Assemblymember Harry B. Bronson (D-Rochester/Chili/Henrietta) announced a bill he authored that would prohibit contractors who violate wage labor laws from receiving state contracts has passed the Assembly A.8514.

“We should not be giving our taxpayer dollars to contractors who have violated the prevailing wage payment requirements. Workers deserve prevailing wage and we ought to insist that only good contractors are provided with state contracts,” noted Bronson. “We need to be prudent and economical on how we’re spending taxpayer money. If a contractor has been debarred at the federal level, New Yorkers should not foot the bill by rewarding their crooked behavior with state contracts.”

Under current statue, contractors who have been debarred on the federal level and found violating the rights of their employees, under the Davis-Bacon Act, are still allowed to bid for and obtain public works contracts in New York State. Bronson’s legislation would use the federal debarment list as an indication to hold these dishonest contractors accountable and ensure they’re unable to participate in public works projects in the state.