Inspectors Protecting Themselves? To the Editor: Why do some building inspectors require construction plans to be stamped by a licensed engineer to "certify" compliance before they'll issue a permit — a situation that seemingly is not required by any specific laws in New York state, where I work. One wonders if the inspectors are not just protecting themselves with such demands. Meanwhile, the builder is powerless to disagree because the desired permits won't be issued unless the inspector gets what he wants, regardless of legal requirements. I have no formal educational "credentials" in the form of degrees, yet I have many years of construction and project engineering/management experience, and likely forgot more than many officials ever knew. Still there's a barrier