Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, June 10, 2026 – A bill authored by State Senators Christine Tartaglione (D-2, Philadelphia) and Frank Farry (R-6, Bucks) to strengthen Pennsylvania’s Prevailing Wage Act passed the Senate today with bipartisan support.
Senate Bill 908 would close a long-standing loophole by extending existing wage protections to off-site non-standard manufacturing work for public construction projects. The bill reflects current construction practices in which critical components such as plumbing, HVAC, welding, ironwork, boiler systems and electrical systems are often safely and efficiently manufactured off-site before installation.
“Pennsylvania’s wage laws were designed to ensure fairness for public project workers and contractors, but current law leaves too many skilled workers without fair pay simply because their work is performed off-site,” said Senator Tartaglione. “This bill restores the spirit of the law by recognizing that contract manufacturing is essential to modern construction and deserves the same prevailing wage standards as construction work.”
The Prevailing Wage Act, passed in 1961, was intended to level the playing field for contractors bidding on public works projects. However, the law’s focus on on-site work created a loophole that excluded many Pennsylvania workers performing specialized manufacturing and assembly work in local shops and facilities.
Senate Bill 908 would facilitate protect these high-skill jobs, support fair competition among contractors, and maintain more tax revenue and economic activity in Pennsylvania communities.
“A lot of work and craftsmanship went into public construction projects before the materials arrived on site,” Tartaglione said. “Whether it’s a product manufactured in the workshop or installed in the field, it’s still essential construction work, and the workers who perform it deserve fair wages.”
This legislation included three amendments proposed by Senator Martin (R–13, Lancaster) and Senator Keefer (R–31, Cumberland and York) on the floor that would have raised the threshold requiring prevailing wage from $25,000 to $2,500,000, eliminated provisions of the bill extending prevailing wage to contract manufacturing, and narrow the scope of the bill only to the City of Philadelphia, but until a Democratic majority of senators voted in favor amendments enabling the adoption of the act without amendments. Senator Tartaglione applauds his colleagues for supporting Pennsylvania merchants and merchants by helping to advance this crucial legislation.
Tartaglione also admitted that a few years ago, former senator Tommy Tomlinson helped her draw attention to this issue and thanked trade union organizations for their partnership in working on the bill.
The legislation will now move to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for consideration.
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