---
title: FHWA-1273 Changes in 2026 and Your Payroll | WellStanding
url: https://wellstanding.com/guides/fhwa-1273-changes-2026/
description: FHWA made Form FHWA-1273 optional for agencies on June 10, 2026, but the weekly payroll duty stayed. See what changed and how DOTs responded.
updated: 2026-11-04
type: guide
publisher: WellStanding Certified Payroll
---
# FHWA-1273 changes in 2026: what changed, and what it means for your certified payroll

Sources: the Federal Register final rule at [91 FR 25492](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/05/11/2026-09276/rescinding-requirements-regarding-required-contract-provisions-for-federal-aid-construction), FHWA's [Form FHWA-1273 page](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/construction/cqit/form1273.cfm), and the [June 25, 2026 form](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/contracts/1273/1273.pdf). Checked November 4, 2026.

Last reviewed November 4, 2026 against the sources it cites

The short answer

FHWA's rule at 91 FR 25492, effective June 10, 2026, ended the federal requirement that agencies physically attach Form FHWA-1273 to federal-aid highway contracts. The weekly certified payroll did not go away. It comes from the Davis-Bacon clauses in 29 CFR 5.5, and the June 25, 2026 form still carries it. Your contracting agency decides whether the form is attached to your subcontract.

- The final rule at [91 FR 25492](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/05/11/2026-09276/rescinding-requirements-regarding-required-contract-provisions-for-federal-aid-construction) was published May 11, 2026, took effect June 10, 2026, and removed and reserved 23 CFR part 633, which had required the form to be physically incorporated.
- FHWA says on its [Form FHWA-1273 page](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/construction/cqit/form1273.cfm) that the rule does not exempt recipients, subrecipients, and contractors from the underlying statutory and regulatory requirements.
- Section III, paragraph 3.b.(1) of the [June 25, 2026 form](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/contracts/1273/1273.pdf) still requires certified payrolls weekly, for each week with covered work, to the contracting agency, with the prime responsible for submitting subcontractors' payrolls.
- FHWA's [section-by-section summary](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/construction/cqit/fhwa1273_changes260625.pdf) lists the Davis-Bacon section as renumbered only, but the [June 25, 2026 form](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/contracts/1273/1273.pdf) also changed paragraph 6 to require inserting the clauses in paragraphs (1) through (11), not the form, in any subcontracts, where the [October 23, 2023 text as posted by Louisiana DOTD](https://dotd.la.gov/media/ofkdgcum/fhwa-form-1273-rev-1023.pdf) said to insert FHWA-1273.
- [Caltrans COIN 26-01](https://dot.ca.gov/-/media/dot-media/programs/local-assistance/documents/coin/coin-26-01.pdf) of June 2026 says the Division of Local Assistance will keep requiring the unmodified form in each executed contract, subcontract, and lower-tier subcontract.

## Is FHWA-1273 optional now?

A bid addendum or an email from your prime says Form FHWA-1273 is now optional. That is true of one thing: attaching the form. FHWA's [final rule](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/05/11/2026-09276/rescinding-requirements-regarding-required-contract-provisions-for-federal-aid-construction) was published May 11, 2026 and took effect June 10, 2026. It removed the federal requirement that the form be physically incorporated into each federal-aid highway construction contract and lower-tier subcontract. It did not remove the weekly certified payroll. [FHWA states](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/construction/cqit/form1273.cfm) that the rule does not exempt recipients, subrecipients, and contractors from the underlying statutory and regulatory requirements.

Optional means optional for the contracting agency, not for you. Section I of the [June 25, 2026 form](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/contracts/1273/1273.pdf) says use of the form is optional on the part of the contracting agency, and that the agency keeps the authority to decide whether the contractor must use it in each subcontract. Your subcontract tells you what your agency decided.

## What the rule did and did not do

- **Removed:** 23 CFR part 633, which had required the form (the rule [removes and reserves](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/05/11/2026-09276/rescinding-requirements-regarding-required-contract-provisions-for-federal-aid-construction) it). Agencies may now use other ways to include the required provisions, and so may contractors where the agency permits, per the [FHWA memo of June 29, 2026](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/construction/cqit/633A-20260629.pdf).
- **Kept:** any provision that another statute or regulation requires in a construction contract still must be in the contract, according to the rule's preamble. FHWA keeps the form available and will update it.

## Why the weekly payroll still applies

The weekly payroll comes from the Davis-Bacon clauses, not from the form as a document. [23 U.S.C. 113](https://www.govinfo.gov/link/uscode/23/113) requires prevailing wages, as determined by the Secretary of Labor, on Federal-aid highway construction. For prime contracts, [29 CFR 5.5(e)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/subtitle-A/part-5/subpart-A/section-5.5) says the clauses and the correct wage determinations are part of every covered prime contract and take effect by operation of law, whether or not the contract includes them or incorporates them by reference, unless the Administrator grants a variance, tolerance, or exemption. Paragraph (e) speaks to prime contracts. For subcontracts, paragraph (a)(6) requires the contractor or subcontractor to insert the clauses in each subcontract.

FHWA's [2023 notice](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/09/29/2023-21306/revised-form-fhwa-1273) described Form FHWA-1273 as the way the wage requirements were physically incorporated into federal-aid highway contracts. That incorporation step is what the 2026 rule removed.

### Which projects Section III covers

Section III of the [form](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/contracts/1273/1273.pdf) reproduces 29 CFR 5.5 with minor revisions. It applies to Federal-aid construction projects over $2,000, and to all related subcontracts and lower-tier subcontracts, regardless of subcontract size. It covers projects within the right-of-way of a roadway functionally classified as a Federal-aid highway.

The form excludes roadways classified as local roads or rural minor collectors, then limits that exclusion. Where applicable law requires a project to be treated as a project on a Federal-aid highway, the provisions apply regardless of the location of the project. The form's examples are Surface Transportation Block Grant projects under 23 U.S.C. 133 (recreational trails excluded), Nationally Significant Freight and Highway Projects under 23 U.S.C. 117, and National Highway Freight Program projects under 23 U.S.C. 167. A small sub on a local road can still be covered. Ask the contracting agency whether the project is treated as Federal-aid before you assume the exclusion applies.

These are the payroll rules in Section III of the [June 25, 2026 form](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/contracts/1273/1273.pdf).

| Obligation | Section III | What it says |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Weekly submission | 3.b.(1) | Send certified payrolls to the contracting agency for each week with covered work. The prime is responsible for submitting subcontractors' payrolls. An electronic system must take a legally valid electronic signature and allow another method if you cannot use it. |
| Statement of Compliance and signature | 3.b.(3) to (5) | Signed by the contractor, subcontractor, or the agent who pays or supervises payment. The signed reverse side of the WH-347 satisfies it. The signature is handwritten or a legally valid electronic signature. |
| False certification | 3.b.(6) | May bring civil or criminal prosecution under 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 31 U.S.C. 3729. |
| Records not submitted or not made available | 2.a and 3.d.(2) | Paragraph 3.d.(2) is the records-access and sanctions paragraph. It covers failing to submit the required records, failing to make them available, or refusing worker interviews on the job. After written notice, the Federal agency may cause suspension of further payment, advance, or guarantee of funds, and failing to submit required records on request may be grounds for debarment under 29 CFR 5.12. A contractor or other person that does not give WHD (the Labor Department's Wage and Hour Division) the required records within the time WHD requests is also precluded from introducing, as evidence in an administrative proceeding under 29 CFR part 6, any required records it did not provide. Paragraph 2.a also lets the contracting agency, after written notice, act to suspend those funds until the violations have ceased when a contractor fails to submit the required records. Neither paragraph sets a late-filing penalty. |
| Retention | 3.b.(7) | Keep certified payrolls for 3 years after all work on the prime contract is completed. |

The WH-347 stays optional. The form says the weekly information may be submitted on it or in any other format. The [WH-347 guide](https://wellstanding.com/guides/wh-347/) covers filling it out.

## What changed in the form text

FHWA's [section-by-section summary](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/construction/cqit/fhwa1273_changes260625.pdf) and [memo](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/construction/cqit/633A-20260629.pdf) list the changes since the previous revision, [effective October 23, 2023](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/09/29/2023-21306/revised-form-fhwa-1273). This table sets the older text, as posted by [Louisiana DOTD](https://dotd.la.gov/media/ofkdgcum/fhwa-form-1273-rev-1023.pdf), beside the new.

| Item | October 23, 2023 text | June 25, 2026 text |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Section I, incorporation | The form must be physically incorporated in each construction contract funded under title 23, and the contractor inserts it in each subcontract. | That requirement was eliminated June 10, 2026. Use is optional for the agency, which decides whether you must use it in subcontracts. |
| Nondiscrimination, Section II | Cites Executive Order 11246, an EEO officer, affirmative action steps, and an annual July staffing report on Form FHWA-1391. | Revised to align with Executive Order 14173. FHWA's summary says it removed references to Executive Order 11246 and the affirmative action steps. The new text does not mention Form FHWA-1391. Title VI and Rehabilitation Act duties remain. |
| Nonsegregated facilities | Section III, requiring a nonsegregated facilities certification. | Removed. |
| Davis-Bacon and Related Act provisions | Section IV. | Section III. FHWA's summary lists the change as renumbering, but paragraphs 4.b and 6 also changed (see below). |
| Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act liquidated damages | $31 per calendar day, as of January 15, 2023, per the footnote. | $33 per calendar day as of January 15, 2025, per the footnote, adjusted annually by the Department of Labor. Now in Section IV. |

The $33 figure is a dated amount. Check [29 CFR 5.5(b)(2)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/subtitle-A/part-5/subpart-A/section-5.5) for the current one.

### Davis-Bacon text that changed although FHWA lists it as renumbered

FHWA's summary says only that the Davis-Bacon section was renumbered from Section IV. The form text shows two other changes when you set the [2023 copy](https://dotd.la.gov/media/ofkdgcum/fhwa-form-1273-rev-1023.pdf) beside the [2026 form](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/contracts/1273/1273.pdf).

- **Subcontract flow-down, paragraph 6.** The 2023 text told the contractor or subcontractor to insert FHWA-1273 in any subcontracts, along with the wage determination. The 2026 text tells them to insert the clauses in paragraphs (1) through (11) of the section, along with the wage determination. That matches the wording of [29 CFR 5.5(a)(6)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/subtitle-A/part-5/subpart-A/section-5.5). Section I still leaves the choice of method to the contracting agency.
- **Apprentice equal opportunity, paragraph 4.b.** The 2023 text tied the use of apprentices and journeyworkers to Executive Order 11246 and 29 CFR part 30. The 2026 text cites 29 CFR part 30, including any amendments, and drops the executive order.
- **Cross-references.** The reference in paragraph 2.b now says Section IV, where the 2023 text said Section V. That follows from the renumbering.

The sentences in paragraph 3.b on weekly submission, the Statement of Compliance, signature, falsification, and 3-year retention read the same in both copies.

### Which text is in your subcontract?

Some DOTs set their own cutoff for the new text, as the table below shows. Check the header on the copy in your subcontract. "Revised October 23, 2023" is the older text, with Davis-Bacon in Section IV. "Revised June 25, 2026" is the new text.

FHWA's sources disagree on one date. The June 29 memo calls the revised form "dated May 11, 2026." The form's header and FHWA's page say June 25, 2026. Use the date printed on the copy in your contract.

## How DOTs responded

FHWA left the choice to each agency. The notices below come from the offices named in the first column, and several cover only local agency projects, as labeled. Caltrans, MoDOT, Oregon DOT, and Mississippi DOT say they keep the form in use. Alaska DOT&PF and Maryland SHA issued revised contract text instead, as their rows show. None says the weekly payroll is optional. Each speaks only for the scope labeled in its row. This is a sample, not all 50 states. The [state requirements table](https://wellstanding.com/guides/certified-payroll-requirements-by-state/) shows where payroll goes by state.

| Office and notice | What it said |
| --- | --- |
| Caltrans Division of Local Assistance (local agency projects), [COIN 26-01](https://dot.ca.gov/-/media/dot-media/programs/local-assistance/documents/coin/coin-26-01.pdf), June 2026 | Local Assistance will keep requiring the unmodified form in each executed contract, subcontract, and lower-tier subcontract. |
| MoDOT, local public agency (LPA) notice, [Updated Form 1273](https://www.modot.org/node/93085), July 17, 2026 | In its notice to local public agencies, MoDOT said it will continue using Form 1273 as the way to include the required provisions. |
| Alaska DOT&PF (FHWA-funded projects), [Chief Engineer's Directive](https://dot.alaska.gov/stwddes/dcspubs/assets/pdf/directives/26/072726_form25d55h.pdf), July 27, 2026 | The directive covers [Form 25D-55H](https://dot.alaska.gov/stwddes/dcsconst/assets/pdf/constcontforms/25d55h.pdf), Alaska's copy of the required provisions, with the FHWA-1273 revision line for June 25, 2026 in its header. The directive does not mention FHWA-1273 or the rule. It says to use the new form in FHWA-funded projects with a contract award date after June 10, 2026, to replace the current form by addendum in projects still advertising, and to add it by change order where bids have opened but award comes after June 25. |
| Maryland SHA, [specification memo](https://www.roads.maryland.gov/OCE/Specifications/2026_July_Distribution_of_Specifications_signed.pdf), July 28, 2026 | Revised its FHWA-1273 specification to remove the executive order references and deleted its Executive Order 11246 notice. Applies to bid openings on or after August 13, 2026. |
| Oregon DOT, certified city and county agencies, [Bulletin 101-61 Rev. 2](https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/ORDOT/bulletins/4258337), August 18, 2026 | ODOT continues to require certified city and county agencies to physically incorporate the form. Those agencies should add the revised form to federal-aid projects advertised on or after June 25, 2026. |
| Mississippi DOT, LPA projects, [supplement](https://mdot.ms.gov/documents/LPA/PDM/checklist/FHWA%201273%206-2026.pdf), October 6, 2026 | For subcontract requests on LPA Form RSP-1, lists FHWA-1273 and the Davis-Bacon provisions among the federal provisions that must be physically incorporated into the subcontract. |

Caltrans's [2026 Standard Specifications](https://dot.ca.gov/-/media/dot-media/programs/design/documents/2026_stdspecs---dor.pdf), section 3-1.13, separately tell contractors on federal-aid contracts to physically incorporate a current form in each subcontract. That is the 2026 edition's language, and Caltrans's [standards page](https://dot.ca.gov/programs/design/ccs-standard-plans-and-standard-specifications) says the 2026 Standards are implemented October 19, 2026, so a contract under an earlier edition needs its own check. The section does not mention the rescission, so read it as specification text, not as a response to the rule. For Caltrans payroll, see the [Caltrans guide](https://wellstanding.com/guides/caltrans-certified-payroll-lcptracker/).

## If you get an "optional" notice

1. **Find the header.** It reads "Revised October 23, 2023" or "Revised June 25, 2026." A DOT may reprint the form under its own number. Alaska's Form 25D-55H does, and its header still carries the FHWA-1273 revision line. The header tells you which text your subcontract carries.
2. **Keep the weekly payroll going.** The weekly submission sentence in paragraph 3.b read the same in the 2023 and 2026 copies, and [29 CFR 5.5(a)(6)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/subtitle-A/part-5/subpart-A/section-5.5) still requires the clauses in subcontracts.
3. **Ask where the payroll goes.** The agency or prime sets the system. For AASHTOWare Civil Rights and Labor, see the [AASHTOWare guide](https://wellstanding.com/guides/aashtoware-civil-rights-labor-certified-payroll/).

## What we do

We prepare certified payroll for public works contractors. Tell us about your project.

## Questions

**Is FHWA-1273 still required on federal-aid highway contracts?**

FHWA no longer requires agencies to attach it, effective June 10, 2026. Each agency decides. Several notices above keep the form in use, but each speaks only for the office that issued it, and several cover local agency projects only. Your subcontract tells you what your agency decided.

**Do I still submit weekly certified payroll?**

Yes, if your work is on a covered Federal-aid project. Section III covers related subcontracts of any size, and its local road exclusion does not apply where applicable law requires the project to be treated as Federal-aid, so ask the agency if you are unsure. Section III, paragraph 3.b.(1) of the [June 2026 form](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/contracts/1273/1273.pdf) requires certified payrolls weekly for each week with covered work, sent to the contracting agency. Your prime is responsible for submitting subcontractors' payrolls.

**Did the 2026 revision change the Statement of Compliance or the WH-347?**

FHWA's [summary](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/construction/cqit/fhwa1273_changes260625.pdf) lists the Davis-Bacon section as renumbered only. The paragraph 3.b sentences on weekly submission and the Statement of Compliance read the same in the 2023 and [2026 forms](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/contracts/1273/1273.pdf), but paragraphs 4.b and 6 of that section changed. The WH-347 remains optional, and the contractor, subcontractor, or their agent still signs the Statement of Compliance.

**My prime says I can stop sending payroll because the form is optional. Is that right?**

The form being optional is not the same as the payroll being optional. The weekly submission clause is in [29 CFR 5.5(a)(3)(ii)(A)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/subtitle-A/part-5/subpart-A/section-5.5), and (a)(6) requires the clauses in subcontracts. Ask your prime to point to the subcontract clause or agency instruction that changes your submission duty.

**What are the penalties for a false or missing payroll?**

Under paragraph 3.b.(6) of the form, a false certification may bring civil or criminal prosecution under 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 31 U.S.C. 3729. Paragraph 3.d.(2) is the records-access and sanctions paragraph, not a late-filing penalty. It covers failing to submit or make available the required records, or refusing worker interviews. After written notice, it allows suspension of further payment, advance, or guarantee of funds, and failing to submit required records on request may be grounds for debarment under 29 CFR 5.12. A contractor or other person that does not give WHD (the Labor Department's Wage and Hour Division) the required records within the time WHD requests is also precluded from introducing, as evidence in an administrative proceeding under 29 CFR part 6, any required records it did not provide. Paragraph 2.a lets the contracting agency act to suspend funds until the violations have ceased when a contractor fails to submit the required records. Paragraph I.3 says a breach of any of the form's stipulations may be sufficient grounds for withholding progress payments or final payment, termination of the contract, suspension or debarment, or any other action the contracting agency and FHWA determine to be appropriate.

## Sources

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

1. [91 FR 25492](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/05/11/2026-09276/rescinding-requirements-regarding-required-contract-provisions-for-federal-aid-construction) federalregister.gov
2. [Form FHWA-1273 page](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/construction/cqit/form1273.cfm) fhwa.dot.gov
3. [June 25, 2026 form](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/contracts/1273/1273.pdf) fhwa.dot.gov
4. [section-by-section summary](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/construction/cqit/fhwa1273_changes260625.pdf) fhwa.dot.gov
5. [October 23, 2023 text as posted by Louisiana DOTD](https://dotd.la.gov/media/ofkdgcum/fhwa-form-1273-rev-1023.pdf) dotd.la.gov
6. [Caltrans COIN 26-01](https://dot.ca.gov/-/media/dot-media/programs/local-assistance/documents/coin/coin-26-01.pdf) dot.ca.gov
7. [FHWA memo of June 29, 2026](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/construction/cqit/633A-20260629.pdf) fhwa.dot.gov
8. [23 U.S.C. 113](https://www.govinfo.gov/link/uscode/23/113) govinfo.gov
9. [29 CFR 5.5(e)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/subtitle-A/part-5/subpart-A/section-5.5) ecfr.gov
10. [2023 notice](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/09/29/2023-21306/revised-form-fhwa-1273) federalregister.gov
11. [Updated Form 1273](https://www.modot.org/node/93085) modot.org
12. [Chief Engineer's Directive](https://dot.alaska.gov/stwddes/dcspubs/assets/pdf/directives/26/072726_form25d55h.pdf) dot.alaska.gov
13. [Form 25D-55H](https://dot.alaska.gov/stwddes/dcsconst/assets/pdf/constcontforms/25d55h.pdf) dot.alaska.gov
14. [specification memo](https://www.roads.maryland.gov/OCE/Specifications/2026_July_Distribution_of_Specifications_signed.pdf) roads.maryland.gov
15. [Bulletin 101-61 Rev. 2](https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/ORDOT/bulletins/4258337) content.govdelivery.com
16. [supplement](https://mdot.ms.gov/documents/LPA/PDM/checklist/FHWA%201273%206-2026.pdf) mdot.ms.gov
17. [2026 Standard Specifications](https://dot.ca.gov/-/media/dot-media/programs/design/documents/2026_stdspecs---dor.pdf) dot.ca.gov
18. [standards page](https://dot.ca.gov/programs/design/ccs-standard-plans-and-standard-specifications) dot.ca.gov

## Related

- [How to fill out the WH-347](https://wellstanding.com/guides/wh-347/)
- [Certified payroll requirements by state](https://wellstanding.com/guides/certified-payroll-requirements-by-state/)
- [Submitting in AASHTOWare Civil Rights and Labor](https://wellstanding.com/guides/aashtoware-civil-rights-labor-certified-payroll/)
- [SF-1444 additional classifications](https://wellstanding.com/guides/sf-1444-additional-classification/)
- [Caltrans certified payroll and LCPtracker](https://wellstanding.com/guides/caltrans-certified-payroll-lcptracker/)
- [Which WH-347 version to use](https://wellstanding.com/guides/which-wh-347-version-to-use/)