Davis-Bacon Act


The Federal statute commonly referred to as the "Davis-Bacon Act," codified at 40 U.S.C. §§ 3141 through 3148, was originally entitled "An Act Relating To The Rate Of Wages For Laborers And Mechanics Employed In Public Building Of The United States And The District Of Columbia By Contractors And Subcontractors, And For Other Purposes." Generally, the Davis-Bacon Act requires that each contract for a federal construction project include language which requires that the contractor and each subcontractor pay to each construction worker on the project a minimum "wage," usually including fringe benefits. These requirements are adopted for many federally-assisted construction projects. The minimum wage applicable to the project is established by the United States Department of Labor through surveys to determine the "prevailing" wage rates paid for similar work on other projects in the geographic area in which the project is located. The Davis-Bacon Act requires the contractor to maintain and submit certified payroll records to the contracting agency, reflecting payment of the required wages to construction workers on the covered project.

Failure to comply with the Act's requirements can lead to the withholding of construction payments for purposes of compensating construction workers for deficiencies in the wages paid to them and in serious situations, to debarment from all federal contracts. Additionally, submittal of false payroll records can lead to criminal prosecution under federal law. For that reason, no electrical contractor should enter into a contract or subcontract to perform work on a federal or federally-assisted project without having a clear understanding of the obligations imposed by the Davis-Bacon Act and a well-developed plan for meeting those obligations.

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