The Transportation and Commerce Committee on Jan. 30 adopted a committee substitute to Board Bill 155 and approved two negotiated amendments that substantially revise how the City of St. Louis will set and enforce prevailing-wage and workforce-utilization requirements on public projects.

Key actions taken in committee included adoption of the committee substitute and two amendments. The sponsor reported that the most contentious issue — the dollar threshold at which the rules apply — was revised in amendment number 1 from the committee-substitute baseline to $400,000; the St. Louis Development Corporation (SLDC) will also set the minimum apprentice percentage consistent with the most recently adopted city disparity study. Amendment number 2 clarified health-insurance language so contractors must provide coverage meeting Affordable Care Act minimum-value standards for on-site employees unless those employees voluntarily opt out or otherwise maintain equivalent coverage (for example through a spouse).

The committee substitute (as presented and then amended) specifies: definitions for "public project," "contractor," and "commercially useful function"; documentation and certification requirements for contractors and subcontractors; monthly certified-payroll reporting to SLDC (including weekly certified payroll reports and supporting certifications); contractor posting and affidavit requirements; anti-retaliation protections; and a slate of civil remedies and administrative sanctions for noncompliance. The substitute and the amendments build out SLDC's compliance role: triggers for investigation, a 20-day cure period after an adverse determination, calculation of wage restitution and potential liquidated damages, recommendations for debarment and withholding of up to 10% of awarded incentives until project closeout, and establishment of an escrow for wage restitution payments to affected workers.

SLDC will have authority to adopt rules for implementation, to use existing payroll-monitoring software, and to collect monitoring and compliance fees; funds collected above administrative needs may support workforce-development initiatives.

On enforcement, the committee substitute retains an existing framework and adds specifics. For example, the bill provides that liquidated damages may include $500 per day per impacted worker plus wage-restitution amounts; SLDC will notify contractors and affected workers, allow 20 days to cure, and where violations are not cured may recommend debarment or exercise other remedies consistent with city law and state administrative appeals processes.

Public testimony at the hearing was extensive and sharply divided. Trade unions and labor supporters — including representatives of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the painters and plumbers unions, and the St. Louis Labor Council — strongly supported the bill as drafted and amended, saying it protects wages, safety and apprenticeship access. Representatives of MOCAN, small minority- and women-owned contractors, and several independent nonunion firms urged changes, saying the original $75,000 threshold would have excluded many small local contractors and recommended a substantially higher dollar threshold; those groups asked the committee to table the bill or adopt a higher threshold so small businesses could compete. Several commenters also urged additional clarity on how workforce-development supports and apprenticeship pathways will be delivered for local residents.

After votes to adopt the committee substitute and both amendments, the committee passed Board Bill 155, committee substitute as amended, out of committee with a due-pass recommendation. The clerk recorded aye votes on the final motion from Aldermen Spencer, Narayan, Schweitzer, Browning, Cone and President Green; the bill advances to the full Board of Aldermen for second reading and further debate.

What the committee changed and what remains to finalize: amendment 1 raised the financial threshold at which many of these provisions apply to $400,000 and required SLDC to set minimum apprentice percentages tied to the city disparity study; amendment 2 clarified that health coverage meeting ACA minimum-value standards must be provided unless a worker voluntarily opts out or has equivalent coverage. Several operational details — for example, precise SLDC monitoring protocols and fee amounts — were left to SLDC rulemaking. The bill as amended establishes a clearer enforcement and reporting regime for prevailing-wage and workforce goals on city-funded public projects.

Votes at a glance: the committee adopted the committee substitute and both amendments and then passed the substitute as amended out of committee with a due-pass recommendation; the recorded ayes on the final passage were Aldermen Spencer, Narayan, Schweitzer, Browning, Chair Cone and President Green.