[Davisgig] Prevailing Wage Considerations
Jim Frame
jhframe at dcn.org
Wed Aug 10 21:23:44 PDT 2016
It's not too early to start thinking about the contracting and
construction aspects of a municipal fiber network. We need to be
cognizant of the ramifications of public funding, even if it's for work
preparatory to construction of the project. As a rule of thumb, if any
public monies get into the mix, prevailing wage regulations apply to the
entire project, and that can dramatically increase the cost of
construction. (I don't think the feasibility study qualifies, but once
the effort becomes a "public works project" the funding sources matter,
even prior to actual construction.)
If the build is done with the city as the contracting agency, there's no
question that the rules apply. But if it's built for a private
non-profit, the question goes to the source of funds.
I'm not suggesting that paying prevailing wages is necessarily a bad
thing, just that it's a factor worthy of consideration. And the earlier
the better in order to prevent any unintentional commitments.
The reason I bring this up now is that in doing some research in
connection of my own business -- prevailing wage requirements can be
maddeningly complex and confusing -- I came across a Department of
Industrial Relations ruling on a fiber project. The project owners
thought they were exempt from the regs, but the DIR ruled otherwise.
For anyone who wants to dive into the details, the ruling document can
be found here:
http://www.dir.ca.gov/OPRL/coverage/year2015/2013-015(A).pdf
--
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Jim Frame jhframe at dcn.org 530.756.8584
Frame Surveying & Mapping 609 A Street Davis, CA 95616
-----------------------< Davis Community Network >-------------------
More information about the Davisgig
mailing list