The Davis-Bacon Act
Applicability to Supply Contract at Defense Depot, Tracy, California Gao ID: HRD-89-13 January 24, 1989Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed whether the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) complied with the Davis-Bacon Act in awarding a $4.2-million contract in August 1986 for the supply and installation of a material handling system at the Defense Depot in Tracy, California.
GAO found that: (1) DLA considered the contract to be a supply contract, rather than a construction contract, and used Walsh-Healey Act labor standards and wage-rate provisions, rather than Davis-Bacon standards; (2) there was no evidence that DLA abused its discretion in applying the Walsh-Healey Act; and (3) the Department of Labor questioned whether or not the Davis-Bacon Act applied to the contract, but did not resolve the matter with DLA and did not issue a Davis-Bacon wage determination for the contract.