Connecticut certified payroll: form WWS-CP1, monthly filing, and what the WH-347 leaves out

Connecticut sets prevailing wage rates through the Labor Commissioner and the Department of Labor's Wage and Workplace Standards Division. The payroll itself goes to the agency that let the contract.

The law and when it applies

C.G.S. section 31-53 covers the construction, remodeling, refinishing, refurbishing, rehabilitation, alteration, or repair of public works by the state, a town or city, or any of their agents. Since July 1, 2025, it also covers contracts for off-site custom fabrication for those projects, such as plumbing, heating, cooling, pipefitting, and duct systems built in Connecticut for a specific public job. Stock items are excluded.

The law does not apply when the combined total cost of all work by all contractors is under $1,000,000 for new construction, or under $100,000 for remodeling, alteration, or repair. The threshold is measured on the whole project, so a $40,000 subcontract on a $2 million new school is covered.

Rates change every July 1. The statute has the contractor check with the Labor Commissioner on or before July 1 each year for the life of the contract, and wages and fringe adjust from that date. Since July 1, 2025 this applies to every project under section 31-53.

How the payroll is submitted

Section 31-53(f) requires every employer to keep records of each worker's wages, hours, and classification for each day and week "in such manner and form as the Labor Commissioner establishes." The employer then submits a certified payroll monthly to the contracting agency, by mail, email, or another method the agency accepts. The statute sends it to the contracting agency, and nothing in it calls for a copy to the Department of Labor.

The Department's form is the Payroll Certification for Public Works Projects, numbered WWS-CP1 on the cover page and WWS-CP2 on continuation pages. The current version is dated 12/9/2013, and the Department says it can be completed online. The Department's web page spells it "WWS-CPI" with a capital I, while the form itself is printed with the numeral 1.

Each sheet is a weekly payroll with a week-ending date, so a monthly submission is a set of weekly sheets. The Certified Statement of Compliance is on the back of the form, below the fringe benefits explanation, and is signed for each week ending date. The statute requires the statement to say that:

1. The records are correct.
2. Wages and welfare fund contributions are at least the prevailing rates and at least what the contract requires.
3. The employer has complied with section 31-53.
4. Every worker is covered by workers' compensation, shown by the carrier name, policy number, and effective and expiration dates.
5. The employer receives no kickbacks.
6. The employer knows that filing a payroll it knows to be false is a class D felony.

Neither the statute nor the Department's form says what to file for a week with no work. Ask the contracting agency at the start of the job. How no-work weeks are handled on federal jobs.

What the Connecticut payroll asks for

Compared with the federal WH-347, form WWS-CP1 adds:

• Each worker's address.
• Gender and race, marked "if required."
• Trade license type and number, and the worker's OSHA 10 certification number.
• Your workers' compensation carrier, policy number, and effective and expiration dates in the header.
• The fringe benefits broken out by type: medical, pension, life insurance, disability, vacation and holiday, and other.
• The check number next to net pay.

The form is marked "THIS IS A PUBLIC DOCUMENT" and "DO NOT INCLUDE SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS." That matches the federal rule, which also keeps full SSNs off the WH-347.

Rules that change the payroll

OSHA 10 proof with the first payroll. Section 31-53b requires each contractor to furnish proof, with the weekly certified payroll for the first week each worker starts on the project, that the worker completed a 10-hour OSHA construction safety course. The form asks you to attach a copy of the card to the first certified payroll that lists the worker. Plumbers and electricians whose 10-hour course is 5 or more years old need a 4-hour refresher. A worker who has not produced proof within 15 days of being found out of compliance can be removed from the site.

The payroll is a public record. Section 31-53(f) says every person has the right to inspect and copy certified payrolls. Treat every field on the form as something the public can see.

Fringe owed in cash if you have no plan. A contractor that is not obligated to contribute to an employee welfare fund pays each worker the fringe amount for the classification as part of wages on each payday.

Failing to file is a felony. Not filing the certified payroll is a class D felony, with a fine of up to $5,000, up to 5 years in prison, or both. Knowingly filing a false one carries the same penalty. Knowingly or willfully underpaying wages or fringe can bring a $5,000 fine per offense and referral for debarment.

Jobs with federal money

When a Connecticut public works project also has federal money, Davis-Bacon applies alongside section 31-53. The state statement already requires pay at least equal to the state rate and at least equal to what the contract requires, so when the contract includes a federal wage determination, you pay the higher of the 2 rates for each classification.

The filings are separate. The monthly WWS-CP1 package goes to the contracting agency under state law. The WH-347, with the federal Statement of Compliance, goes up the federal chain weekly as the contract directs. The hours and pay on both should match. When the federal payroll is due.

What CertifiedHours does here

CertifiedHours produces the federal WH-347, plus an LCPtracker upload file and a CSV, for federally funded work. It does not produce form WWS-CP1 or the Connecticut Certified Statement of Compliance, and it does not collect workers' home addresses or the license, OSHA, and workers' compensation details the state form asks for. On a state-only job, use the Department of Labor's form. On a job that also has federal money, CertifiedHours covers the federal filing. How the other states compare.