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National business & law + NASCLA diagnostic
32 original questions across five topic areas that show up across most states' business-and-law exam content and the business-flavored sections of the NASCLA Accredited Examination outline: business entities and licensing, contracts and procurement, insurance and bonds, federal OSHA jobsite safety, and general licensing requirements. Study mode only, since this is a diagnostic for shared concepts, not a timed replica of any one exam.
Quick answer
What does this diagnostic cover?
32 original questions across five topics common to most state contractor exams: business entities and licensing, contracts and procurement, insurance and bonds, federal OSHA jobsite safety, and general licensing requirements. It draws on public federal law and the NASCLA outline's business-flavored subject areas, never on a specific state's or NASCLA's actual exam content.
What the five topic areas cover
These are the topics that recur across state business-and-law exams and the parts of the NASCLA Accredited Examination outline that are about business and contracting rather than technical trade knowledge (concrete, masonry, electrical systems, and similar are outside this diagnostic's scope; see the FAQ below).
| Topic area | Questions | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Business Entities and Licensing | 6 | Entity types, liability separation, qualifying-party/qualifier rules, and worker classification. |
| Contracts and Procurement | 8 | Contract essentials, change orders, retainage, bid and performance bonds, prevailing wage, and submittals. |
| Insurance, Bonds and Liability | 6 | How license bonds, general liability, and workers' compensation differ and what each actually protects. |
| Jobsite Safety (Federal OSHA) | 6 | 29 CFR 1926 basics: fall protection, excavation, the competent-person role, hazard communication, and whistleblower rights. |
| General Contractor Requirements | 6 | Experience requirements, permits, certificates of occupancy, ADA accessibility, license classifications, and continuing education. |
About the real NASCLA Accredited Examination
The NASCLA Accredited Examination for Commercial General Building Contractors is administered by PSI and, per its own candidate information bulletin (updated 2026-07-07, fetched and verified 2026-07-28), runs 115 scored items plus 10 unscored pretest items over 330 minutes, with a minimum passing score of 81 out of 115 and a $130 exam fee. Most of its content outline is technical trade knowledge (site construction, concrete, masonry, metals, wood, and mechanical, plumbing, and electrical systems), which is out of scope for this diagnostic. Its two most business-flavored subject areas, General Requirements and Procurement and Contracting Requirements, are what this diagnostic draws its framing from. See our state comparison for which states accept the NASCLA exam.
Sample questions
A preview of the kind of questions in the diagnostic. Each is original, written from public federal law, federal agency guidance, or the NASCLA outline's public subject-area names, never from any state's or NASCLA's actual exam content. Open the answer to see the explanation and source.
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Business Entities and Licensing
A contractor licensed in their home state wants to also hold a license in a second state. Which of the following is true of most state licensing programs?
- A Licenses automatically transfer between all 50 states
- B Each state requires its own separate application, and licensing is not automatically portable
- C Only the federal government issues contractor licenses, so state lines do not matter
- D A license is valid nationwide once issued by any one state
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: B. Each state requires its own separate application, and licensing is not automatically portable
There is no single national contractor license. Each state (or, in some states, each city or county) runs its own licensing program, so a contractor working in a second jurisdiction generally files a new application there, even where reciprocity or an accepted national exam like the NASCLA Accredited Examination reduces duplicate testing.
Source: NASCLA, "Examination Application" section of the NASCLA Accredited Examination Candidate Information Bulletin (test-takers.psiexams.com, updated 7/7/2026), which describes candidates needing to separately follow each state agency's application process.
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Insurance, Bonds and Liability
How does a surety bond differ from a traditional insurance policy?
- A A bond is a three-party agreement where the surety expects the principal to reimburse any claim it pays; insurance generally does not expect reimbursement from the policyholder
- B They are legally identical products with different names
- C A bond only covers fire damage
- D Insurance always costs more than a bond
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A. A bond is a three-party agreement where the surety expects the principal to reimburse any claim it pays; insurance generally does not expect reimbursement from the policyholder
A surety bond is a three-party guarantee (surety, principal, and obligee). If the surety pays a valid claim, it can seek reimbursement from the contractor (the principal). Traditional insurance is a two-party risk-transfer contract where the insurer absorbs a covered loss without expecting the policyholder to repay it.
Source: U.S. Small Business Administration, Surety Bond Guarantee Program overview (sba.gov/funding-programs/surety-bonds), public federal guidance.
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Jobsite Safety (Federal OSHA)
Under OSHA's construction fall-protection rule, at what height does fall protection generally become required for most construction work?
- A 4 feet
- B 6 feet
- C 10 feet
- D 15 feet
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: B. 6 feet
OSHA's general construction fall-protection trigger height is 6 feet: workers exposed to a fall of 6 feet or more to a lower level generally must be protected by guardrails, safety nets, or personal fall-arrest systems (some specialized operations use different trigger heights).
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, OSHA, 29 CFR 1926 Subpart M (Fall Protection) (osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1926/1926.501), public federal regulation.
National diagnostic FAQ
Is this the official NASCLA Accredited Examination practice test?
No. The real NASCLA Accredited Examination for Commercial General Building Contractors is a 115-item, 330-minute, largely technical-trade exam covering concrete, masonry, wood, mechanical and electrical systems, and more, administered by PSI. This diagnostic is an original, honest-scope resource covering the business, contracts, insurance, safety, and general-requirements topics that overlap across most state exams and the NASCLA outline's own business-flavored sections, not the technical-trade content.
Which states does this diagnostic apply to?
Every state runs its own contractor-licensing program, and no single test covers all of them exactly. This diagnostic is built for the genuinely national common denominator: business, contracts, insurance, and federal safety concepts that show up in most states' business-and-law portion. Use the state comparison to see your state's specific licensing approach, agency, and whether it accepts the NASCLA exam.
I'm licensing in California. Should I take this test instead?
No, take the 50-question CSLB Law and Business practice test instead: it is built directly from California's official exam blueprint and covers exactly what CSLB tests. This national diagnostic is for other states and for a general refresher on shared concepts.
Is this practice test really free?
Yes. All 32 questions, every explanation, and your topic breakdown are free with no signup, no email, and no credit card.
Is my progress saved?
Yes, on this device. Your answers are stored in your browser's local storage. That record stays on the device; when you finish a run we receive only anonymous aggregate statistics, such as a banded score and which topics were weak, with no account and no identifier. See our privacy policy.