On Aug. 4, 2022, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court entered a long-awaited decision in Ursinus College v. Prevailing Wage Appeals Board, No. 828 C.D. 2021 (Pa. Commw. Ct. 2022). This case involves an appeal by Ursinus College, a private university located in Collegeville, Pennsylvania, of a decision by the Pennsylvania Prevailing Wage Appeals Board (the board) finding that the Pennsylvania Prevailing Wage Act (the act), 43 Pa. C.S. Sections 165-1 to 165-17, applied to a construction project financed by the college on its campus (the project), using municipal bonds issued by the Montgomery County Higher Education and Health Authority (the authority). Whether the act applies is a significant question because, if it is deemed applicable, workers who participate in “public work” on a given project must be paid in accordance with the minimum prevailing wage.

In this case, the board had held that the project was subject to the act pursuant to the provision at Section 2(5) of the act, which requires that the funds involved be “funds of a public body.” This requirement is rooted in a four-part test used by Pennsylvania courts in judging the act’s applicability, including authority known as the Penn National decisions and their progeny. Specifically, in order for a project for be considered “public work” for purposes of the act, four requirements must be met: “there must be certain work; such work must be under contract; such work must be paid for, in whole or in part, with public funds; and, the estimated cost of the total project must be in excess of $25,000.” See, e.g., 22A Summ. Pa. Jur. 2d Municipal and Local Law Section 15:47 (2d ed.) (citing Penn National I).

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