H. B. 2788
(By Delegate Overington)
[Introduced March 31, 1993; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section one, article five-a, chapter
twenty-one of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to wages for
construction of public improvements; excluding the state and
county boards of education from wage rates provided.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section one, article five-a, chapter twenty-one of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5A. WAGES FOR CONSTRUCTION OF PUBLIC IMPROVEMENTS.
§21-5A-1. Definitions.
(1) The term "public authority," as used in this article,
shall mean any officer, board or commission or other agency of
the state of West Virginia, or any political subdivision thereof,
authorized by law to enter into a contract for the construction
of a public improvement, including any institution supported in
whole or in part by public funds of the state of West Virginia orits political subdivisions, and this article shall apply to
expenditures of such institutions made in whole or in part from
such public funds.
(2) The term "construction," as used in this article, shall
mean any construction, reconstruction, improvement, enlargement,
painting, decorating, or repair of any public improvement let to
contract. The term "construction" shall not be construed to
include temporary or emergency repairs.
(3) The term "locality" means the county where the
construction is to be performed, except that if there is not
available in the county a sufficient number of competent skilled
laborers, workmen and mechanics to perform such construction
efficiently and properly, and may include one or more counties in
this state adjacent to the one in which the construction is to be
performed and from which such skilled laborers, workmen and
mechanics may be obtained in sufficient numbers to perform the
construction. With respect to construction of public
improvements with the state road commission, "locality" may be
construed to include one or more counties in this state adjacent
to the one in which the construction or public improvement is to
be performed and from which skilled laborers, workmen and
mechanics may be accessible for work on such construction on
public improvements.
(4) The term "public improvement," as used in this article,
shall include all buildings, roads, highways, bridges, streets,
alleys, sewers, ditches, sewage disposal plants, waterworks,airports, and all other structures, except all construction
projects undertaken by or on behalf of the state board of
education or any county board of education, for a period of three
years beginning the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred
ninety-three upon which construction may be let to contract by
the state of West Virginia or any political subdivision thereof.
(5) The term "construction industry," as used in this
article, shall mean that industry which is composed of employees
and employers engaged in construction of buildings, roads,
highways, bridges, streets, alleys, sewers, ditches, sewage
disposal plants, waterworks, airports, and all other structures
or works, except all construction projects undertaken by or on
behalf of the state board of education or any county board of
education, for a period of three years beginning the first day of
July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-three, whether private or
public on which construction work as defined in subsection (2) of
this section is performed.
(6) The term "board" shall mean the minimum wage board as
constituted in this article.
(7) The term "employee," for the purposes of this article,
shall not be construed to include such persons as are employed or
hired by the public authority on a regular or temporary basis or
engaged in making temporary or emergency repairs.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to exclude all
construction projects of the state board of education and anycounty board of education from the requirements of prevailing
wage rates in construction contracts for a three year period.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.