FAR 22.1012-1—Prevailing wage determinations.
Plain-English Summary
FAR 22.1012-1 explains how contracting officers determine whether a revised prevailing wage determination must be included in a solicitation, contract, or contract modification, and it ties that decision to when the contracting agency—not just the contracting officer—receives the revision. The section covers revisions issued by the Wage and Hour Administrator, the special timing rules for wage determinations obtained through Wage Determinations at SAM.gov, the separate timing rule for the e98 process, the duty to monitor for revisions, and the different effectiveness rules for sealed bidding versus other contracting actions. It also addresses what happens when a revised determination arrives too late for sealed bids, when it arrives after award for other actions, and when performance starts within or beyond 30 days of award or the modification. Finally, it requires the contracting officer to follow up with the Wage and Hour Division by telephone if an e98 request has gone unanswered for 10 days. In practice, this section is about avoiding wage underpayments and contract noncompliance by making sure the correct wage determination is incorporated at the right time, based on the applicable procurement method and performance start date.
Key Rules
Revisions may be issued periodically
The Wage and Hour Administrator can revise prevailing wage determinations from time to time. Whether a revised determination must be included depends on when the contracting agency receives it, not when the contracting officer personally sees it.
Agency receipt controls timing
For Wage Determinations at SAM.gov, the agency is deemed to receive the revision on the first day it is published on the website. For the e98 process, receipt occurs when the agency gets actual notice from the Department of Labor as an e98 response.
Contracting officer must monitor revisions
When selecting a wage determination for a solicitation or other contract action, the contracting officer must monitor Wage Determinations at SAM.gov to see whether the applicable determination has been revised. Revisions received or published within the applicable timeframes are effective and must be included in the resulting contract.
Sealed bidding has a 10-day cutoff
For sealed bidding, a revised wage determination is not effective if it is received by the contracting agency less than 10 days before bid opening and the contracting officer determines there is not enough time to incorporate it into the solicitation.
Other actions use award and start-date rules
For non-sealed-bid actions, a revision received after award of a new contract or specified modification is not effective if performance starts within 30 days of award or the modification. If no start date within 30 days is specified, a revision received at least 10 days before work begins is effective.
Follow up on delayed e98 responses
If the contracting officer has submitted an e98 request and has not received a response within 10 days, the contracting officer must contact the Wage and Hour Division by telephone to find out when the wage determination can be expected.
Responsibilities
Contracting Officer
Monitor Wage Determinations at SAM.gov for revisions, determine whether a revised wage determination must be included, apply the correct timing rule for sealed bidding or other contract actions, incorporate effective revisions into the solicitation or contract, and follow up by telephone with the Wage and Hour Division if an e98 response is not received within 10 days.
Contracting Agency
Treat receipt of a revised wage determination as occurring on the first day of publication on Wage Determinations at SAM.gov, or on the date actual notice is received through the e98 process, because those dates control whether the revision is effective for the procurement.
Wage and Hour Administrator / Department of Labor
Issue revised prevailing wage determinations and, through the e98 process, provide actual notice of new or revised determinations to the agency.
Offerors / Bidders / Contractors
Review solicitations and contract actions for the applicable wage determination and be prepared to comply with revised determinations that are timely incorporated into the contract.
Practical Implications
This section is a timing rule, so the biggest risk is using an outdated wage determination because the revision arrived after the relevant cutoff or because the contracting officer did not monitor SAM.gov closely enough.
The distinction between agency receipt and contracting officer receipt matters; a revision can be effective even if the contracting officer learns of it later.
For sealed bids, the 10-day rule can determine whether a revision must be added before bid opening, which can affect solicitation amendments and bid preparation.
For other contract actions, the start-of-performance date is critical; if performance begins within 30 days of award or modification, a later-received revision may not apply, but if work starts later, a revision received at least 10 days before work begins can become effective.
If an e98 request stalls, the contracting officer cannot simply wait indefinitely; the regulation requires a telephone follow-up after 10 days to avoid delay in obtaining the wage determination.
Official Regulatory Text
(a) (1) The Wage and Hour Administrator may issue revisions to prevailing wage determinations periodically. The need for inclusion of a revised prevailing wage determination in a solicitation, contract or contract modification (see 22.1007 ) is determined by the date of receipt of the revised prevailing wage determination by the contracting agency. (Note the distinction between receipt by the agency and receipt by the contracting officer which may occur later.) (i) For purposes of using Wage Determinations at SAM.gov , the time of receipt by the contracting agency shall be the first day of publication of the revised prevailing wage determination on the website. (ii) For purposes of using the e98 process, the time of receipt by the contracting agency shall be the date the agency receives actual notice of a new or revised prevailing wage determination from the Department of Labor as an e98 response. (2) In selecting a prevailing wage determination from the Wage Determinations at SAM.gov website for use in a solicitation or other contract action, the contracting officer shall monitor the Wage Determinations at SAM.gov website to determine whether the applicable wage determination has been revised. Revisions published on the Wage Determinations at SAM.gov website or otherwise communicated to the contracting officer within the timeframes prescribed at 22.1012-1 (b) and (c) are effective and must be included in the resulting contract. Monitoring can be accomplished by use of the Wage Determinations at SAM.gov website’s "Alert Service". (b) The following shall apply when contracting by sealed bidding: a revised prevailing wage determination shall not be effective if it is received by the contracting agency less than 10 days before the opening of bids, and the contracting officer finds that there is not reasonable time to incorporate the revision in the solicitation. (c) For contractual actions other than sealed bidding, a revised prevailing wage determination received by the contracting agency after award of a new contract or a modification as specified in 22.1007 (b) shall not be effective provided that the start of performance is within 30 days of the award or the specified modification. If the contract does not specify a start of performance date which is within 30 days of the award or the specified modification, and if contract performance does not commence within 30 days of the award or the specified modification, any revision received by the contracting agency not less than 10 days before commencement of the work shall be effective. (d) If the contracting officer has submitted an e98 to the Department of Labor requesting a prevailing wage determination and has not received a response within 10 days, the contracting officer shall contact the Wage and Hour Division by telephone to determine when the wage determination can be expected. (The telephone number is provided on the e98 website.)