An application for a covered project submitted under this chapter shall include the applicant’s certification that it will meet the requirements of a covered project and the commission shall make the requirements a condition of certification. The application shall also include the applicant’s certification that either of the following is true:

(a) The entirety of the construction of the covered project is a public work for purposes of Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 1720) of Part 7 of Division 2 of the Labor Code.

(b) The construction of the covered project is not in its entirety a public work for which prevailing wages must be paid under Article 1 (commencing with Section 1720) of Chapter 1 of Part 7 of Division 2 of the Labor Code, but all construction workers employed on the project will be paid at least the general prevailing rate of per diem wages for the type of work and geographic area, as determined by the Director of Industrial Relations pursuant to Sections 1773 and 1773.9 of the Labor Code, except that apprentices registered in programs approved by the Chief of the Division of Apprenticeship Standards may be paid at least the applicable apprentice prevailing rate. If the project is subject to this subdivision, for those portions of the project that are not a public work, all of the following shall apply:

(1) The applicant shall ensure that the prevailing wage requirement is included in all contracts for the performance of all construction work.

(2) All contractors and subcontractors shall pay to all construction workers employed in the construction of the project at least the general prevailing rate of per diem wages, except that apprentices registered in programs approved by the Chief of the Division of Apprenticeship Standards may be paid at least the applicable apprentice prevailing rate.

(3) All contractors and subcontractors performing construction work on the project shall employ apprentices at no less than the ratio required in § 1777.5 of the Labor Code.

(4) Except as provided in paragraph (6), all contractors and subcontractors performing construction work shall maintain and verify payroll records pursuant to § 1776 of the Labor Code, make those records available for inspection and copying as provided therein, and furnish those payroll records to the Labor Commissioner pursuant to § 1771.4 of the Labor Code.

(5) Except as provided in paragraph (6), the obligation of the contractors and subcontractors to pay prevailing wages and employ apprentices may be enforced by the Labor Commissioner through the issuance of a civil wage and penalty assessment pursuant to § 1741 of the Labor Code, which may be reviewed pursuant to § 1742 of the Labor Code, within 18 months after the completion of the project, or by an underpaid worker through an administrative complaint or civil action, or by a joint labor-management committee though a civil action under § 1771.2 of the Labor Code. If a civil wage and penalty assessment is issued, the contractor, subcontractor, and surety on a bond or bonds issued to secure the payment of wages covered by the assessment shall be liable for liquidated damages pursuant to § 1742.1 of the Labor Code.

(6) Paragraphs (4) and (5) do not apply if all contractors and subcontractors performing construction work on the project are subject to a project labor agreement. The project labor agreement shall also include, but not be limited to, all of the following:

(A) Provisions requiring payment of prevailing wages to all construction workers employed in the construction of the project and for enforcement of that obligation through an arbitration procedure.

(B) Targeted hiring provisions, including a targeted hiring plan, on a craft-by-craft basis to address job access for local, disadvantaged, or underrepresented workers, as defined by a relevant local agency.

(C) Apprenticeship utilization provisions that commit all parties to increasing the share of work performed by state-registered apprentices above the state-mandated minimum ratio required in § 1777.5 of the Labor Code.

(D) Apprenticeship utilization provisions that commit all parties to hiring and retaining a certain percentage of state-registered apprentices that have completed the Multi-Craft Core preapprenticeship training curriculum referenced in subdivision (t) of § 14005 of the Unemployment Insurance Code.

(Added by Stats. 2022, Ch. 61, Sec. 4. (AB 205) Effective June 30, 2022.)