Virginia Law

A. As used in this section:

"Area" means each planning district, as defined in § 15.2-4202, for which the Commissioner collects wage and benefit information to determine a prevailing wage rate.

"Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Labor and Industry.

"Covered institution" means a public institution of higher education that has entered into a management agreement with the Commonwealth to be governed by the provisions of Article 4 (§ 23.1-1004 et seq.) of Chapter 10 of Title 23.1.

"Department" means the Department of Labor and Industry.

"Employer" has the same meaning as provided in 29 U.S.C. § 203.

"Locality" means any county, city, or town, school division, or other political subdivision.

"Prevailing wage rate" means the rate, amount, or level of wages, salaries, benefits, and other remuneration prevailing for the corresponding classes of mechanics, laborers, or workers employed for the same work in the same trade or occupation in the locality in which the public facility or immovable property that is the subject of public works is located, as determined by the Commissioner on the basis of surveys conducted every three years, provided that (i) in no event shall the prevailing wage rate be lower than the prevailing wage rate determined by the U.S. Secretary of Labor under the provisions of the federal Davis-Bacon Act, 40 U.S.C. § 3141 et seq., as amended, and (ii) the method for determining the prevailing wage is consistent with the definition of "prevailing wage" in 29 C.F.R. § 1.2 as of January 20, 2026.

"Public works" means the operation, erection, construction, alteration, improvement, maintenance, or repair of any public facility or immovable property owned, used, or leased by a state agency, covered institution, or locality, and includes transportation infrastructure projects. "Public works" does not include work performed at a non-governmental property or facility used to provide broadband or other telecommunications services, regardless of whether such property or facility was installed under a federal, state, or local grant or other infrastructure expansion program, and regardless of whether such property or facility is held in trust or is otherwise subject to a partial federal or state interest for any period of time.

"State agency" means any authority, board, department, instrumentality, institution, agency, or other unit of state government. "State agency" does not include any county, city, or town.

"Type of construction" or "construction type" means the general category of construction as established by the Commissioner for the publication of general wage determinations and includes building, residential, heavy, and highway.

B. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, each state agency, when procuring services or letting contracts for public works paid for in whole or in part by state funds, or when overseeing or administering such contracts for public works, shall ensure that its bid specifications or other public contracts applicable to the public works require bidders, offerors, contractors, and subcontractors to pay wages, salaries, benefits, and other remuneration to any mechanic, laborer, or worker employed, retained, or otherwise hired to perform services in connection with the public contract for public works at the prevailing wage rate. Each public contract for public works by a state agency shall contain a provision requiring that the remuneration to any individual performing the work of any mechanic, laborer, or worker on the work contracted to be done under the public contract shall be at a rate no less than the prevailing wage rate.

C. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, any locality may adopt an ordinance requiring that, when letting contracts for public works paid for in whole or in part by funds of the locality, or when overseeing or administering a public contract, its bid specifications, project agreements, or other public contracts applicable to the public works shall require bidders, offerors, contractors, and subcontractors to pay wages, salaries, benefits, and other remuneration to any mechanic, laborer, or worker employed, retained, or otherwise hired to perform services in connection with the public contract at a rate no less than the prevailing wage rate. Each public contract of a locality that has adopted an ordinance described in this section shall contain a provision requiring that the remuneration to any individual performing the work of any mechanic, laborer, or worker on the work contracted to be done under the public contract shall be at a rate no less than the prevailing wage rate.

D. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, each covered institution, when procuring services or construction contracts initiated after July 1, 2027, with a value greater than or equal to $5 million for public works paid for in whole or in part by state general funds or by incurring state general fund debt, or when overseeing or administering such contracts for public works, shall ensure that its bid specifications or other public contracts applicable to the public works require bidders, offerors, contractors, and subcontractors to pay wages, salaries, benefits, and other remuneration to any mechanic, laborer, or worker employed, retained, or otherwise hired to perform services in connection with the public contract for public works at the prevailing wage rate. Each public contract for public works by a covered institution shall contain a provision requiring that the remuneration to any individual performing the work of any mechanic, laborer, or worker on the work contracted to be done under the public contract shall be at a rate no less than the prevailing wage rate.

E. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, public contracts entered into by the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) or the Virginia Housing Development Authority (HDA) for the funding or financing of housing developments for low-income or moderate-income individuals under qualification criteria established by DHCD or HDA and public contracts entered into by HDA paid for in whole or in part by funds other than state appropriated funds shall not be subject to the requirements of this chapter.

F. Any contractor or subcontractor subject to the provisions of this section who employs any mechanic, laborer, or worker to perform work contracted to be done under the public contract for public works for or on behalf of a state agency or a covered institution or for or on behalf of a locality that has adopted an ordinance described in subsection C or at a rate that is less than the prevailing wage rate shall be (i) liable to such individuals for the payment of all wages due, plus interest at an annual rate of eight percent accruing from the date the wages were due; and (ii) disqualified from bidding on public contracts with any public body until the contractor or subcontractor has made full restitution of the amount described in clause (i) owed to such individuals. A contractor or subcontractor who willfully violates this section is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.

G. Any interested party, which shall include a bidder, offeror, contractor, subcontractor, or labor organization shall have standing to challenge any bid specification, project agreement, or other public contract for public works that violates the provisions of this section. Such interested party shall be entitled to injunctive relief to prevent any violation of this section. Any interested party bringing a successful action under this section shall be entitled to recover reasonable attorney fees and costs from the responsible party.

H. A representative of a state agency, a representative of a covered institution, or a representative of a locality that has adopted an ordinance described in subsection C may contact the Commissioner, at least 10 but not more than 20 days prior to the date bids for such a public contract for public works will be advertised or solicited, to ascertain the proper prevailing wage rate for work to be performed under the public contract.

I. Upon the award of any public contract subject to the provisions of this section, the contractor to whom such contract is awarded shall certify, under oath, to the Commissioner the pay scale for each craft or trade employed on the project to be used by such contractor and any of the contractor's subcontractors for work to be performed under such public contract. This certification shall, for each craft or trade employed on the project, specify the total hourly amount to be paid to employees, including wages and applicable fringe benefits, provide an itemization of the amount paid in wages and each applicable benefit, and list the names and addresses of any third party fund, plan or program to which benefit payments will be made on behalf of employees.

J. Each employer subject to the provisions of this section shall keep, maintain, and preserve (i) records relating to the wages paid to and hours worked by each individual performing the work of any mechanic, laborer, or worker and (ii) a schedule of the occupation or work classification at which each individual performing the work of any mechanic, laborer, or worker on the public works project is employed during each work day and week. The employer shall preserve these records for a minimum of six years and make such records available to the Department within 10 days of a request and shall certify that records reflect the actual hours worked and the amount paid to its workers for whatever time period they request.

K. No employer subject to the provisions of this section shall hire a subcontractor to perform services under a public contract for public works if such subcontractor is not registered with the Commonwealth's statewide electronic procurement system.

L. Contractors and subcontractors performing public works for a state agency, a covered institution, or a locality that has adopted an ordinance described in subsection C shall post the general prevailing wage rate for each craft and classification involved, as determined by the Commissioner, including the effective date of any changes thereof, in prominent and easily accessible places at the site of the work or at any such places as are used by the contractor or subcontractors to pay workers their wages. Within 10 days of such posting, a contractor or subcontractor shall certify to the Commissioner its compliance with this subsection.

M. Any fines or penalties levied by the Commissioner under this section shall be deposited into the general fund.

N. The provisions of this section shall not apply to any public contract for public works of $250,000 or less.

O. The Commissioner of Labor and Industry may investigate, institute administrative proceedings, and refer matters to the Attorney General to bring a civil action in a court of competent jurisdiction against an employer for a violation of this section under subsection G or N of § 40.1-29.

2020, cc. 1216, 1243; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 549; 2026, cc. 1014, 1040, 1060.