Updated September 4, 2026 · California prevailing wage / public works
California's eCPR: what it is and how it relates to the federal WH-347
California public works contractors file certified payroll electronically through the Department of Industrial Relations' eCPR system — not by mailing a WH-347. If your project also has federal funding, you may owe both. Here's how the two systems compare.
What eCPR is
eCPR (electronic Certified Payroll Reporting) is the California Department of Industrial Relations' online system for submitting certified payroll records on public works projects covered by California's prevailing wage law (Labor Code §1771 and related sections). Awarding bodies and Labor Compliance Programs review submissions through the DIR's portal rather than collecting paper or emailed forms.
Who has to use it
- Contractors and subcontractors performing work on California public works contracts subject to prevailing wage requirements.
- Every tier of subcontractor with workers on a covered project, not just the prime.
- This applies to California-funded or California public-body-awarded work — federally funded work follows the separate Davis-Bacon / WH-347 process instead, even if the project is physically in California.
eCPR vs. the federal WH-347
| Federal (Davis-Bacon) | California (eCPR) | |
|---|---|---|
| Form | WH-347 + Statement of Compliance | Submitted through DIR's eCPR portal, not a standalone PDF |
| Applies to | Federally funded/assisted construction contracts | California public works contracts under state prevailing wage law |
| Wage source | Federal wage determination for the project (SAM.gov) | California DIR prevailing wage determinations, by county and craft |
| Reviewed by | Contracting agency / awarding body | DIR and the awarding body's Labor Compliance Program, via eCPR |
A project with both federal and California public funding can require both — check with the awarding body rather than assuming one submission satisfies both obligations.
Fringe still accrues per hour, either way
California prevailing wage determinations, like the federal schedule, publish a basic hourly rate plus a separate fringe benefits rate. That fringe amount is owed for every hour actually worked on the covered project — including overtime hours, and recalculated any week a worker splits time across projects with different determinations. It's not a flat per-week benefit figure, which is exactly the assumption most general payroll software makes when tracking employee benefits.
Frequently asked
Does FringeTrack submit directly into eCPR?
No — DIR's own Public Works portal is where the file actually gets uploaded, and that upload has to come from your account there. What FringeTrack does (on the Pro plan) is generate the eCPR XML file itself from your payroll data — built against DIR's published schema, with the fringe-per-hour shortfall check already run against it — so you're uploading a file that's ready to go instead of hand-building one.
Do I need both a WH-347 and an eCPR submission?
Only if the project has both federal Davis-Bacon coverage and California public works funding. A purely state- or locally-funded California project generally only needs eCPR.