Pennsylvania Prevailing Wage Act: The $25,000 Threshold and the Act 89 Highway Carveout

Statutory basis

• 43 P.S. § 165-1 et seq. — Pennsylvania Prevailing Wage Act (1961).
• Administered by PA Department of Labor and Industry (DLI), Bureau of Labor Law Compliance.
• DLI responsibilities — determine prevailing minimum wage rates, enforce compliance, oversee appeals.

Primary source: dli.pa.gov (Bureau of Labor Law Compliance).

Thresholds

• Most public works — $25,000 estimated total project cost. Unchanged since 1963.
• Locally-funded highway and bridge projects — $100,000 (Act 89 of 2013 carveout).
• Multi-phase project rule — cannot be divided or phased to avoid thresholds. Evaluated cumulatively by total cost.

The practical effect: relatively modest projects — municipal renovations, school repairs, public facility work in the $30K-$50K range — engage PA prevailing wage. This is a lower effective floor than VA ($250,000 for state agency projects; see our VA PW scope essay) or DE (per-project rate request model).

Public works scope

"Public work" under the Act includes:

• Construction.
• Reconstruction.
• Demolition.
• Alteration.
• Repair work.

Performed under contract and paid for, in whole or in part, from public body funds. Public bodies include:

• Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
• Political subdivisions.
• Authorities created by the General Assembly.
• Any instrumentality or agency of the Commonwealth.

The "maintenance work" exclusion

Maintenance work is explicitly excluded from "public work" and does not require prevailing wage. Maintenance is defined as repair of existing facilities where size, type, or extent is not changed or increased.

The line between maintenance and public work is often litigated. PA court decisions clarify:

• Roof replacement — held to be public work (change in type of facility).
• Milling and replacing part of a roadway — held to be reconstruction (not maintenance).

The conservative read: if you're uncertain whether it's maintenance or public work, assume public work applies and pay accordingly.

Also excluded: work under rehabilitation or manpower training programs.

The four wage categories

PA recognizes four prevailing wage categories:

• Building — vertical construction for buildings and related structures.
• Highway — road, street, and related highway infrastructure.
• Heavy — heavy construction not fitting Building or Highway (e.g., water/wastewater plants, utilities, some infrastructure).
• Residential — residential buildings (less common in public works context).

Rate determinations are by locality (county or adjoining political subdivisions) plus craft/classification. The DLI uses geographic data, job classifications, county-level wage data, and collective bargaining agreements to set rates. Rates include hourly wage plus fringe benefits; employer and employee contributions under bona fide collective bargaining agreements count as integral to the rate.

Certified payroll requirements

• Record-keeping — two years. Worker name, craft, actual hourly wage, hours worked daily, fringe benefit details, deductions.
• Records open for inspection by public body and Secretary of Labor and Industry.
• Weekly certified payroll submission to the public body — worker classifications, hours, wages, fringe benefits, signed certification of accuracy.
• Falsification of certified payrolls can lead to criminal prosecution.
• Rate posting — prevailing minimum wage rates must be posted at the job site in a prominent, accessible place.

Pending reforms — watch for these

Multiple bills have moved through the General Assembly recently:

• HB 2153 / SB 908 (2023-2024) — passed House; aims to prohibit "split rates" (different wages same job same day) and expand prevailing wage to off-site custom fabrication for public projects (plumbing, HVAC, electrical). Would close off-site-fabrication loopholes.
• HB 208 — proposes raising the $25,000 threshold to $243,000 with annual inflation adjustments. Proponents argue the 1961 floor inflation-adjusted is materially higher than current $25K; opponents argue the lower floor captures more projects for workers.

As of 2026, the statutory thresholds remain $25K general and $100K local highway/bridge. Contractors should monitor for enactment of either reform package.

How PA PW compares to neighbors

• Delaware. Per-project rate request model from DE DOL. See our DE Per-Project Rate essay and DE PW vs Davis-Bacon essay.
• New Jersey. Broad NJPWA with digital Wage Hub filing (see our NJ Wage Hub essay) and Davis-Bacon interaction on mixed funding (see our NJ PW vs DBA essay).
• Maryland. Pre-bid contractor registration with Prevailing Wage Unit (see our MD Pre-Bid Registration essay).
• Virginia. $250K state agency threshold with locality opt-in (see our VA PW scope essay).
• Pennsylvania. $25K general / $100K local highway. Lower effective floor, four rate categories, maintenance exclusion.

For the multi-state operational view, see our Multi-State Prevailing Wage essay.

What contractors should know

• PA prevailing wage engages on small public projects. Don't assume a $40K municipal project is exempt.
• Four categories — pick the right one. Building vs Highway vs Heavy vs Residential rates can differ.
• Workers classified by actual duties — not by hat they're wearing or by convenience.
• Weekly certified payroll — plan payroll workflow for this cadence.
• Maintenance exclusion is narrow. When in doubt, treat as public work.
• Don't split-phase projects to duck the threshold. Cumulative evaluation will catch it.
• Watch pending reform bills. A threshold change from $25K to $243K would materially reduce prevailing wage coverage on small municipal work.

What to do with this

If you're bidding a PA public project: verify threshold and project category at bid time.

If you're doing routine maintenance for a public body: confirm with counsel whether it qualifies as maintenance under statute and case law.

If you're fabricating off-site for public projects: watch HB 2153/SB 908 — off-site fabrication may come under prevailing wage if it passes.

If you're running payroll across state lines: see our Multi-State Prevailing Wage essay. PA's $25K floor is a frequently-tripped threshold compared to neighbors.

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