Who has to file certified payroll?

Contractors and subcontractors on federally funded or federally assisted construction contracts above the Davis-Bacon threshold, and on state or local jobs covered by their own prevailing-wage laws. It applies down the chain: a second-tier subcontractor files too, usually through the party above them, and every week work is performed on site.

The U.S. Department of Labor's optional certified payroll form. It records each worker, their classification, hours by day, rate, gross pay, deductions, net pay, and fringe benefits, and it carries a statement of compliance signed under penalty of perjury. The DOL publishes it free — there is no reason to pay anyone for the form itself.

What are the most common certified payroll mistakes?

Misclassifying a worker into a cheaper trade classification, treating fringe benefits as if they were wages without the right documentation, forgetting apprentice ratios and registration, missing weeks entirely, and simply filing late. The classification error is the expensive one: it can mean back wages for every hour worked, plus liquidated damages.

Does BuiltSum produce certified payroll?

No, and that is deliberate. Certified payroll is signed under penalty of perjury and depends on payroll records, fringe determinations and apprentice registrations that live in a payroll system, not an estimating tool. The DOL's form is free, and a payroll provider that specialises in prevailing wage will serve you better than a bolt-on feature would.

What is certified payroll?

Certified payroll is a weekly payroll report, signed under penalty of perjury, proving that everyone who worked on a prevailing-wage job was paid at least the wage and fringe rate the contract requires for their classification. It exists because on publicly funded work the wage rate is part of the deal, and the signature is what makes the claim enforceable.

Where the obligation comes from

On federal work it is the Davis-Bacon Act and its related acts, which set prevailing wage determinations by locality and classification. Many states have their own “little Davis-Bacon” laws covering state and municipal projects, sometimes with lower thresholds and their own forms. The wage determination attached to your contract — not a national average, not what you normally pay — is the number that governs.

What goes on the report

Each worker, their classification, hours worked each day, straight and overtime rates, gross wages, every deduction, net pay, and the fringe benefits paid — either into a bona fide plan or as cash in lieu. Then the statement of compliance, signed. Form WH-347 is the Department of Labor’s free version and most agencies accept it; some states and portals require their own.

Where it goes wrong

Classification is the expensive mistake. Paying a labourer’s rate for work the determination classifies as a finisher can mean back wages for every hour, plus liquidated damages, plus withheld contract payments — and on federal work, potential debarment. Fringe accounting is the subtle one: crediting benefits you cannot document as a bona fide plan turns a compliant wage into an underpayment on paper. Apprentices only count at apprentice rates if they are in a registered programme and within ratio.

How it touches your billing

Practically, certified payroll is a condition of getting paid: agencies and general contractors routinely hold a pay application until the week’s reports are in. So the report and the pay application move together, and prevailing-wage rates have to be in the bid in the first place — which means burdened labour rates that reflect the determination, not your usual crew cost. The labor burden calculator is the right place to work that out before the number is committed.

This is general information, not legal or payroll advice. Prevailing-wage compliance depends on your contract’s wage determination and the rules of the funding agency — confirm both with your payroll provider or counsel.