BILL NUMBER: AB 807 CHAPTERED BILL TEXT CHAPTER 839 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE OCTOBER 12, 2003 APPROVED BY GOVERNOR OCTOBER 11, 2003 PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 27, 2003 PASSED THE ASSEMBLY MAY 22, 2003 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 30, 2003 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 10, 2003 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Leno FEBRUARY 20, 2003 An act to amend Section 1773.1 of the Labor Code, relating to public works. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 807, Leno. Public works: prevailing wage. Existing law provides that per diem wages shall be deemed to include employer payments for health and welfare, pension, vacation, travel, and subsistence pay, apprenticeship or other training programs, and similar purposes, and specifies the employer contributions, costs, and payments that employer payments may include. That law prohibits credit from being granted for benefits required to be provided by other state or federal law, and provides that credits for employer payments may not reduce the obligation to pay the hourly straight time or overtime wages found to be prevailing. This bill would provide that an employer may take a credit for employer payments even if contributions are not made or costs are not paid, as specified, if certain conditions are met. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 1773.1 of the Labor Code is amended to read: 1773.1. (a) Per diem wages shall be deemed to include employer payments for health and welfare, pension, vacation, travel, subsistence, and apprenticeship or other training programs authorized by Section 3093, so long as the cost of training is reasonably related to the amount of the contributions, and similar purposes, when the term "per diem wages" is used in this chapter or in any other statute applicable to public works. (b) Employer payments include all of the following: (1) The rate of contribution irrevocably made by the employer to a trustee or third person pursuant to a plan, fund, or program. (2) The rate of actual costs to the employer reasonably anticipated in providing benefits to workers pursuant to an enforceable commitment to carry out a financially responsible plan or program communicated in writing to the workers affected. (3) Payments to the California Apprenticeship Council pursuant to Section 1777.5. (c) Employer payments are a credit against the obligation to pay the general prevailing rate of per diem wages. (1) No credit shall be granted for benefits required to be provided by other state or federal law. (2) Credits for employer payments also shall not reduce the obligation to pay the hourly straight time or overtime wages found to be prevailing. (d) An employer may take a credit for employer payments specified in subdivision (b) even if contributions are not made, or costs are not paid, during the same pay period for which credits are taken, so long as the employer regularly makes the contributions, or regularly pays the costs, for the plan, fund, or program on no less than a quarterly basis. (e) The credit for employer payments shall be computed on an annualized basis where the employer seeks credit for employer payments that are higher for public works projects than for private construction performed by the same employer, except where one or more of the following occur: (1) The employer has an enforceable obligation to make the higher rate of payments on future private construction performed by the employer. (2) The higher rate of payments is required by a project labor agreement. (3) The payments are made to the California Apprenticeship Council pursuant to Section 1777.5. (4) The director determines that annualization would not serve the purposes of this chapter. (f) For the purpose of determining those per diem wages for contracts, the representative of any craft, classification, or type of worker needed to execute contracts shall file with the Department of Industrial Relations fully executed copies of the collective bargaining agreements for the particular craft, classification, or type of work involved. (1) The collective bargaining agreements shall be filed after their execution and thereafter may be taken into consideration pursuant to Section 1773 whenever filed 30 days prior to the call for bids. If the collective bargaining agreement has not been formalized, a typescript of the final draft may be filed temporarily, accompanied by a statement under penalty of perjury as to its effective date. (2) Where a copy of the collective bargaining agreement has previously been filed, fully executed copies of all modifications and extensions of the agreement that affect per diem wages or holidays shall be filed. (3) The failure to comply with filing requirements of this subdivision shall not be grounds for setting aside a prevailing wage determination if the information taken into consideration is correct.