different, but the same information will be required.

Section 1 – Applicant Information

This information needs to reflect exactly how your driver’s license or ID is listed. Keep in mind if your ID is out of date, you want to make sure you visit a local field office to update. In this section, you need to make sure you list the following:

• Name
  • Formatted as your Last Name, followed by your First Name and then your Middle Name if you have one.
• Daytime Telephone Number
• Residence Address
  • This is formatted first by the number and then the street, followed by the city, state and zip code.
  • Important to remember that this should be the address that is reflected on your ID.
• Date Of Birth
• Sex
• Hair Color
• Eye Color
• Height
• Weight
• Driver License/ ID Card Number
• State
• Expiration Date
• Social Security Number/ Individual Taxpayer ID

Note: Some of the information will carry over from the previous inputs you have entered in to verify your account, so please verify that all the information is correct.

If the address is not formatted correctly, the portal will automatically verify the address that you put in and correct it based on the formatting done with the post office. You will then need to verify that you approve the corrections.

You will then need to go over the following background question information:

Question 1 – Have you ever been known by or used any name other than the one on this questionnaire?

It is important to indicate if you have ever changed your name or gone by another name. The reason for this is due to the required background check. If there are multiple names, they all must be listed out to ensure that an in-depth background check may be performed.

The most common example of this is when someone changes their name after they have been married or divorced. Attention to detail is important to fill out question one as accurately as possible because errors could cause delays in the application.

If you answer yes to this question, please list out the additional names.

Question 2 – Have you previously been or are you now licensed, or have you ever applied in this state as a vehicle salesperson, representative, distributor, dealer, registration service, dismantler, manufacturer, remanufacturer, transporter, vehicle verifier, lessor-retailer, driving school owner, operator, or instructor, traffic violator school owner, operator or instructor or all-terrain vehicle safety training organization or instructor?

This is trying to establish if you are currently in the DMV’s system to see if you can bypass the background check because it has already been performed. DMV is also looking to see if you were previously licensed and if there are any disciplinary actions currently against you.

If you answer yes to this question, list out any of the previous license numbers that you have.

Question 3 – Have you ever had a business or occupational license issued by this department or an application for such license refused, revoked, suspended, or subjected to other disciplinary action or were you ever a partner, managerial employee, officer, director, or stockholder in a firm licensed by this department, and the license was revoked, suspended or subject to other disciplinary action?

This is to establish if you have had any disciplinary action taken against you with anything that Occupational Licensing oversees.

If you answer yes to this question:

• List out your license number.
• What type of license was it?
• What action was taken by the department?
• What date the action took place?

Question 4 – Were you ever the holder of an occupational license issued by another state, authorizing the same or similar activities of a license, and that license was revoked or suspended for cause and was never reissued, or was suspended for cause, and the terms of suspension have not been fulfilled?

This is to establish if you have had any disciplinary action with any of the occupational licensing offices throughout the course of the United States. The Department of Motor Vehicles does a very thorough job of looking at every applicant’s background.

If you answer yes to this question, you need to go into detail on what type of license it was, list the license number and the state that it was issued in.

Question 5 – Have you ever had a civil judgment rendered against you, or as a sole owner, partner, managerial employee, public administrator, officer, director, stockholder, or LLP/LLC managing member?

If yes, was it a result of a state issued licensed activity?

Many of these questions seem repetitive but the same underlying meaning is being represented. The Department of Motor Vehicles wants to know about anything, and everything that happened that could be considered adverse actions against applicants.

If you answered yes to the first part of the question you need to state, the amount of the civil judgment and if it was paid or unpaid.

If you answered yes to the second part of the question you need to state:

• What kind of license
• The license number
• The state the license was issued
• The name and location of the court of jurisdiction

Question 6 – Have you as a sole owner, partner, managerial employee, officer, director, stockholder, or LLP/LLC managing member sought relief from creditors due to financial hardship in either state or federal court?

DMV wants to make sure that there isn’t anything outstanding for any applicants to ensure there are no federal or state judgements looming on the applicant.

If you answer yes to this question, you will have to list out the following:

• What type of license it was
• The license number
• What state issued the license
• The date the bankruptcy was filed
• Name and location of the court of jurisdiction

Question 7 – Do you currently have any criminal charges pending against you in any jurisdiction?

Possibly one of the most common questions that gets asked amongst new applicants.

“What happens if I have a misdemeanor or felony on my record?”

There is no easy way to answer this question because Occupational Licensing ultimately has the final say on issuing a license, but the general rule is as follows:

Any and all misdemeanor or felony must be disclosed to the DMV regardless of what state they were committed in however the division of what has a higher chance of getting accepted depends on the severity of the crime and how long ago the offense was committed:

• 0–5 years – There is a good chance that occupational will deny the application regardless of the circumstances.
• 5–10 years – The application will go up as an abbreviated application and the hearing goes up to the arrest review board.

Here is a link for Applications For Reconsideration (Abbreviated Applications).

There are other situations where the application can be considered an abbreviated application:

• If the applicant was refused by the Department of Motor Vehicles or the permit was denied based on the original application.
• If the applicant was refused by the Department of Motor Vehicles after a hearing was conducted.
• If the occupational license was rescinded.

This process will be further explained in Section 5.

Question 8 – Have you ever: (If “YES”, give details below.)

1. Been dismissed, fired, demoted, had your salary or compensation reduced or had any other adverse action taken against you, for any reason?
2. Resigned from or quit a position while you were under investigation or after being informed discipline would be taken against you, or during an appeal from a disciplinary action?
3. Been rejected or told you would not receive permanent or continued employment during any type of probationary or trial period on the job?
4. If the termination, demotion, or other adverse action from employment involved any civil or administrative case, please state court or agency and case number.

Occupational Licensing does a very thorough investigation into who they permit licensing for. They want to know about any and all circumstances.

If you answer yes to any questions on question 8 then you need to go into detail on the circumstances of what occurred.

Next Portion you will cover any conviction history:

Summary: The background check seems like a lot, but the level of detail that Occupational Licensing investigates with their applicants is thorough. The reason for this is because anyone that has a license through occupational licensing is dealing with a lot of sensitive information such as social security numbers and bank account information.

You’ll need to answer if you’ve had any misdemeanors or felony charges outside of traffic related offenses and initial the box. If you have had a misdemeanor or felony in the previous ten years, here is how you address it:

If you answered yes to a conviction on your application, it will go up as an abbreviated application with Occupational Licensing. Use the procedure listed on the next page to apply for reconsideration.

Applications For Reconsideration (Abbreviated Applications)

• You will have to submit the following fees:
  • $1 family support
  • $175 non-refundable application fee (Regardless of the outcome, this money will stay with DMV)
• Here are the following forms that you’ll need to fill out as well:
  • OL 12 Part C
  • OL 21 Part A
  • OL 29 Part B
  • DMV 8016
  • Statement of information if you are planning on operating a Corporation, LLC, or LLP
• In addition to DMV documents, you will need certified court documents as well pertaining to the arrest and/or conviction and list out the following in Section 5:
  • The date of the conviction
  • What the applicant was convicted of
  • Indicate if it was a felony or misdemeanor
  • Court of jurisdiction
    • Include the full name of the court and the address of the court.
  • Disposition of the offense and describe the sentence.
    • Amount fined
    • Term of Probation
    • Jail or prison term
    • Date release

Make sure that you are as detailed as possible. Due to the background check that the DMV performs, they will already know this information. If anything on the OL 29B is different from the background check, it could cause delays in the application.

Once this process is initiated, the process could take 6–9 months to complete, and the file may go before the arrest review board. It is a good idea that if the application ends up going to the arrest review board, it is a good idea for the applicant to seek legal counsel on how to navigate the court proceedings.

You will then have to go over all the disclosure information regarding your personal information and terms and conditions that you’ll need to acknowledge.

Then under the applicant signature, you’ll need to electronically sign to finalize the application.

Scheduling Your Exam

Now that you’ve handled your dealer education class and finalized your personal history questionnaire, you are now ready to schedule your test time.

Keep in mind that you’ll be taking your test at the office that is closest to your dealership location.

A newer development is Occupational Licensing is having more and more items being handled directly with Sacramento Occupational Licensing so understand the current procedure is in a constant state of flux.

Once you’ve selected your office, the scheduling software will provide you with the date and time available. Keep in mind, you want to schedule as soon as possible after taking your class so that way the information is fresh in your mind.

The next screen will confirm your appointment information and then you will be prompted to pay for your test. Keep in mind your test is $16.

You will have two options to pay for your test. Card or Echeck.

This is what the process will look like once you’re finalized. You’ll then take your test and, once you’ve passed, your portal will update. Keep in mind you will have 3 chances to pass the test with a 70% or better score. If you can’t complete it in 3 times, you’ll have to retake your prelicensing class.

Supplemental Documentation Required

Once you have your test scheduled, there are two things that you’ll need to work on while waiting to take your test.

Determining Where the Dealership Will Be Located

Property Use Approval

This may seem like a simple yes or no question, but this requires research to be done by the applicant to ensure that the property that they are submitting meets city and county requirements.

To check to see if your property is zoned for retail or wholesale automotive, you need to check with the city’s zoning and planning department in the city that you are planning to open your business in. If you are operating in an unincorporated portion of a county, then check with the county’s zoning and planning commission would be your next step.

Often there is a zoning verification process with the business license application but relying on this process could be costly without doing your homework prior. Before signing a long-term lease, make sure that you have checked with the zoning and planning department to ensure that the property is approved.

There are some cities that can require a conditional use permit which can delay your processing for the application and lead to additional costs as well. A conditional use permit can cost anywhere to a few hundred dollars all the way up to $21,000 and up. Often a conditional use permit will require additional paperwork to be filed with the city or county that the applicant is doing business in and can require additions and/or beautification measures as well to improve the property.

An important thing to keep in mind also, just because the applicant submits a conditional use permit, does not guarantee that the permit will be issued. That is why moving forward with addresses that require a conditional use permit can carry a stronger risk to the applicant, so proceed with caution.

Once the zoning data has been confirmed, the property information for the dealership needs to be broken out into section 9. Here is a list of the information that needs to be disclosed:

• Indicate if the property is being leased, rented, or owned.
  • If the property is being leased or rented, indicate the period that the lease or rental period will be valid.
• List out the property owner’s information:
  • Property owners name
  • Property owners address, city, state, and zip code
  • Property owners phone number
• Approximate square feet of the property
  • Office area
  • Building area
  • Display area (Where the vehicles are being sold from their designated area)
  • Total area of the property

Not required for your dealer’s license, but it’s important to note that most cities require that a business license be obtained before operating a business. Typically, these applications can be done online but there are some cities that still require a paper application. DO NOT WAIT TO GET YOUR BUSINESS LICENSE.

Through the business license process, your business license will have to go through the city’s zoning and planning department. This is another way to ensure that the location that you’ve decided to operate from will work for your overall operational needs.

Forming a Corporation or LLC

It is important that once you’ve scheduled your test and determined where you’re going to be setting up your business location, that you strongly consider how your organization is going to be structured. Most dealerships end up forming a corporation or an LLC due to the added protection and tax advantages that organizations like this provide.

There are many ways to form a corporation or LLC. The best way to do this is to use a corporate attorney to file the paperwork for you. Although this is arguably the best way, there can also be an additional cost associated with this as well.

A cheap way of forming a corporation or LLC can be done through a document processing service. Although inexpensive and effective, they do not provide the long-term tools necessary to perform the proper maintenance needed for a corporation or LLC without additional costs. Most of these services end up costing more than an attorney would over the long-term portion of the relationship without the added advantage of practicing law.

An important thing to remember is there are many resources out there that can provide clarity and guidance to help you get the best desired result.

Secretary of State: Statement of Information

Part of filing a corporation or LLC is filing a form called a Statement of Information. This is a document that is filed on an annual basis with the Secretary of State to identify who is in the ownership structure and, in the event of the organization getting sued, where the paperwork goes. Occupational licensing will require you to upload a copy of your Statement of Information to ensure that this is filed and up to date.

This is the section where you will upload your Statement of Information that is on file with the Secretary of State. Once uploaded and submitted. The screen will then go back to the application checklist.

ADM 9050: Agent of Service of Process

An agent of service of process is every owner who is involved in the ownership structure of a dealership will need to get an ADM 9050 filled out and notarized.

This can be a tricky form depending on how your dealership is structured and you need to make sure that it is filled out correctly otherwise Occupational Licensing could kick it back.

Here’s how you address the principals true name and DBA’s portion:

If you’re a sole proprietor:

You need to make sure that your name is as it appears on your license.

Example: John Michael Smith DBA Smith’s Auto Sales

Unless you’re doing business as your name, you need to make sure a fictitious business name is filed and the information on the fictitious business name needs to match the information on the ADM 9050.

If the business is filed as a general partnership:

Both parties’ names need to read the same way as they do on their license.

Example: John Michael Smith and Jane Lauren Smith DBA Smith’s Auto Sales

A fictitious business name will have to be filed and the information reflected on the fictitious business name will need to be the same as on the ADM 9050.

If the business is filed as a corporation or LLC:

The corporation’s name needs to be first on the first line along with any DBA’s that the corporation or LLC is operating under.

Example: ABC Motors, Inc. DBA ABC Motors | ABC Motors LLC DBA ABC Motors

A fictitious business name will have to be filed and the information reflected on the fictitious business name will need to be the same as on the ADM 9050.

Under the type of license please write in Vehicle Dealer.

You can then take it to any notary. A pro tip is finding a notary that can complete your livescan fingerprinting as well.

Once the form has been notarized, upload a copy of it to the DMV portal.

Here is what an ADM 9050 looks like:

DMV 8016: Request for Livescan Fingerprinting

Part of your application will be completing a livescan for the DMV. This form is called a DMV 8016. This will go through the DOJ database to identify any misdemeanors or felonies in the previous 10 years outside of traffic related offenses. Finding an office to do this is relatively easy with a web search. Finding a live scan operator that is also a notary can be beneficial as well since you can get both the DMV 8016 and the ADM 9050 at the same time.

Here is the link for the form:

https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/file/request-for-live-scan-clearance-receipt-dmv-8016-pdf/

Going through the form, you’ll select box A and select license under option 3. Once the technician has completed your live scan, they will fill out the bottom of the form. Keep in mind, the results from this test can take 7–30 business days so doing this earlier in the process of your application can help save time in the long run.

DMV 8016