Title
Amending Chapter 82 of the Administrative Code to allow federal residential prevailing wage rates for carpenters working on certain City-financed wood frame construction projects.
Body
SECTION 1
WHEREAS, Minnesota Statutes § 471.345 Subdivision 7 authorizes municipalities to adopt rules, regulations, or ordinances establishing the prevailing wage rate for municipal contracts; and
WHEREAS, the City of Saint Paul has established prevailing wage requirements for certain publicly funded construction projects in Section 82.07 of the Saint Paul Administrative Code;
WHEREAS, the Laws of Minnesota 2025, chapter 32, article 4, § 14, recognizes the use of the applicable federal residential carpenter rate on certain wood-framed residential housing projects; and
WHEREAS, the City Council finds it appropriate to amend Section 82.07 to permit the use of the federal Davis Bacon residential construction carpenter rate for certain wood frame residential construction projects for which the City is the only source of public funding assistance, and provided that nothing in this section shall be construed to supersede or conflict with any applicable state or federal prevailing wage requirement.
NOW, THEREFORE, RESOLVED, THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAINT PAUL DOES HEREBY ORDAIN:
Chapter 82 of the Saint Paul Administrative Code is hereby amended to read as follows:
SECTION 2.
Chapter Administrative Code Chapter 82 - Purchasing Procedures; Public Contracts
Section 82.07 - Minimum Wages on Public Contracts
(a) Policy. It is the policy of the City of Saint Paul that all work for development, buildings, roads, and other works paid for with public funds be constructed and maintained by the best means and highest quality labor that is reasonably available and that persons working on public works be compensated according to the real value of the services they perform. Accordingly, it is the policy of the City of Saint Paul that the wages of workers on publicly-owned and publicly-funded projects be comparable to wages paid for similar work in the local community.
(b) Definitions.
(1) Apprenticeship Program means a bona fide apprenticeship program registered with the U.S. Department of Labor or with a state apprenticeship agency.
(2) Certified Payroll Records means payroll records furnished under oath signed by an owner or officer of an employer to the contracting authority and the project owner every week, including a certified payroll report with respect to the wages and benefits paid each employee during the preceding week specifying for each employee: name; identifying number; prevailing wage master job classification; hours worked each day; total hours; rate of pay; gross amount earned; each deduction for taxes; total deductions; net pay for week; dollars contributed per hour for each benefit, including name and address of administrator; benefit account number; and telephone number for health and welfare, vacation or holiday, apprenticeship training, pension, and other benefit programs.
(3) Department means the Saint Paul Department of Human Rights and Equal Economic Opportunity.
(4) Prevailing hours of labor means not more than eight (8) hours per day or more than forty (40) hours per week.
(5) Prevailing wage rate means the rate of wages and benefits certified and published as prevailing by the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry
(6) Project means any new construction work, demolition work, or repair work on any roads, bridges, sewers, streets, alleys, parks, parkways, buildings, removal of public nuisances or any other improvement of public or private property.
(7) Restitution means an amount at least equal to the amount of underpayment of prevailing wages.
(8) Relending or Regranting Program means a program whereby public funds are either loaned or granted by the city or HRA to an intermediary such as a community development corporation, which serves as a pass-through agency for the award of public assistance.
(9) End borrower or grantee means the end borrower or grantee who receives public funds from an intermediary under a relending or regranting program and uses such funds to pay for project costs.
(c) Application. This section applies to all city or St. Paul Housing and Redevelopment Authority projects in the amount of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000.00) or more.
This section also applies to all projects in the amount of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000.00) or more involving the erection, construction, demolition, remodeling or repairing of a privately owned building, other facility or property where the city or the Saint Paul Housing and Redevelopment Authority provides financial assistance for the work to be performed in the form of a grant, loan, loan guarantee, tax increment financing, tax abatement, tax credit, or revenue from bonds. If the financial assistance provided by the City or Saint Paul Housing and Redevelopment Authority is the only source of public financial assistance for the project, the following exception applies:
Wood-frame residential carpenter work. The prevailing wage rate for carpenter work, as described in Minnesota Rules part 5200.1102, subpart 4, performed in the erection, remodeling, or finishing of a wood-frame residential structure of six stories or fewer, or any wood-frame portion thereof, is the applicable residential carpenter wage rate established by the United States Department of Labor. If the United States Department of Labor does not establish a residential carpenter wage rate applicable to the project, the applicable carpenter prevailing wage rate published by the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry will apply. Nothing in this subsection alters any prevailing wage requirements imposed by applicable federal or state laws. If a project receives state funds such that state prevailing wage laws apply, those state prevailing wage requirements will govern and this subsection will not apply. If any provision of this subsection is held invalid, unenforceable, or preempted by federal or state law, the remaining provisions shall remain in effect to the maximum extent permitted by law. With respect to a relending or regranting program, the threshold level of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000.00) of project costs is determined on an individual basis by the cost of the project of each end borrower or grantee.
This section does not apply to apprentices working on projects pursuant to a bona fide registered apprenticeship program for work performed in his or her trade. A trainee and a helper are not exempt under this provision; the contractor must assign the trainee or helper a job classification that is the "same or most similar" to the work being performed and compensate the trainee or helper for the actual work performed regardless of the trainee's or helper's skill.
For housing developments, this section incorporates and follows the same exemptions found in federal Davis Bacon statutes and their regulatory implementation.
(d) Prevailing wage required. All contractors and subcontractors must pay workers, at a minimum, the prevailing wage rate.
(e) Prevailing hours of labor. Workers employed directly on a project by a contractor or subcontractor, agent, or other person doing or contracting to do all or part of the work of the project, may not work more hours than the prevailing hours of labor, unless paid for all hours in excess of the prevailing hours at a rate of at least one and one-half (1½) times the prevailing hourly basic rate of pay.
(f) Notice. All contractors and subcontractors must post on the project the applicable prevailing wage rates in at least one (1) conspicuous place for the duration of the project. The posted information must include a breakdown of the hourly basic rates of pay as well as contributions for health and welfare benefits, vacation benefits, pension benefits, and any other economic benefit.
(g) Compliance monitoring and enforcement.
(1) The designated city compliance officer will monitor compliance and investigate complaints of violations of this section.
(2) All contractors must furnish copies of certified payroll records for all work on the project for which payment of prevailing wages is required under this section. Certified payrolls shall be submitted weekly to the city's designated compliance officer. Such certified payroll records must contain all of the information listed in section (b) of this section.
(3) The city's designated compliance officer may request additional records reasonably required to monitor compliance with this section.
(h) Self-employed independent contractors, owners, supervisors and foremen.
(1) Self-employed or independent contractors performing labor must be paid prevailing wages for the classification of work performed. Any vendor who plans to accomplish all or a portion of the work using self-employed, independent contractors, subcontractors, or partnership contractors must provide the city, as part of their contract bid, with bona fide demonstration of status of such entities. If there is a substitution of a self-employed independent contractor or subcontractor during the execution of the contract, the proof of status must be submitted to the city's designated compliance officer. All such self-employed, independent contractors, subcontractors, or partnership contractors must have executed a written contract or subcontract agreement for their work performance. The city will accept any four (4) of the following as a bona fide demonstration of status. If status cannot be determined clearly enough by submission of the below information or documentation, the subcontractor status will be disallowed and the individual(s) will be included on the engaging company's payroll as employees and will be entitled to receipt of the prevailing wage for all work performed.
a. Identification of a registered trade name and location of a telephone listing under that name;
b. A contractor's license;
c. A subcontractor's bond;
d. Proof of workers' compensation insurance coverage;
e. If the subcontractor is a partnership, a copy of the executed partnership agreement and Federal Tax Identification Numbers applicable to that partnership agreement;
f. A copy of the previous year's tax filing;
g. Any other determination regarding status as defined by the state or federal department of revenue.
(2) Owners, supervisors, and foremen performing labor under the contract must be paid prevailing wages for the classification of work performed.
(i) Trucking.
(1) For the purposes of this section, payment of prevailing wage and/or truck rental rates is required for work considered to be under the contract using the standards set forth in Minnesota Statutes section 177.41-177.44 and Minnesota Rules 5200.1000 to 5200.1120.
(2) A contractor acquiring trucking services from an independent truck owner, multiple truck owner, or truck broker to perform or provide covered hauling activities shall comply with the payment of the certified State of Minnesota truck rental rates.
(3) The prime contractor shall submit on its behalf and on behalf of all subcontractors a month-end trucking report and statement of compliance form along with each independent truck owner, multiple truck owner, and truck broker report to the city. The contractor must use month-end trucking report and statement of compliance forms and report forms approved by the city.
(4) A contractor with employee truck drivers shall adhere to the requirements established in sections (d), (e) (f) and (g) of this section.
(5) If the prime contractor fails to submit its month-end trucking reports and certification forms and those of any subcontractor, independent truck owner, multiple truck owner, or truck broker, the department may take such actions as prescribed in section (k).
(j) Bid specifications and contract terms. The obligations of this section are expressly incorporated into the bid specifications and requests for bids or proposals for all projects and are material and binding terms and conditions of all contracts and subcontracts for projects.
(k) Prevailing wage violations. Failure to pay the prevailing wage rate or to follow the prevailing hours of labor, as determined by the city, may result in an order for restitution to be paid, contract payment withholding sufficient to satisfy back wages or restitution assessed, contract payment delay, cancellation of the contract, debarment under chapter 95 of the Saint Paul Administrative Code, and/or withholding or payment of a fee equal to five (5) percent of the entire contract price to the city as liquidated damages. None of the foregoing remedies are intended to be exclusive of any other remedy, but each is in addition to every other remedy listed above or otherwise available.
(l) Enforcement. Orders for restitution issued pursuant to this section may be enforced in Ramsey County District Court.
(m) Severability. If any provision or application of this chapter is declared illegal, invalid, or inoperative, in whole or in part, by any court of competent jurisdiction, the remaining provisions and portions thereof and applications not declared illegal, invalid, or inoperative shall remain in force or effect.
SECTION 3
This Ordinance shall take effect and be in force thirty (30) days following its passage, approval and publication.