Prevailing Wage Laws by State

Prevailing wage by state

What a prevailing wage law does

A prevailing wage law requires contractors on public construction projects to pay at least the local rate for each trade, including fringe benefits, as set by a state or federal agency. The federal version is the Davis-Bacon Act, which the U.S. Department of Labor says applies to contractors and subcontractors on federally funded or assisted contracts over $2,000 for building, altering or repairing public buildings and public works. State laws cover projects paid for by the state and, in many states, by cities, counties and school districts.

Most state laws only apply above a contract amount, and they draw the line in different ways. Some set one amount for every job, such as over $1,000 in California and Rhode Island, over $25,000 in Alaska, Montana and Pennsylvania, or $100,000 or more in Nevada and Wyoming. Others split it by the type of work: Connecticut covers new construction of $1,000,000 or more and remodeling or repair of $100,000 or more. Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nebraska, New York, Texas, Virginia and Washington set no dollar minimum at all, so any covered public work counts.

How the prevailing wage checker works

Choose the state where the project is built, the type of work and the contract or total project amount. The checker compares the amount with every threshold that state's law sets for that type of work, using the wording of the law, "over" an amount or that amount "or more". It then says whether the state law applies, applies only to some public bodies, or does not apply, and shows who the law covers. The default example is $300,000 of new construction in Ohio, which is over the $250,000 threshold for new construction, so the state law applies. The same amount of repair work would be covered too, because Ohio's threshold for alteration and repair is $75,000.

Where a state draws more than one line, the checker shows each. In New Jersey, a $10,000 job is covered when a public body other than a municipality pays for it (over $2,000) but not when a municipality does, because the municipal threshold has been $19,375 since July 1, 2024. Tennessee's law covers highway construction only, so other work there is never covered by the state law.

Where state law differs from the U.S. Department of Labor table

The U.S. Department of Labor keeps a table of state prevailing wage thresholds, last revised January 1, 2023. Reading the current state laws shows several differences, so this page uses each state's own statute where it can be read:

• Michigan repealed its 1965 law in 2018 and restored prevailing wages on state projects with Act 10 of 2023, in effect February 13, 2024.
• Virginia now requires prevailing wages on state agency public works paid for in whole or in part with state funds, with no dollar minimum, and lets localities adopt their own ordinances.
• New Jersey raised its municipal threshold from $16,263 to $19,375 on July 1, 2024.
• Oregon's statute exempts projects with a contract price of $50,000 or less, while the DOL table lists no general threshold for Oregon.

States without a prevailing wage law

Twenty-one states have no state prevailing wage law: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, West Virginia and Wisconsin. Several repealed theirs, from Florida in 1979 to Arkansas, Kentucky and Wisconsin in 2017. These states set no state prevailing wage requirement, but federally funded or assisted construction there still carries Davis-Bacon rates. The District of Columbia also relies on Davis-Bacon, which applies to its government construction contracts over $2,000, and it has a separate living wage law for contracts of $100,000 or more.

Prevailing wage laws by state: 2026 table

As of October 4, 2026. Thresholds and coverage from each state's statute or labor department; rows for states without a law from the U.S. Department of Labor table (January 1, 2023). Tennessee's row also comes from that table, because its statute could not be read from this server. Scroll the table sideways on a phone.

Federally funded or assisted construction over $2,000 also carries Davis-Bacon rates in every state.

Who the state laws cover

The laws differ in whose projects they reach. Colorado's applies only to contracts of state agencies, not counties, cities or school districts. Maine, Minnesota and Michigan cover projects paid for in whole or in part with state money, and Delaware projects for which the state appropriated part of the funds. Maryland covers state projects and local projects when 25% or more of the construction money is state money, or when a county or city opts in. Many others, including Illinois, New York, Texas and Washington, cover the public works of the state and its political subdivisions. Nebraska's law requires contractors on public works to certify that they follow fair labor standards rather than setting a dollar amount.

Thresholds are also measured differently. Missouri and Pennsylvania look at the total project cost, and Nevada says a project cannot be split into units to get under its $100,000 amount. California lets an awarding body that runs an approved labor compliance program skip prevailing wages on projects of $25,000 or less (construction) or $15,000 or less (alteration, demolition, repair or maintenance). Ohio's amounts for road and bridge work are adjusted every even-numbered year by the director of commerce, so the amounts written in the law ($78,258 and $23,447) are a starting point; check the current figures with the Ohio Department of Commerce.

What this means for your paycheck

On a covered job, your hourly pay and fringe benefits must be at least the rate set for your trade where the work is done; under Davis-Bacon that means the locally prevailing wages and fringe benefits for similar work in the area. If you work on public projects, look up the wage determination posted for the job and compare it with your pay stub. Our overtime laws by state page covers the state overtime rules that can apply on top of the prevailing rate.