Certified payroll for Foundation Software

Foundation, the construction accounting system, says it can "instantly create print or electronic certified payroll reports for numerous state, federal or local agencies" on its own payroll product page. That page does not name California's DIR eCPR XML format, and it does not mention the DAS 140 or DAS 142 apprenticeship forms. Here is what that speed claim actually covers, and what it leaves for you to file by hand.

Last reviewed October 16, 2026 against the sources it cites

The short answer

Foundation's own pages do not say it produces California's DIR eCPR XML file or the DAS 140 and DAS 142 forms. Its payroll page promises certified payroll reports for numerous state, federal or local agencies; the safest reading is that these are federal and generic layouts, not a California-formatted file.

Foundation's certified payroll claim says it can create reports for numerous state, federal or local agencies, but nowhere names California, the DIR, or the eCPR format (payroll product page).
California contractors submit into the DIR's own portal, either by hand through its iForm or by uploading a file built to the DIR's CPR XML schema, and Foundation's payroll page does not name California's DIR eCPR XML format.
Foundation's certified payroll pages do not mention the DAS 140 notice, which is due to the applicable apprenticeship committee within 10 days of contract signing, and no later than your first day with workers on the job, under 8 CCR 230.
No payroll module, Foundation included, generates the DAS 142 dispatch request, because it is not a payroll document; it needs at least 72 hours notice, excluding weekends and holidays, under 8 CCR 230.1.
Payroll4Construction, which Foundation also owns, runs your payroll and hands you certified payroll reports, but its own site describes them as ready for you to access, not as filings it sends to California's DIR.

What Foundation gives you

Foundation is built for contractors, with job costing at the core and a payroll module that Foundation's own site says handles "prevailing wage, Davis-Bacon and union payrolls with automatic calculations and minimal entry." Foundation's payroll page states the system "tracks and calculates prevailing wages across multiple states, rates and trades" and generates certified payroll reports "in just a few clicks." For a contractor running multi-state, multi-union crews, that is real, verified speed on the reporting side.

What "certified payroll reports" means here

Nowhere in Foundation's own marketing does the certified payroll claim name California, the DIR, or the eCPR format. The language is generic: reports for "numerous state, federal or local agencies," "print or electronic." That phrasing fits the federal WH-347, the form the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division publishes for Davis-Bacon projects, along with whatever generic layout other states and localities accept. It does not describe California's own filing, which is built differently: contractors submit into the DIR's own portal, either by hand through its iForm or by uploading a file built to the DIR's CPR XML schema, covered in full on our eCPR system guide. Absent any mention of DIR, eCPR, or XML upload, the safest reading is that Foundation's fast, automatic reports are the federal and generic-agency layouts its own pages describe, not a California-formatted file ready for the DIR's system.

DAS 140 and DAS 142: not on a payroll report at all

Foundation's certified payroll pages also do not mention apprenticeship reporting, and that gap makes sense once you look at what those two forms need. The DAS 140 notice is due to the applicable apprenticeship committee within 10 days of contract signing, and no later than your first day with workers on the job, under 8 CCR 230, and it runs on contract-award facts: estimated journeyman hours, your planned start date, how many apprentices you expect to employ. The DAS 142 dispatch request needs at least 72 hours notice, excluding weekends and holidays, under 8 CCR 230.1, and covers one craft on one date, not a pay period. No payroll module, Foundation included, generates either one, because neither is a payroll document. Run the ratio behind both forms on our apprentice ratio calculator.

Foundation's own payroll service: Payroll4Construction

Foundation also owns Payroll4Construction, a fuller-service option that runs your payroll itself and hands you certified payroll reports ready to print or download after each pay period. That is a different product from the Foundation accounting software this page covers, and choosing it means switching your payroll provider entirely, at a custom quoted price. Its own site describes those reports as ready for you to access, not as filings it sends to California's DIR for you. See the full side by side comparison if that trade is on the table for you.

How our mapping works with Foundation

You stay on Foundation for job costing and payroll. Export the certified payroll report, payroll register, or a custom export Foundation already produces, CSV or spreadsheet. The one time $995 setup maps your Foundation layout: pay types to straight and overtime, your fringe structure, jobs to DIR project IDs, crafts to determination classifications. From then on, weekly: your export in, a finished WH-347 with the Statement of Compliance staged for signature, plus a validated DIR eCPR XML back, a person reviewing every file before it reaches you. We also prepare your DAS 140 and DAS 142 from your project details, the fields Foundation's own reports never touch.

Pricing, published

$995 one time setup. $249 per month flat for crews up to 25 workers, every project, both filings, every week. Crews of 26 to 50: $449 per month, still flat. First filing free on your own live project.

Questions

Does Foundation software file California certified payroll to the DIR?

Foundation's own marketing does not say so. Its payroll pages describe certified payroll reports for federal and generic agencies, created in just a few clicks, but never name California's DIR, eCPR, or XML upload format.

What does "instantly create certified payroll reports" mean on Foundation's site?

Foundation's payroll page uses that language for print or electronic reports for "numerous state, federal or local agencies." That phrasing matches the federal WH-347 and other generic agency layouts, not a claim that Foundation produces California's DIR eCPR XML file.

Does Foundation software produce the DAS 140 or DAS 142?

No. Foundation's certified payroll pages do not mention either form. Both run on contract-award and dispatch-request data, not payroll data, so no payroll module produces them. The DAS 140 is due within 10 days of contract award; the DAS 142 needs at least 72 hours notice before an apprentice is needed on site.

Is Payroll4Construction the same thing as Foundation's certified payroll feature?

No. Foundation is the accounting software with a built-in payroll module. Payroll4Construction is a separate, fuller service Foundation also owns, one that runs your payroll itself and gives you certified reports to submit, at a custom quoted price. It does not file to California's DIR for you. See our comparison page for the full breakdown.

How do I get a DIR eCPR XML file out of Foundation?

There is no documented native path. You either build the file by hand against the DIR's CPR XML schema, enter each payroll into the DIR iForm manually, or send your Foundation export to a service that maps it into the XML format.

What does WellStanding need from Foundation to file for me?

Your certified payroll report, payroll register, or a custom export, in CSV or spreadsheet form. We map pay types, fringe structure, and job-to-project codes once at setup, then work from that same export every week.

Sources

Every figure on this page links to its source where it first appears. The full list, in order:

payroll product page foundationsoft.com
CPR XML schema dir.ca.gov
8 CCR 230 dir.ca.gov
8 CCR 230.1 dir.ca.gov
Payroll4Construction payroll4construction.com
WH-347 dol.gov