WeeklyCertified / State rules / Certified Payroll in Massachusetts: Weekly Reports to the Awarding Authority
Certified Payroll in Massachusetts: Weekly Reports to the Awarding Authority
What are the certified payroll rules in Massachusetts?
Massachusetts requires prevailing wages on public works with no minimum contract value. A true and accurate copy of weekly payroll records, with a signed statement of compliance, goes to the awarding authority every week, and must include each employee's address. Records are kept three years. WH-347 alone is not the safe answer.
Massachusetts runs on paper and email rather than a portal, but weekly and strictly: every covered week, a certified copy of the payroll plus the state's statement of compliance goes to the awarding authority, with fines up to $10,000 per occurrence for skipping it.
The rules at a glance
| State law | Massachusetts General Laws chapter 149, sections 26 to 27B |
| Threshold | None; public works are covered regardless of contract value |
| Form / format | DLS Weekly Certified Payroll Report Form with the Weekly Statement of Compliance (must include employee name, address, classification, hours, and wages) |
| Where it goes | Submitted weekly to the awarding authority by mail or email; no state portal (link) |
| How often | Weekly |
| Records kept | 3 years |
| Who administers it | Department of Labor Standards (rates) and the Attorney General's Fair Labor Division (enforcement) |
Does the federal WH-347 work in Massachusetts?
Not by itself. Massachusetts requires data the WH-347 does not carry, notably employee addresses, plus the Massachusetts statement of compliance, so use the DLS form or an equivalent with all required fields on state work. WH-347 governs federal jobs.
Penalties
Failure to submit certified weekly payrolls or statements of compliance can bring fines up to $10,000 per occurrence, and the Attorney General's office enforces with citations, prosecution, and debarment.
Federal jobs in Massachusetts still mean WH-347
State rules govern state-funded work. The moment a project is federally funded or assisted, the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts apply and the weekly WH-347 with its Statement of Compliance is the filing, regardless of what Massachusetts requires on its own jobs. Many contractors run both systems side by side on different projects, which is exactly why knowing which regime a given contract sits under is week-zero work (see the first-job checklist).
The free WeeklyCertified generator prepares the federal form with your wage determination's rates pulled live and the fringe and overtime math done to the cent.
Questions
Does the federal WH-347 satisfy Massachusetts requirements?
Not by itself. Massachusetts requires data the WH-347 does not carry, notably employee addresses, plus the Massachusetts statement of compliance, so use the DLS form or an equivalent with all required fields on state work. WH-347 governs federal jobs.
How often is certified payroll due in Massachusetts?
Weekly. Records: kept 3 years.
Who enforces prevailing wage in Massachusetts?
Department of Labor Standards (rates) and the Attorney General's Fair Labor Division (enforcement). Failure to submit certified weekly payrolls or statements of compliance can bring fines up to $10,000 per occurrence, and the Attorney General's office enforces with citations, prosecution, and debarment.