Products
Benefits Administration
Compliance
DOL Announces Final Rule Updating DBRA and Accompanying Seminars
On August 23, 2023, the Department of Labor (DOL) published the final rule, “Updating the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts Regulation,” to update regulations for the Davis-Bacon Act and Related Acts (DBRA). The regulations intend to provide explicit guidance and more effective wage rate enforcement on federal projects.
To assist with implementation, the DOL will offer online compliance seminars in September to educate contracting agencies, contractors, unions, workers, and others about the recent updates to regulations concerning employment practices for federally funded contracts.
The final rule announcement follows a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking from March 18, 2022, which received input from the construction industry and labor stakeholders to inform the updates. These updates are the most comprehensive in decades. Some of the rule’s highlights include
- An update to the methods used by DOL to develop wage and fringe rates, as well as the conformance process
- Changes, additional guidance, and clarifications affecting various fringe benefits and their administration
- Changes to recordkeeping and records retention requirements
- Greater prime contractor responsibilities for violations committed by subs
- Expanding the definition of “site of work” and increasing the coverage of truck drivers and material handlers
The seminars, which require registration, aim to clarify these changes and promote compliance with federal prevailing wage requirements. The workshops will be held on September 13 and 14, 2023, covering various updates, including the definition of “prevailing wage,” periodic rate updates, adoption of state or local wage determinations, and enforcement changes.
The updated regulations are the first significant revision in almost 40 years. Fringe Benefit Group will continue to monitor these changes, seek clarifications from the DOL, and inform you about changes that need to be made. The final rule will be effective 60 days after publication in the Federal Register.