Skill: 1kalin/afrexai-davis-bacon (version 1.0.0)

# Davis-Bacon & Prevailing Wage Compliance Federal construction compliance agent. Covers Davis-Bacon Act, Related Acts, state prevailing wage laws, and DOL Wage Determinations. ## When to Use - Bidding on federal or federally-assisted construction projects - Determining prevailing wage rates for a project - Certified payroll preparation and submission - DOL compliance reviews or investigations - State prevailing wage ("little Davis-Bacon") requirements - Apprenticeship program compliance on federal jobs ## Capabilities ### Wage Determination Lookup Help contractors find the correct DOL Wage Determination (WD) for their project: | Factor | Details | |--------|---------| | **WD Types** | General (heavy, highway, building, residential) vs Project-specific | | **Geographic scope** | County-level rates — must match project location exactly | | **Modification tracking** | WDs updated weekly; locked 10 days before bid opening | | **Rate components** | Basic hourly rate + fringe benefits = total prevailing wage | | **SAM.gov lookup** | All WDs published at sam.gov/wage-determinations | ### Covered Projects | Threshold | Requirement | |-----------|-------------| | **Davis-Bacon Act** | Direct federal contracts >$2,000 for construction/repair/alteration | | **Related Acts** | ~60 federal statutes (CDBG, FHWA, FAA, HUD, EPA SRF, WIFIA, IIJA, IRA) | | **IIJA (2021)** | Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act — $550B+ in new spending, all DB-covered | | **IRA (2022)** | Inflation Reduction Act — clean energy projects require prevailing wage for full tax credits | | **State laws** | 28 states + DC have prevailing wage laws (varying thresholds $1K-$250K) | ### Certified Payroll Requirements Weekly certified payroll (WH-347) must include: | Field | Requirement | |-------|-------------| | **Employee info** | Name, address, last 4 SSN, work classification | | **Hours** | Daily and weekly hours, straight time and overtime | | **Rate** | Hourly rate + fringe breakdown (cash or bona fide plan) | | **Deductions** | Itemized, only permissible deductions (29 CFR 3) | | **Certification** | Signed Statement of Compliance (weekly) | | **Submission** | Weekly to contracting agency — retained 3 years minimum | | **Electronic** | LCPtracker, Elation Systems, B2Gnow accepted by most agencies | ### Classification & Wage Conformance When a needed classification doesn't appear on the WD: 1. **Check existing classifications** — often a similar one covers the work 2. **Request conformance** — submit SF-1444 to contracting officer 3. **CO forwards to DOL** — Wage and Hour Division reviews within 30 days 4. **Interim rate** — pay proposed rate pending DOL determination 5. **No self-classification** — contractor cannot unilaterally assign rates ### Common Violations & Penalties | Violation | Penalty Range | |-----------|---------------| | **Underpayment** | Back wages + interest (liquidated damages = 100% of underpayment) | | **Falsified certified payroll** | Criminal: up to $10,000 fine + 10 years imprisonment (18 USC 1001) | | **Kickbacks** | Criminal: up to $5,000 fine + 5 years imprisonment per occurrence | | **Debarment** | 3-year ban from ALL federal contracts (company + individuals) | | **Cross-debarment** | Federal debarment recognized by most states | | **Willful violations** | DOL refers to DOJ for criminal prosecution | | **Subcontractor liability** | Prime contractor jointly liable for sub violations | ### Fringe Benefits Compliance | Method | Requirements | |--------|-------------| | **Bona fide plan** | Irrevocable contributions to health, pension, vacation, apprenticeship funds | | **Cash equivalent** | Pay fringe amount as cash wages (added to base rate) | | **Combination** | Partial plan + partial cash — must total full fringe rate | | **Annualization** | Cannot credit plan costs for non-covered work | | **Documentation** | Maintain plan documents, contribution records, benefit statements | ### Apprenticeship Requirements | Requirement | Details | |-------------|---------| | **Registration** | Must be registered with DOL/BAT or recognized SAA | | **Ratio** | Cannot exceed approved apprentice-to-journeyworker ratio | | **Rate** | Percentage of journeyworker rate per registered program schedule | | **Supervision** | Must work under journeyworker on-site | | **Non-registered** | Laborer or mechanic rate required — no apprentice discount | | **IIJA/IRA bonus** | Some programs require apprenticeship utilization for full funding | ### State Prevailing Wage Quick Reference | State | Threshold | Key Differences from Federal | |-------|-----------|------------------------------| | **California** | $1,000 (public works) | DIR registration required, electronic CPR, steep penalties | | **New York** | $0 (all public work) | Fiscal officer determines rates, broader coverage | | **Illinois** | $0 (all public work) | Separate rates by county, monthly reporting | | **Massachusetts** | $0 (all public work) | Weekly payroll + monthly certified statements | | **New Jersey** | $2,000 | Registration Act compliance, stop-work authority | | **Ohio** | $250,000 | Covers new construction only (not repair/maintenance) | | **Pennsylvania** | $25,000 | Separate determination process from federal | | **Washington** | $0 (all public work) | Intent/affidavit filing before work begins | ### Investigation & Audit Preparation **Pre-audit checklist:** - [ ] All WH-347 certified payrolls filed weekly - [ ] Wage determination posted at job site (physical or electronic) - [ ] Employee interviews match payroll records - [ ] Fringe benefit contributions documented and current - [ ] Apprentice registrations on file - [ ] Subcontractor payrolls collected and reviewed - [ ] Time records match daily logs/sign-in sheets - [ ] No split classifications without documentation - [ ] Overtime calculated correctly (40-hour week, per FLSA) - [ ] All required posters displayed (WH-1321 "Employee Rights") ### IRA Prevailing Wage & Apprenticeship (Clean Energy) For Inflation Reduction Act tax credit projects: | Credit | Base | With PW&A | Multiplier | |--------|------|-----------|------------| | **ITC (Solar/Wind)** | 6% | 30% | 5x | | **PTC (Wind/Other)** | 0.3¢/kWh | 1.5¢/kWh | 5x | | **45X Manufacturing** | Base amount | 3x base | 3x | | **45V Hydrogen** | $0.12-0.60/kg | $0.60-3.00/kg | 5x | **Requirements:** Pay prevailing wages during construction AND for 5 years after placed in service. Apprenticeship hours = 12.5% (2024), 15% (2025+). Correction/penalty framework for good-faith failures. ## Output Format - Rate lookups: classification, base rate, fringe, total, WD number, expiration - Compliance reviews: checklist with pass/fail + corrective action - Risk assessments: violation exposure in dollars + probability - Bid preparation: wage cost worksheets by classification and hours ## Integration Works with: contract review, construction project management, payroll systems, bid estimation tools. --- **Need help building compliant payroll systems or automating Davis-Bacon tracking?** Browse our full toolkit: https://afrexai-cto.github.io/context-packs/ Built by [AfrexAI](https://afrexai-cto.github.io/context-packs/) — AI tools for businesses that actually work.

path: README.md
content: # Davis-Bacon & Prevailing Wage Compliance

Federal construction compliance agent for Davis-Bacon Act, Related Acts (IIJA, IRA, CDBG, FHWA), state prevailing wage laws, and DOL Wage Determinations.

## What It Does

- **Wage determination lookup** — correct WD by project type, location, and classification
- **Certified payroll prep** — WH-347 requirements, electronic submission, record retention
- **Classification conformance** — SF-1444 process when needed classifications are missing
- **Violation risk scoring** — dollar exposure from underpayment, falsification, debarment
- **IRA clean energy compliance** — prevailing wage + apprenticeship for 5x tax credit multiplier
- **State prevailing wage** — 28 states + DC with varying thresholds and requirements
- **Audit preparation** — full pre-investigation checklist with document review
- **Fringe benefits** — bona fide plan vs cash equivalent compliance
- **Apprenticeship ratios** — registered program requirements on federal jobs

## Who Needs This

Every contractor bidding on or performing federal construction work. That's $550B+ in IIJA spending, plus IRA clean energy projects where prevailing wage compliance is the difference between a 6% and 30% tax credit.

Subcontractors too — prime contractors are jointly liable for sub violations, so everyone in the chain needs to get this right.

## Penalty Reality Check

- Underpayment: back wages + 100% liquidated damages
- Falsified payroll: up to $10,000 fine + 10 years imprisonment
- Debarment: 3-year ban from ALL federal contracts
- Prime liability: you own your subs' mistakes

## Get Started

```
clawhub install afrexai-davis-bacon
```

## More Tools

Full catalog of AI business tools: https://afrexai-cto.github.io/context-packs/

Calculate what AI automation saves your operation: https://afrexai-cto.github.io/ai-revenue-calculator/

Built by [AfrexAI](https://afrexai-cto.github.io/context-packs/)


Security scan verdicts — ClawScan: clean | static analysis: clean | VirusTotal: clean | SkillSpector: clean (LOW)