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OLR Bill Analysis
sSB 999
AN ACT CONCERNING A JUST TRANSITION TO CLIMATE -
PROTECTIVE ENERGY PRODUCTION AND COMMUNITY
INVESTMENT.
SUMMARY
This bill requires the developers of covered renewable energy
projects to meet certain requirements if their project has a total
construction cost of at least $2.5 million. These developers must
generally (1) enter into a community benefits agreement with a
community organization representing the host community’s residents,
(2) establish a workforce development program, and (3) ensure that the
contractors and subcontractors on the project meet certain criteria.
The bill also requires that (1) construction workers on the projects be
paid wages and benefits at least equal to those required under the
state’s prevailing wage law and (2) operations, maintenance, and
security employees in any building or facility created in the project be
paid wages and benefits that are at least equal to those required under
the state’s standard wage law (see BACKGROUND). Under the bill,
however, the prevailing wage requirement does not apply if the
project is covered by a project labor agreement that meets certain
requirements.
EFFECTIVE DATE: Upon passage
COVERED PROJECTS
The bill’s requirements apply to “covered projects,” which under
the bill are construction projects that concern or are related to
developing a renewable energy project, and the facility or facilities
created in the construction project, with a total construction cost of at
least $2.5 million.
Under the bill, a “renewable energy project” is a project that is 2021SB-00999-R000404-BA.DOCX
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intended to, or will, enhance energy efficiency, upgrade building
electrification, develop renewable energies, or enhance climate change
resiliency. It includes projects that create useable energy from solar
power; wind power; fuel cells; geothermal sources; landfill methane
gas; anaerobic digestion or other biogas derived from biological
sources; thermal electric direct energy converted from a certified Class
I renewable energy source; ocean thermal power; wave or tidal power;
low emission advanced renewable energy conversion technologies and
zero emission low grade heat power generation systems based on
organic oil-free Rankine, Kalina, or similar nonstream cycles that use
waste heat from an industrial or commercial process that does not
generate electricity; a run-of-the-river hydropower facility; or a
biomass facility that uses sustainable biomass fuel.
(To the extent that the bill applies to covered projects that are
currently in development or under construction, it may implicate the
U.S. Constitution’s Contracts Clause (Article 1, Section 10), which
generally prohibits states from passing laws that impair contractual
obligations.)
COMMUNITY BENEFITS AGREEMENTS
The bill requires a covered project’s developer to take all necessary
actions to ensure that a community benefits agreement is entered into
with the appropriate community organizations representing residents
of the community where the project will be located (the host
community).
Under the bill, a “community benefits agreement” is an agreement
between the covered project’s developer and community -based
organizations, or a coalition of them, that details the project’s (1)
contributions to the host community and (2) aspects that will mitigate
the host community’s adverse conditions and create opportunities for
local business, communities, and workers.
WORKFORCE DEVELOPMEN T PROGRAMS
The bill also requires a covered project’s developer to take all
necessary actions to ensure that a workforce development program is 2021SB-00999-R000404-BA.DOCX
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established. Under the bill, a “workforce development program” is a
program that gives newly hired and existing employees the
opportunity to develop skills that will enable them to qualify for
higher paying jobs on a covered project. This includes (1)
apprenticeship training through an apprenticeship program registered
with the state Department of Labor (DOL) or a federally recognized
state apprenticeship agency that complies with federal regulations on
apprenticeships and (2) pre-apprenticeship training that will enable
students to qualify for registered apprenticeship training.
CONTRACTOR AND SUBCO NTRACTOR CERTIFICATI ONS
The bill requires a covered project’s developer to take all necessary
actions to ensure that each contractor and subcontractor involved in
building the project completes a sworn certification that:
1. it has the necessary resources to perform its portion of the
covered project, including the necessary technical, financial, and
personnel resources;
2. it has all of the contractor, specialty contractor, or trade licenses,
certifications, or certificates required by the applicable state or
local laws;
3. it participates in apprenticeship training through a DOL-
registered apprenticeship program or a federally recognized
state apprenticeship agency that complies with federal
regulations;
4. during the previous three years it has not (a) been debarred by a
government agency; (b) defaulted on a project; (c) had any
license, certification, or other business credential revoked or
suspended; or (d) been found in violation of any law applicable
to the contractor’s or subcontractor’s business that resulted in
the payment of a fine, back pay damages, or any other type of
penalty of at least $10,000;
5. it will not pay personnel employed on the project less than the
applicable wage and fringe benefit rates for the classification in 2021SB-00999-R000404-BA.DOCX
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which the personnel are employed and required for the project;
and
6. it has not misclassified and will not misclassify employees as
independent contractors.
The bill requires the developer to submit the certifications to the
labor commissioner at least 30 days before construction of the project
begins. Under the bill, the certifications are public documents that
must be made available without redaction on DOL’s website within
seven days after they were submitted.
Penalties
If a certification contains false, misleading, or inaccurate
information, the bill subjects the contractor or subcontractor that
prepared it, after notice and opportunity to be heard (presumably
before the labor commissioner), to a three-year debarment from future
public and publicly covered projects (it is unclear what “public and
publicly covered projects” are), plus other applicable penalties and
sanctions. (The bill does not specify further details or procedures for
these notice and hearing requirements.)
Under the bill, a developer’s failure to take reasonable steps to
ensure that the certifications are accurate and truthful is a violation of
the bill subject to penalties and sanctions for noncompliance. It
requires the labor commissioner to adopt regulations that establish the
applicable penalties and sanctions for this noncompliance.
PREVAILING AND STAND ARD WAGES
The bill requires each contractor and subcontractor on a covered
project to pay each construction employee on the project at least the
wages and benefits that the state’s prevailing wage law require for the
employee’s corresponding job classification on a public works project.
It subjects the contractors and subcontractors to the prevailing wage
law’s reporting and compliance requirements, and its penalties and
sanctions for violations. Among other things, this (1) requires them to
submit monthly certified payroll records with certain specified 2021SB-00999-R000404-BA.DOCX
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information (e.g., that the wages and benefits meet prevailing wage
requirements and that employees have the necessary workers’
compensation insurance coverage); (2) subjects them to fines between
$2,500 and $5,000 for willful failures to pay the required wages; and (3)
makes failing to file the certified payroll records a class D felony
subject to a fine of up to $5,000, five years imprisonment, or both. (The
extent to which these provisions would apply, however, is unclear, as
the bill does not make conforming changes in the prevailing wage law.
For example, the prevailing wage law requires employers to file their
certified payroll records with the public agency that contracted for the
work, but the bill does not specify with whom the contractors and
subcontractors must file their records.)
The bill also requires that each operations, maintenance, and
security employee employed in a building or facility that is built in a
covered project be paid at least the prevailing wage (which by law,
generally does not apply to these types of employees) or the “standard
wage,” including benefits, for the employee’s corresponding job
classification. (The bill cites to an incorrect statute for the standard
wage law.)
Exemption for Project Labor Agreements
The bill exempts construction projects that are covered by a project
labor agreement (PLA) from its prevailing wage requirements. Under
the bill, the PLA must:
1. bind all contractors and subcontractors on the covered project to
the PLA by including specifications in all relevant solicitation
provisions and contract documents;
2. allow all contractors and subcontractors to compete for
contracts and subcontracts on the project regardless of whether
they are parties to collective bargaining agreements;
3. establish uniform terms and conditions of employment for all
construction labor employed on the project;
4. guarantee against strikes, lockouts, and similar job disruptions; 2021SB-00999-R000404-BA.DOCX
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5. have effective, prompt, and mutually binding procedures for
resolving labor disputes; and
6. include any other provisions negotiated by the parties to
promote the covered project’s successful delivery.
BACKGROUND
Prevailing Wage
The state’s prevailing wage law requires employers on certain
public works projects to pay their construction workers wages and
benefits equal to those that are customary or prevailing for the same
work, in the same trade or occupation, in the same town. The law
allows the DOL to (1) hold hearings to gather data and calculate
prevailing wage rates or (2) use the rates calculated by the federal
Department of Labor for Connecticut. In practice, DOL uses the
federally calculated rates (CGS § 31-53).
Standard Wage
The state’s standard wage law generally requires private contractors
who do building and property maintenance, property management,
and food service work in state buildings to pay their employees wages
and benefits determined by the labor commissioner. In general, an
employee’s standard wage equals the hourly wage and benefits
received by the most employees doing the same type of work under a
union contract, as long as the contract covers at least 500 employees in
Hartford County. If there is no such contract, then the commissioner
sets the hourly rate based on the Federal Register of Wage
Determinations, plus a 30% surcharge for health and retirement
benefits (CGS § 31-57f).
COMMITTEE ACTION
Labor and Public Employees Committee
Joint Favorable Substitute
Yea 9 Nay 4 (03/23/2021)