SB 909 and California prevailing wage penalties: what changes on January 1, 2027

Old and new amounts

Today's figures are in the Labor Code sections linked in the first column. The new figures are in the bill text. Every new penalty amount in the table is 40 percent higher than the current one; the fee limit rises 25 percent. That is the ratio of the two columns, not wording in the bill text.

This page does not say how the new amounts apply to violations that began before January 1, 2027. Ask a prevailing wage attorney about a specific job.

When it takes effect

The bill history shows the Governor approved SB 909 on September 27, 2026, and the Secretary of State chaptered it that day. It is marked non-urgency. A non-urgency statute enacted at a regular session takes effect on the January 1 after a 90 day period from enactment, under article IV, section 8(c)(1) of the California Constitution. Here that is January 1, 2027. Until then, the third column stays in force.

The records request penalty, Labor Code 1776(h)

After a written request for your certified payroll records, you have 10 days to comply. If you do not, subdivision (h) of section 1776 makes you forfeit a set amount for each calendar day, or portion of a day, for each worker, until you strictly comply. It states no dollar cap. On the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement's request, the penalties are withheld from progress payments then due.

Worked example: a request covers a 10 worker project, and you deliver the records 7 days past the 10 day window. Today that is $100 x 10 x 7 = $7,000. From January 1, 2027 it is $140 x 10 x 7 = $9,800. Per day, by crew size:

See the 10 day records request guide and Labor Code 1776.

The underpayment penalty, Labor Code 1775

Subdivision (a)(1) of section 1775 sets a maximum for each calendar day, or portion of a day, for each worker paid less than the prevailing wage. The Labor Commissioner sets the actual amount after weighing whether the error was a good faith mistake promptly corrected and whether you have a prior record. Back wages are separate.

Worked example: 3 workers are underpaid for 10 days. The maximum goes from $200 x 3 x 10 = $6,000 to $280 x 3 x 10 = $8,400. The standard minimum, with no good faith exception, goes from $1,200 to $1,680. The willful minimum goes from $3,600 to $5,040.

The apprentice penalty, Labor Code 1777.7

Subdivision (a)(1) of section 1777.7 applies when the Labor Commissioner finds, after an investigation, that you knowingly violated section 1777.5, the public works apprentice section. The amount is per full calendar day, not per worker, and the Labor Commissioner may reduce it if it would be disproportionate to the severity of the violation. The repeat amount applies to a second or later knowing violation within three years, if the noncompliance results in apprenticeship training not being provided.

Paperwork matters here. 8 CCR 230 requires contract award information, which may be a DAS 140, to go to the apprenticeship committees within 10 days of executing the contract, and no later than the first day you have workers on the job. Under the same regulation, failing to provide contract award information that the awarded contractor knows is deemed a continuing violation for the duration of the contract, ending when the awarding body files a Notice of Completion, for the purpose of determining how 1777.7 penalties accrue. See Labor Code 1777.5 and DAS 140 and DAS 142.

What SB 909 does not change

The bill's title lists the sections it amends: Labor Code 1725.5, 1771.3, 1775, 1776, and 1777.7, and Public Contract Code 2603. Labor Code 1771.4, the statute behind DIR's eCPR system, is not on the list. Its penalty for not furnishing certified payroll to the Labor Commissioner stays at $100 for each day of violation, capped at $5,000 per project. The Labor Commissioner cannot impose it until 14 days after the monthly submission deadline, and monthly means at least once every 30 days while work is performed. See Labor Code 1771.4.

The bill text also amends 1771.3 (the State Public Works Enforcement Fund) and Public Contract Code 2603 (skilled and trained workforce penalties). This page does not compare those two with prior law.

The registration fee ceiling

Section 1725.5 lets the director of DIR set annual registration and renewal fees by publishing them on DIR's website, up to a ceiling. SB 909 raises that ceiling from $800 to $1,000. The bill does not set a new fee. DIR's contractor registration page currently lists $400, $800 or $1,200 for one, two or three fiscal years. Renewal is due on or before July 1 each year. See DIR contractor registration.

What to do before January 1, 2027

1. Answer every written records request inside 10 days. This penalty is per worker, per day, with no dollar cap in subdivision (h).
2. Keep the eCPR on its 30 day clock. That penalty is unchanged. It has its own $100 a day rate and $5,000 per project cap. See every deadline on a public works job.
3. Check each worker's classification and rate before payroll runs. A 1775 penalty counts per worker per day. See worker classification.
4. Send apprentice award information on time. Calendar the 10 days when each contract is signed.
5. Redo your penalty math. Use the table above, or our penalty exposure calculator, which has a switch for the January 1, 2027 amounts. See also certified payroll penalties in California.

Where WellStanding fits

The statutes put these penalties on the contractor or subcontractor. Paying for help does not move that, so the useful question is whether complete records exist when a request or a deadline arrives. WellStanding prepares the WH-347 and the eCPR from the payroll export you already run, and a person reviews every filing. You review the finished filing and sign the certification in one step, and nothing is filed until you have signed. The certification is always yours; we never sign for you. Setup is $995 one time, then $249 a month for crews up to 25 workers or $449 a month for 26 to 50 workers. First filing free.

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