FAR 22.403-1—Construction Wage Rate Requirements statute.
Plain-English Summary
FAR 22.403-1 identifies the statutory basis for the Construction Wage Rate Requirements, formerly the Davis-Bacon Act, and explains when the requirement applies to federal construction contracting. It covers contracts in excess of $2,000 where the United States or the District of Columbia is a party and the work involves construction, alteration, or repair, including painting and decorating, of public buildings or public works within the United States. The section also points to the required contract clause at FAR 52.222-6, which must be included in covered contracts. In practical terms, this means contractors performing covered construction work must pay laborers and mechanics at least the prevailing wage rates determined by the Secretary of Labor for work performed directly on the site of the work. The rule exists to protect local wage standards on federally funded construction and to ensure wage competition does not undercut area labor rates. For contracting officers, it is a threshold and clause-inclusion rule; for contractors, it is a wage compliance obligation that affects pricing, payroll, subcontract management, and labor recordkeeping.
Key Rules
Covered contract threshold
The statute applies to contracts in excess of $2,000. If the contract value does not exceed that amount, the Construction Wage Rate Requirements do not apply under this section.
Federal party requirement
The United States or the District of Columbia must be a party to the contract. This limits the rule to covered federal or D.C. government construction contracts.
Construction work scope
The work must involve construction, alteration, or repair, including painting and decorating. The rule is not limited to new construction; it also reaches many renovation and maintenance-type construction activities.
Public buildings and public works
The project must be for public buildings or public works within the United States. This ties the wage requirement to federally related construction of public facilities and infrastructure located in the U.S.
Mandatory clause inclusion
Covered contracts must contain the wage clause at FAR 52.222-6. The clause is the contractual mechanism that flows the statutory wage requirement into the contract.
Prevailing wage payment
Laborers and mechanics employed directly upon the site of the work must be paid no less than the prevailing wage rates determined by the Secretary of Labor. This is the core substantive labor standard imposed by the statute.
Responsibilities
Contracting Officer
Determine whether the contract is covered by the statute, ensure the contract exceeds the $2,000 threshold and involves covered construction work, and include the required clause at FAR 52.222-6 in applicable solicitations and contracts.
Contractor
Pay laborers and mechanics working directly on the site of the work at least the applicable prevailing wage rates, incorporate the requirement into subcontract management, and maintain compliance with the wage terms of the contract.
Subcontractors
Follow the same prevailing wage obligations for covered labor performed under the contract and ensure workers on the site are paid in accordance with the applicable wage determinations and contract clause.
Department of Labor
Determine the prevailing wage rates that apply to covered construction work and provide the wage determinations used to enforce the statutory wage requirement.
Agency
Administer covered construction contracts in a way that ensures the wage requirement is properly flowed into the procurement and that compliance issues are identified and addressed during contract performance.
Practical Implications
Contracting officers must screen construction acquisitions early for Davis-Bacon coverage; missing the clause can create compliance and administration problems later.
Contractors need to build prevailing wage costs into bids and proposals, because labor rates may be higher than market rates and can materially affect pricing.
Payroll and labor classification are common trouble spots: workers must be paid the correct wage rate for the type of work actually performed on the site.
Subcontract oversight matters because prime contractors can face performance and compliance issues if subs fail to pay required wages.
The phrase 'directly upon the site of the work' is important in practice, because not every worker on a construction project is covered in the same way; parties should verify coverage rather than assume it applies to all personnel.
Official Regulatory Text
40 U.S.C. chapter 31 , subchapter IV, Wage Rate Requirements (Construction), formerly known as the Davis-Bacon Act, provides that contracts in excess of $2,000 to which the United States or the District of Columbia is a party for construction, alteration, or repair (including painting and decorating) of public buildings or public works within the United States, shall contain a clause (see 52.222-6 ) that no laborer or mechanic employed directly upon the site of the work shall receive less than the prevailing wage rates as determined by the Secretary of Labor.