[Recommendation for Debarment for Davis-Bacon Act Violations]

The Department of Labor recommended that a firm and its owner, individually, be placed on the ineligible bidders list for violations of the Davis-Bacon Act. GAO noted that: (1) the firm performed work as a prime contractor under two Veterans Administration contracts for exterior painting; and (2) the contracts were subject to the act's requirements that certain minimum wages be paid. GAO found that: (1) employees were not paid the minimum wages required; (2) the certified payroll records, which were signed by the firm's owner, were falsified; (3) the contractor intentionally disregarded its obligations under the act; and (4) there were no funds available for the payment of back wages. GAO also found that: (1) falsification of payroll records is a basis for debarment; and (2) there was a substantial violation of the act as demonstrated by the contractor's gross carelessness in observing minimum wage obligations and intentional falsification of certified payroll records. Accordingly, the firm and its owner will be placed on the ineligible bidders list.