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Prevailing Wage Laws by State
Last updated November 2026. Twenty-nine states and Washington, DC have their own prevailing wage laws that set minimum wages and fringe benefits on state and locally funded public construction. The other 21 states have no state law, but the federal Davis-Bacon Act still applies to federally funded construction projects over $2,000 in every state.
United States
Click a state to zoom in, then use the arrows to browse all 50 states and DC. Click the state again to return to the full map. States appearing dark blue on the map have their own prevailing wage laws that apply to state and local projects. The other states defer to the U.S. federal Davis-Bacon Act which sets prevailing wage standards for federally funded construction projects.
Zoomed in, open the info panel for state details.
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State
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State-specific prevailing wage laws
State defers to federal Davis-Bacon Act
The information on eBacon's interactive prevailing wage map is provided for general informational purposes only. The accuracy or availability of the information is subject to periodic updates. Overtime (OT) and double time (DT) requirements may be subject to other rules which vary by state, or subject to contract funding. Information published here must be verified by relevant government agencies.
Washington Prevailing Wage Law
State law
State law: all public works, no threshold
State law. Covers public works with no dollar threshold. A separate law for state college and university construction uses $25,000.
Details
| Statute | RCW 39.12 (39.12.010(7) benefit annualization; 39.12.040 intents and affidavits; 39.12.042 agency liability; 39.12.120 certified payroll filing); WAC 296-127 (including 296-127-014 usual benefits and 296-127-022 4-10 overtime agreements).Source: MRSC on intents and affidavits; L&I, The Washington State Prevailing Wage Law (Dec 2024 ed.); WAC 296-127-014 Usual benefits (app.leg.wa.gov); WAC 296-127-022 Overtime according to RCW 49.28.065 (app.leg.wa.gov). Last checked October 22, 2026. |
|---|---|
| Dollar thresholds | None. Contracts of $5,000 or less can use a combined intent/affidavit with no filing fee (agency accepts wage liability; no subs).Source: MRSC on intents and affidavits. Last checked October 22, 2026. |
| Administering agency | Washington Department of Labor & Industries (L&I), Prevailing Wage program.Source: MRSC on intents and affidavits. Last checked October 22, 2026. |
| Where to get wage rates | L&I journey-level rates by county, published the first business day of February and August and effective 30 days later (latest: published Aug 3, 2026, effective Sept 2, 2026). Rates in effect on the bid due date apply for the project; if award is 6+ months after bid, the award date governs.Source: WSDOT wage rates page. Last checked October 22, 2026. |
| Wages vs. fringes | Base plus usual benefits, coded on each rate. Employer contributions that count (WAC 296-127-014): health and welfare (medical, dental, vision, life insurance), retirement, vacation, apprenticeship training funds approved by the state apprenticeship council, and paid holidays; plans must meet ERISA and IRS rules. Employee contributions and benefits required by other laws (industrial insurance, sick leave) don't count. Cash paid in lieu of benefits is treated as wages. Benefit credit must be annualized over all hours worked in the year, public and private (RCW 39.12.010(7)); the only exemption is a defined contribution pension plan with immediate participation and vesting.Source: L&I, The Washington State Prevailing Wage Law (Dec 2024 ed.); WSDOT wage rates page; WAC 296-127-014 Usual benefits (app.leg.wa.gov). Last checked October 22, 2026. |
| Pay frequency | At least monthly on an established regular payday. If the pay period is shorter than a month, payday must be no later than 10 calendar days after the period ends (WAC 296-126-023).Source: WAC 296-126-023, payment interval (Cornell LII); L&I, The Washington State Prevailing Wage Law (Dec 2024 ed.); DOL state payday requirements. Last checked October 22, 2026. |
| Overtime and double time | Overtime for hours over 8 a day and over 40 a week. Under a voluntary 4-10 agreement (WAC 296-127-022), the first 2 hours over 8 aren't overtime; the agreement must come from collective bargaining or be in writing, signed and dated, made individually with each worker and naming the project (or an annual authorization), and kept 3 years as a payroll record; L&I's 4-10 form is filed with the certified payroll. Working over 10 hours a day on a public works project is barred except in an extraordinary emergency. Saturday, Sunday and holiday work follows the prevailing overtime rules. The multiplier (1.5x or 2x) comes from each trade's overtime code on the L&I Benefit Code Key, applied to the hourly cash rate actually paid.Source: L&I, The Washington State Prevailing Wage Law (Dec 2024 ed.); L&I Benefit Code Key (via WSDOT); L&I 4-10 work agreement form; WAC 296-127-022 Overtime according to RCW 49.28.065 (app.leg.wa.gov). Last checked October 22, 2026. |
| Certified payroll forms | Weekly certified payrolls filed online in L&I's system at least monthly since January 2020 (ESSB 5035, 2019). Per worker: name, address, SSN, trade, straight-time rate, hourly benefits, daily and weekly hours including overtime, 4-10 agreements and deductions; apprentice ID if applicable. Keep records 3 years after acceptance. Federal-aid WSDOT jobs also use WH-347.Source: L&I PWIA step-by-step instructions (Mar 2026); L&I, The Washington State Prevailing Wage Law (Dec 2024 ed.); WSDOT wage rates page. Last checked October 22, 2026. |
| Electronic filing portal | L&I Prevailing Wage Intents and Affidavits (PWIA) system, through My L&I or SAW. Intents filed after award and before work; Affidavits after completion, before retainage release. XML upload with L&I's schema.Source: L&I PWIA step-by-step instructions; MRSC on intents and affidavits. Last checked October 22, 2026. |
| EEO and workforce reports | No state EEO or demographic report under the prevailing wage law. L&I's certified payroll collects name, address, SSN, trade, rates, hours and deductions, but not gender, race/ethnicity or veteran status. Federal-aid highway jobs (WSDOT and local agency): prime contractors and subcontractors submit the FHWA-1391 annual EEO report to the contracting agency each July, counting minority, women and non-minority workers by classification for the project workforce in the last payroll period of July (FHWA-1273 § II.11.b).Source: L&I PWIA step-by-step instructions (Mar 2026); L&I, The Washington State Prevailing Wage Law (Dec 2024 ed.); WSDOT Local Agency Guidelines ch. 44 (Dec 2024), FHWA-1273 EEO reporting; WSDOT copy of Form FHWA-1391. Last checked October 22, 2026. |
| Apprentice ratio rules | Apprentices must be in a program approved by the Washington State Apprenticeship and Training Council; unregistered workers get journey-level pay. Apprentice ID, program and step reported on payroll. Apprentice Utilization Requirement (RCW 39.04.320): 15% of labor hours by apprentices on state agency, school district and four-year college projects of $1 million+, WSDOT projects of $2 million+, and municipal projects of $2 million+ ($1.5 million+ if advertised from July 1, 2026; $1 million+ from July 1, 2028). From July 1, 2026, the prime must give the agency an Apprentice Utilization Plan before notice to proceed (RCW 39.04.350).Source: RCW 39.04.320; L&I Apprentice Utilization Requirement; L&I, The Washington State Prevailing Wage Law (Dec 2024 ed.). Last checked October 22, 2026. |
| Recent changes | Rates effective Sept 2, 2026 and March 4, 2026. July 1, 2026: municipal apprentice utilization threshold drops to $1.5 million and primes must file Apprentice Utilization Plans before notice to proceed. Agencies that pay before an approved intent or release retainage before approved affidavits can be liable for workers' wages (RCW 39.12.042).Source: WSDOT wage rates page; L&I Apprentice Utilization Requirement; MRSC on intents and affidavits. Last checked October 22, 2026. |
The information on eBacon's interactive prevailing wage map is provided for general informational purposes only. The accuracy or availability of the information is subject to periodic updates. Overtime (OT) and double time (DT) requirements may be subject to other rules which vary by state, or subject to contract funding. Information published here must be verified by relevant government agencies.
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- Which states have prevailing wage laws?
- Which states don’t have a prevailing wage law?
Which states have prevailing wage laws?
Alaska, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wyoming, and Washington, DC. Thresholds, covered projects, and reporting rules vary by state, so open any state on the map for its details.
Which states don’t have a prevailing wage law?
Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. No state law doesn’t mean no paperwork, though: federal Davis-Bacon rules still apply to federally funded jobs in all of them.
eBacon assigns the right state or federal wage determination to each job, calculates wages and fringe by trade classification, and generates the WH-347 or the state’s certified payroll form in one click. See how eBacon handles prevailing wage payroll →
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