LicenseWatch CA Weekly, Issue #1
Week of Oct 14 to Oct 20, 2026 · Southern California contractor licenses
Hi there, and welcome to the first issue!
LicenseWatch CA (licensewatchca.com) turns the California Contractors State License Board's (CSLB) public license data into something you can actually use. Each week we track new licenses and lapsed coverage in Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, Riverside and San Bernardino counties. That's 120,064 licenses in all.
It's for:
- Homeowners checking out a contractor before hiring
- Contractors keeping an eye on their market
- Suppliers, insurers and software companies looking for newly licensed businesses
This week's numbers
| County | New licenses | Workers' comp lapsed/suspended | Top trades (new) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | 63 | 279 | General Building (26), Plumbing (6), Electrical (6) |
| Orange | 24 | 114 | General Building (7), Plumbing (4), HVAC (2), Roofing (2) |
| San Diego | 29 | 122 | General Building (13), Electrical (3), Flooring (2) |
| Riverside | 27 | 99 | General Building (3), Plumbing (3), Electrical (2), Concrete (2) |
| San Bernardino | 13 | 55 | Electrical (5), General Building (4) |
| Total | 156 | 669 |
Expired licenses: none of the licenses in this week's data had an expiration date in this window.
Worth knowing
- New licenses slowed down. We counted 156 new licenses this week, down from 196 the week before. Most of the drop was in Los Angeles, which went from 95 to 63.
- Tile is on the rise. Ceramic & Mosaic Tile (C-54) showed up on 6 new licenses, compared with 1 the week before. That was the biggest jump of any trade.
- San Bernardino is all about electrical. Electrical (C-10) was its top trade among new licenses, ahead of General Building. In every other county, General Building came first.
- Workers' comp lapses are common. In one week, 669 licenses in these five counties had a workers' comp policy expire, get cancelled or get suspended. If your contractor has employees, check their coverage before work starts. Here's what bonds and workers' comp mean.
- Quick tip: check before you hire. Search the contractor's name or license number on LicenseWatch CA. Make sure the status says CLEAR, the license class fits your job, and the bond and workers' comp are current. Then confirm it all on cslb.ca.gov. Read our how-to guide and the red flags list.
Make LicenseWatch work for you
- 🔎 Search any California contractor: see status, bond and workers' comp in seconds.
- ⭐ Are you a contractor? Get your business featured on your license page and city pages.
- 📣 Want to reach SoCal contractors and homeowners? Advertise with us in this newsletter or on our county pages.
Know someone who's about to hire a contractor? Send them this issue.
See you next week, The LicenseWatch CA team
Data: CSLB public data portal, current as of Oct 20, 2026. Always verify at cslb.ca.gov before hiring. LicenseWatch CA is not affiliated with CSLB.