Public WorksQuestion 1597 of 163245% of test-takers get this one wrong

A contractor on a public works project willfully fails to produce certified payroll records after proper written request. The contractor may face:

a.Penalties of $100 per worker for each day of delay
b.Loss of the right to any further progress payment
c.An automatic extension of the contract completion date
d.A referral to the CSLB, which alone may assess penalties

Explanation

Labor Code §1776(h) gives the contractor 10 days after a written request and then forfeits $100 for each calendar day, or part of one, for each worker, until strict compliance; those penalties are withheld from progress payments at the Division's request. Withholding is limited to the penalty amount, so the whole progress payment is not lost. Nothing about a records failure extends the completion date. The CSLB is not the assessing body here, and it is not the only one that can act: on a DIR-monitored job §1771.4(a)(3)(B) adds its own $100-a-day penalty, capped at $5,000 for the project.

Law Reference: Labor Code §1776(h); §1771.4(a)(3)(B)

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