Before the first week
- Get the wage determination from your contract, including its modification number. Use the one in the contract, not the newest one online: they can differ. See which wage determination applies.
- Match each worker to a classification by the work they actually do, not their job title. If someone does two trades, they get two lines with two rates.
- Write down your fringe setup: which plans you pay into, the hourly credit for each worker, and any cash paid in lieu. Plan credit usually has to be annualized.
- Check apprentices' registration. Only apprentices registered with the DOL Office of Apprenticeship or a recognized State Apprenticeship Agency, within the allowed ratio, can be paid the apprentice rate.
- Ask the prime or agency how they want it: WH-347 PDF, a portal such as LCPtracker, or a state format.
Each week, step by step
- Collect hours by day and by trade from timesheets. Split straight time and overtime. On federal jobs covered by the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act, hours over 40 in the workweek are overtime; in California, hours over 8 in a day are too.
- Enter the rate paid for each line and compare it with the required base rate. Overtime must be at least 1.5 times the basic rate. Fringe is not multiplied.
- Enter fringe: the hourly credit for plan contributions and any cash in lieu. Check base plus fringe paid is at least base plus fringe required.
- Enter gross pay, deductions and net pay from your payroll run. Gross for this project, and gross for all work if the worker also worked elsewhere that week. Name any “other” deductions.
- Check the totals against the paychecks actually issued. The prevailing wage calculator shows the math for one worker.
- Complete the Statement of Compliance: certifying official, apprenticeship program, fringe plans with their hourly credits, and each statement you can truthfully check.
- Sign and submit by the deadline. Keep a copy.
Mistakes that get reports rejected
| Mistake | Fix |
|---|---|
| Wrong wage determination or modification number | Copy it from the contract. List every determination used that week. |
| Overtime figured as 1.5 × (base + fringe) | Overtime is 1.5 × the basic rate. Add the fringe once per hour. |
| One line for a worker who did two trades | One line per classification, each with its own rate. |
| Full SSN or home address on the weekly report | Federal payrolls take only an identifying number, such as the last four digits. |
| Fringe credit higher than what the plan actually costs per hour of all work | Annualize: divide plan cost by all hours worked, public and private. |
| Unregistered helpers paid apprentice rates | Pay the full journeyworker rate for the classification. |
| Missing payroll numbers or no final payroll | Number from 1 per project and mark the last report final. |
| Unsigned, or a scanned signature | Original handwritten or legally valid electronic signature. |
Submitting and deadlines
Federal rules require a certified payroll for each week in which covered work is performed. It goes to the contracting agency if it is a party to the contract, or otherwise to the applicant, sponsor or owner, which usually means the prime contractor collects it from you (29 CFR 5.5(a)(3)(ii)(A)). On direct federal contracts, the FAR sets a deadline of 7 calendar days after the regular payment date for the week. Primes often ask for it sooner.
If reports don't arrive, the agency may suspend payments after written notice. In California the report goes straight to the state as an electronic upload; see California certified payroll.
Making it faster
Most of the work in a weekly report is the same as last week: the same crew, the same trades, the same rates. Only the hours and pay change. That is why retyping it on a blank form every Friday takes so long.
Start with the free WH-347 builder for a one-off week. For a job that runs for months, PrevailCrew saves your crew and rates, starts each week from the last, imports hours from your payroll CSV, and checks every line before you sign.