Beyond the Jobsite: Pennsylvania Expands Prevailing Wage Coverage

Senate Bill 908 (Expansion of Prevailing Wage Amendments) was approved by the Governor on October 22, 2026 and takes effect December 21, 2026. The legislation adds HVAC duct cleaning and “custom fabrication” to covered public work. Custom fabrication generally encompasses off-site production of nonstandard components made specifically for a public project—including specified plumbing, HVAC, electrical, welding, sheet-metal, rebar, signage and prefabricated systems—while excluding standard products such as structural-steel members and precast concrete. Contract specifications must include the applicable prevailing rates; covered fabricators and subcontractors become subject to the Act’s reporting and enforcement requirements; and the rate is determined by the craft and the locality of the public project, not the fabrication shop. The Act also prohibits split rates on the same project, retains the existing $25,000 threshold, and excludes qualifying residential rehabilitation involving fewer than eight units and narrowly defined school-safety improvements of $50,000 or less. Procurement documents and bid reviews should now identify project-specific fabrication and duct-cleaning work, include the project-locality wage determination, and flow prevailing-wage documentation requirements through to off-site fabricators.