STATE LICENSE
RequiredColorado State Electrical Board — DORA Di…
Electrical work is one of only three construction trades Colorado regulates statewide. The State Electrical Board, inside DORA's Division of Professions and Occupations, licenses three grades of individual electrician, registers every apprentice, and registers the contracting company itself — which must be, or employ full-time, a master electrician who may be the responsible party for one company only.
The unusual part is the preemption. C.R.S. 12-115-116(12) declares electrical licensing a matter of statewide concern and bars any city, town, county or city and county from examining, certifying, licensing or registering electricians licensed by the board. A local government may impose reasonable registration on an electrical contractor, but the statute says no fee shall be charged for it — which is why Denver lists its electrical contractor license at $0. Section 12-115-121(2) then caps a local electrical inspection fee at $120, CPI-adjusted annually since January 1, 2021, plus an optional tiered charge of eight percent, and forbids any other electrical permit or inspection charge.
The state sets the license floor; the county or city permit office controls filing, inspections, and local rules wherever the job site sits.
Colorado gives electricians the strongest preemption of any construction trade. Cities cannot examine or license them, and cannot charge for the contractor registration they are allowed to require (C.R.S. 12-115-116(12)) — which is why Denver's contractor fee table prints $0 next to the electrical license and Pikes Peak Regional Building Department simply says no license other than a Colorado electrical contractor's license is required, with registration in the jurisdiction. What stays local is the permit and the inspection: a town, city, county or city and county with a building department that meets the board's minimum standards issues the permit and inspects, and everywhere else a state electrical inspector does it (C.R.S. 12-115-120). Even then the money is capped at $120 CPI-adjusted plus an eight percent tiered charge, and a utility may not energize the installation without proof of final approval.
The local offices section below names the exact permit desk for every Colorado county on file.
Each row names the issuing authority, cost, timeline, citation, and status behind the requirement — verified against the official source.
Published fees from the issuing authorities, as of September 2026. Local permit fees vary by project and jurisdiction — the basis is stated where a flat number does not exist.
Under C.R.S. 12-115-116(12) a local government may impose reasonable registration on an electrical contractor, but no fee shall be charged for that registration. Denver's own fee table lists the electrical license at $0.
C.R.S. 12-115-121(2)(a) caps a local electrical inspection fee at $120 as adjusted annually by the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood CPI, allows an added tiered charge of eight percent based on size or valuation, and bars any other electrical permit or inspection charge.
If the application is not filed in advance of the commencement of an installation, the inspection fee is twice the board-set amount (C.R.S. 12-115-121(3)).
A practical sequence for a new electrical contractor in Colorado. Actual agency processing times are noted in the ledger above.
Each item names the issuing authority, cycle, and citation.
Statutory consequences with their citations — not estimates, not “commonly cited” guesses.
Practicing or offering to practice the profession of an electrician without an active license is a criminal offense under the general Title 12 unauthorized-practice provision.
The board may discipline or cite a licensee or registrant for violating the article, employing an unlicensed person, failing to supervise an apprentice, applying for a permit while not a qualified applicant, or willfully violating building, safety, health or workers' compensation law.
A utility shall not provide service to anyone required to have electrical inspection without proof of final approval, outside declared emergencies capped at seven days.
Inside city limits, the city office listed here issues the permit; the county office serves unincorporated areas. Every office links to its official page.
Every fact in this file was checked against these official sources on September 2026.
Pending verification: Exact dollar amounts for the electrician license, contractor registration and apprentice registration — Colorado sets these administratively under C.R.S. 12-20-105 and quotes them inside the DPO Online Services application rather than publishing a fee table · The current CPI-adjusted value of the $120 local inspection fee ceiling, which the statute re-indexes every January 1 · The photovoltaic installer registration fee, since applications were not yet open when this record was researched · Whether the board has finished adopting the 2026 National Electrical Code — a rulemaking hearing on Rule 1.5 was held May 27, 2026 and the outcome is not published on the program page
General information, not legal advice. Always confirm requirements, deadlines, and forms with the issuing authority before filing or contracting.
Store licenses, permits, policies, and renewal dates in one place.