Senate Substitute Bill No. 137 (sSB137 File No. 303) is a legislative proposal that sets forth labor practices for public utility projects, which include construction, remodeling, and repair work owned and operated by public utilities. The bill requires contractors engaged in such projects to provide apprenticeship training through a program registered with the Labor Department or a preapprenticeship training program and to certify compliance with these requirements to the Labor Commissioner. It also mandates that contracts for public utility projects entered into on or after October 1, 2024, must ensure that wages and employee welfare fund contributions are at rates equal to those customary or prevailing for similar work in the locality of the project. Violations may result in a $5,000 fine per offense, and contractors or subcontractors may be debarred for repeated violations. The bill outlines the process for handling wage discrepancies and the Labor Commissioner's role in determining prevailing wage rates and employee welfare fund contributions.

The bill further specifies that public utilities can recover the costs of paying prevailing wages through base rates or a Public Utility Regulatory Authority (PURA)-approved rate recovery mechanism, provided the costs are deemed prudent and recoverable under state utility ratemaking laws. The provisions of the bill do not apply to new construction projects costing less than $1 million and renovation projects costing less than $100,000. Employers are required to keep records of wages and hours worked and submit monthly certified payrolls, with failure to file a certified payroll classified as a class D felony. The bill also includes provisions for electronic record-keeping and states that certified payrolls are public records. The act is set to take effect on October 1, 2024, and includes new sections and amendments to existing sections, with potential fiscal impacts on various state departments and municipalities.