Virginia public projects will screen contractors for safety training and labor records

If you build schools, offices, or other public buildings in Virginia, this law sets new conditions for the companies that hire you. For public construction contracts initiated after July 1, 2027, a state agency or locality must require the contractor and every tier of subcontractor to show compliance with specified OSHA safety-training programs. They must also show no more than one administrative finding, arbitration award, civil judgment, or settlement over $25,000 in the past three years for violations of the labor laws listed in the law. Transportation-related construction projects are not covered.

The law also addresses a common way workers lose overtime and benefits: being paid as “independent contractors” instead of employees. On state contracts over $5 million, if a contractor, subcontractor, or other party pays more than one independent contractor, the prime contractor must get written authorization from the state agency. On local contracts over that amount, the prime contractor must tell the locality which independent contractors are being paid and show why direct hiring was not feasible. Anyone paid as an independent contractor must receive written notice explaining the classification, taxes, legal protections, and how to complain about misclassification. Employees do not have to apply.

Sen. Jeremy McPike and Del. Betsy Carr carried identical bills, which incorporated similar proposals from Sen. Jennifer Carroll Foy and Del. Paul Krizek. Lawmakers narrowed the legislation during the session, and an earlier plan to require apprentices became an 18-month study by the Secretary of Labor. Democrats passed the final version without Republican votes. Gov. Abigail Spanberger signed it on April 22, 2026, after legislators accepted her amendments.