Data sources
Every business in our directory traces back to one of these public registries or to an owner-submitted listing. We never invent rows. Each section below explains what the source is, exactly which records we pull, and how often we refresh.
Florida DBPR / CILB plumbing licenses
State or local licensing authorityWhat it is. The Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation (DBPR), through the Construction Industry Licensing Board (CILB), licenses plumbing contractors statewide. Contractors hold either a Certified license (CFC, valid anywhere in Florida) or a Registered license (RF, tied to a local jurisdiction). The public license search lists each contractor's name, license number, type, and current status.
How we use it. We import active certified and registered plumbing contractors and tag them with source_name='FL DBPR' so they can be filtered or removed in bulk if the licensing relationship ever changes. Cert chips on each profile name the specific DBPR/CILB license type held (CFC or RF).
Refresh cadence. Re-pulled quarterly; on-demand when a license lapses.
Citation: Florida DBPR -- Construction Industry Licensing Board (myfloridalicense.com)
County licensing & competency boards
State or local licensing authorityWhat it is. Many Florida counties -- including Miami-Dade, Broward, Hillsborough, and Orange -- issue local plumbing certificates of competency that Registered (RF) contractors must hold to pull permits in that jurisdiction. These competency records are public information published by each county's licensing or building department.
How we use it. Imported as company-level rows tagged with the issuing county as source_name (e.g. 'Miami-Dade', 'Broward'); statewide coverage flows through Florida DBPR. Cert chips name the county plumbing competency card.
Refresh cadence. Re-pulled quarterly.
Citation: Florida county competency boards (e.g. Miami-Dade, Broward)
PHCC of Florida member directory
Professional associationWhat it is. The Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors Association (PHCC) and its Florida chapter represent plumbing firms that invest in apprenticeship, training, and code-compliance standards. Its public member directory lists member firms in good standing.
How we use it. Member firms are matched against listings we already have and tagged with the 'PHCC Member' credential. We do not auto-create listings from association membership alone.
Refresh cadence. Re-pulled quarterly.
Citation: PHCC of Florida (phccweb.org)
Florida Division of Corporations (Sunbiz)
State or local licensing authorityWhat it is. The Florida Department of State's Division of Corporations publishes the public business-entity database (Sunbiz) -- corporations and LLCs registered to do business in Florida, with formation date and good-standing status.
How we use it. Used during verification to confirm a claimed plumbing business is a registered Florida entity in good standing. We do not import listings from this source; it is a cross-check only.
Refresh cadence. Checked at verification time.
Citation: Florida Division of Corporations (sunbiz.org)
Want to see our verification process step-by-step? Read How we verify. For our editorial neutrality, dispute, and removal policies, read Trust standards.
If you represent one of these registries and have feedback on how we cite or use your data, please contact us.