HB 569 Virginia House of Delegates · 2026 Regular Session

Public works contracts; prevailing wage rate, definitions, civil penalty.

Summary

Prevailing wage rate for public works contracts; localities. Requires each state agency or locality, when procuring services or letting contracts for public works paid for in whole or in part by state or local funds, or when overseeing or administering such contracts for public works, to ensure that its bid specifications or other public contracts applicable to the public works require bidders, offerors, contractors, and subcontractors to pay wages, salaries, benefits, and other remuneration to any mechanic, laborer, or worker employed, retained, or otherwise hired to perform services in connection with the public contract for public works at a rate no less than the prevailing wage rate. The bill also amends the definition of "public works" to include work performed at certain institutions of higher education and to exclude work performed at a non-governmental property or facility used to provide broadband or other telecommunications services. Under the bill, a contractor or subcontractor may be liable to the Commissioner of Labor and Industry for liquidated damages for violating the prevailing wage requirements in the bill. Under the bill, any interested party shall have standing to challenge bid specifications, project agreements, or other public contracts for public works that violate the provisions of the bill. The bill requires institutions of higher education to expressly agree to comply with the public works contract requirements. Under the bill, the Commissioner shall determine the prevailing wage based on a survey of wages and benefits paid in each area, as defined in the bill, conducted every two years. The bill includes factors for the Commissioner to consider in determining a prevailing wage rate. The bill directs the Commissioner to adopt emergency regulations to implement the provisions of the bill. This bill is identical to SB 518.

Issues: ✓ Labor & Employment

Bill status vetoed 4 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Mar 2026

House of Delegates Passage

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Mar 2026

Vetoed

Apr 2026

Introduced Jan 13, 2026 Vetoed Apr 13, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 7 comparisons

What changed between versions

Subcommittee #2 Subcommittee Substitute → General Government and Capital Outlay Subcommittee Substitute · 4 edits

MODERATE

This bill expands the prevailing wage requirements to include public institutions of higher education (public universities) for specific large construction projects, while simultaneously removing the definition of 'state agency' that previously excluded counties, cities, and towns. The bill also adds a new requirement for subcontractors to be registered in the state's electronic procurement system and clarifies the Commissioner's authority to create additional regulations.

Scope change

The bill's scope was expanded to include public institutions of higher education, but the definition of 'state agency' was narrowed by removing the explicit exclusion of local governments, which may alter how local entities are classified under this law.

SCOPE

Added a new subsection requiring prevailing wage rates for public institutions of higher education when they initiate public works contracts over $5 million funded by state general funds or debt, effective after July 1, 2027.

DEFINITION

Modified the definition of 'State agency' by removing the clause that explicitly excluded counties, cities, and towns, potentially changing how local governments are treated under this statute.

REQUIREMENT

Added a new requirement that no employer may hire a subcontractor for public works unless that subcontractor is registered with the Commonwealth's statewide electronic procurement system.

ENFORCEMENT

Added a provision granting the Commissioner of Labor and Industry the authority to promulgate any other regulations deemed necessary to implement the act, beyond those specifically listed.

Finance and Appropriations Substitute → Governor Substitute · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was converted from a Senate Substitute to a Governor's Substitute, changing the bill number and removing the Senate committee's name while adding the Governor's name. The substantive policy text regarding prevailing wage rates, definitions, and enforcement penalties appears to remain largely unchanged in this snippet, though the bill's title now includes 'civil penalty' and 'work group' which were not in the original Senate version shown.

Scope change

The bill's scope regarding which laws are amended changed slightly: the Senate version amended sections 2.2-4321.3, 23.1-1003, 23.1-1006, and 40.1-6, while the Governor's version amends 2.2-4321.3, 23.1-1009, and 40.1-6. This indicates the Governor's version targets different sections of the Code of Virginia related to public works and higher education management agreements.

SCOPE

The specific Code of Virginia sections targeted for amendment were changed from 23.1-1003 and 23.1-1006 to 23.1-1009, indicating a shift in which higher education management agreement provisions are being modified.

FISCAL

The bill title was updated to include 'civil penalty' and 'work group' and 'report', suggesting new policy elements related to penalties and reporting requirements were added or emphasized in the Governor's version.

DEFINITION

The definition of 'Public works' was expanded in the Governor's version to explicitly include 'covered institutions' (public institutions of higher education with management agreements) as entities that own or lease public facilities subject to prevailing wage rules.

A new definition for 'Covered institution' was added, clarifying that it refers to public institutions of higher education governed by specific management agreement provisions.

TECHNICAL

The bill header was updated to reflect the Governor's substitute status, including a new bill number (26110428D) and the date of the Governor's action (April 13, 2026), replacing the Senate committee information.

Enrolled → Labor and Commerce Substitute · 6 edits

MODERATE

The bill was rewritten by the Labor and Commerce Committee to significantly expand the definition of 'public works' to include projects where the government provides financial assistance (like grants or leases) to non-governmental entities, and to broaden the list of covered state agencies to include public universities. This change aims to ensure prevailing wage laws apply to a wider range of infrastructure projects funded or supported by the state.

Scope change

The scope of the bill was expanded from applying only to state agencies, covered institutions, and localities to also include projects where a state agency or locality provides financial assistance (such as grants, loans, or leases) to private entities, provided specific size and lease duration thresholds are met.

SCOPE

The definition of 'public works' was changed to include projects at public institutions of higher education and projects where the government provides financial assistance, rather than limiting it to property owned or leased directly by the government.

DEFINITION

A new definition for 'financial assistance' was added, covering grants, loans, tax abatements, and other financial support provided by the state or locality.

ELIGIBILITY

The threshold for financial assistance to trigger prevailing wage requirements was established: at least 55% of the facility must be leased by the government, and the leased portion must exceed 10,000 square feet.

The definition of 'state agency' was updated to explicitly include public institutions of higher education, whereas the original bill used a separate category for 'covered institutions'.

REQUIREMENT

The bill now applies to both state agencies and localities in a single combined provision, whereas the original bill had separate, distinct sections for each.

TECHNICAL

Several sections were renumbered and reorganized, and the specific statute numbers amended were changed from 23.1-1009 and 23.1-1006 to 23.1-1003 and 23.1-1006.

Introduced → Enrolled · 8 edits · Mar 31, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was enacted as law, expanding the prevailing wage requirements to include public institutions of higher education and adding a new definition for 'Area' to standardize wage data collection. It also updated the definition of 'public works' to explicitly exclude broadband and telecommunications projects, clarifying that these do not require prevailing wage payments.

Scope change

The bill's scope was expanded to include covered public institutions of higher education, which were previously excluded from the state agency definition. Additionally, the definition of 'public works' was narrowed to exclude broadband and telecommunications facilities.

DEFINITION

Added a new definition for 'Area' to specify that wage data is collected by planning districts, and added a definition for 'Covered institution' to identify specific public universities.

Modified the definition of 'Prevailing wage rate' to require determinations based on surveys conducted every two years, with a floor set by the federal Davis-Bacon Act and a method consistent with federal standards as of January 20, 2026.

Modified the definition of 'Public works' to explicitly exclude work performed at non-governmental properties used for broadband or telecommunications services.

REQUIREMENT

Added a new subsection requiring covered institutions of higher education to pay prevailing wages on public works contracts initiated after July 1, 2027, that are $5 million or more and funded by state general funds.

Changed the wage requirement language from 'at the prevailing wage rate' to 'at a rate no less than the prevailing wage rate' in several subsections to allow for higher payments.

Added a new requirement that employers must ensure workers have either graduated from a registered apprenticeship or completed four years of verified work experience.

ENFORCEMENT

Added a new provision allowing any interested party, including bidders and contractors, to challenge contracts that violate the section and recover attorney fees.

TECHNICAL

The bill text was formatted from an introduced draft to an enrolled final version, including the addition of the official act title and approval date.

Floor votes · Senate Mar 9, 2026 · House of Delegates Feb 17, 2026

How they voted

39–0

Passed

Total votes 39

Mar 9, 2026

D Democratic20

20 Yea

100% Yea

R Republican19

19 Yea

100% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Apr 13, 2026

Vetoed

Governor's recommendation received by House

executive

Mar 31, 2026

Lower · Passed

Signed by Speaker

lower

Mar 30, 2026

Upper · Passed

Signed by President

upper

Mar 30, 2026

Lower · Passed

Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB569ER)

lower

Mar 14, 2026

Lower · Passed

Conference report agreed to by House (62-Y 35-N 0-A)

lower

Mar 13, 2026

Upper · Passed

Conference report agreed to by Senate (21-Y 17-N 0-A)

upper

Mar 13, 2026

Legislature · Passed

Conference Report released

legislature

Mar 12, 2026

Committee

Senate requested conference committee

upper

Mar 10, 2026

Upper · Passed

Passed Senate with substitute (21-Y 19-N 0-A)

upper

Mar 10, 2026

Amended

Commerce and Labor Amendments rejected

upper

Mar 9, 2026

Upper · Passed

Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote)

upper

Mar 6, 2026

Upper · Passed

Reported from Finance and Appropriations with substitute (10-Y 4-N)

upper

Mar 2, 2026

Upper · Passed

Reported from Commerce and Labor with amendments and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations (8-Y 6-N)

upper

Mar 2, 2026

Upper · Passed

Senate committee offered

upper

Feb 18, 2026

Committee

Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor

upper

Feb 17, 2026

Lower · Passed

Read third time and passed House (62-Y 35-N 0-A)

lower

Feb 13, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported from Appropriations with substitute (15-Y 7-N)

lower

Feb 13, 2026

Committee

Assigned HAPP sub: General Government and Capital Outlay

lower

Feb 12, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported from Labor and Commerce with substitute and referred to Appropriations (13-Y 7-N)

lower

Feb 12, 2026

Lower · Passed

House subcommittee offered

lower

Jan 20, 2026

Committee

Assigned HCL sub: Subcommittee #2

lower

Jan 13, 2026

Committee

Referred to Committee on Labor and Commerce

lower

1 primary · 18 co-sponsors