Finding Text
Finding: Title 29, U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, Part 5, Sub-Part A Davis Bacon and Related Acts Provisions and Procedures (the “Davis-Bacon Act”), requires that any construction contract in excess of $2,000 that is funded wholly or in part by federal funds include prevailing wage rate clauses. The laborers and mechanics employed by contractors or subcontractors to work on construction contracts in excess of $2,000 financed by federal assistance funds must be paid wages not less than those established for locality of project (prevailing wage rates) by the Department of Labor (DOL) and the contractor or subcontractor must submit to the nonfederal entity weekly, for each week in which any contract work is performed, a copy of the payroll and a statement of compliance (certified payrolls). During fiscal year 2024, the Board expended $18,125,077.25 of COVID-19 Education Stabilization Funds (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief) funds on construction projects. The Board did not provide contracts to demonstrate that the prevailing wage rate clauses were appropriately included nor were certified payroll submitted by the contractors. The Board did not ensure the Davis-Bacon Act wage rate requirements were included in construction contracts; therefore, COVID-19 Education Stabilization Funds (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief) funds were used to pay contracts that did not include prevailing wage rate clauses, nor did the Board ensure that contractors submitted weekly certified payrolls. As a result, the Board is not in compliance with the Davis-Bacon Act as it pertains to wage rate requirements. Recommendation: The Board should comply with Title 29, U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, Part 5, Sub-Part A Davis Bacon and Related Acts Provisions and Procedures (the “Davis-Bacon Act”) when using COVID-19 Education Stabilization Funds (ESSER) or any federal money to fund construction contracts in excess of $2,000.00.