Prevailing Wage Requirements and the Emergency Suspension of the Davis-Bacon Act


 

Publication Date: February 2006

Publisher: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service

Author(s):

Research Area: Labor

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Abstract:

On September 8, 2005, President Bush issued a Proclamation suspending the application of the Davis-Bacon Act to all contracts to be performed in specified jurisdictions in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi included in the Hurricane Katrina disaster area. The Proclamation permitted the payment of less than the locally prevailing wage on contracts entered into after September 8, 2005 for the construction or repair of public buildings and public works in the affected area. Although concern over the validity and effect of the Proclamation arose soon after its issuance, that concern seemed to disappear once the President revoked the Proclamation on November 3, 2005. This report provides background on the DavisBacon Act and discusses the President's September 8, 2005 Proclamation and its revocation on November 3, 2005.