(Source: MIRS.news, Published 10/11/2022) A Court of Claims judge sided Monday with the state, holding the Department of Technology, Management and Budget did not violate the law when it implemented its prevailing wage policy.
Judge Douglas Shapiro agreed with the state's position that the DTMB had the authority under the Management and Budget Act to implement the policy and that the department did not violate the separation of powers when it set the policy.
"Had the Legislature wished to limit defendant's ability to set a prevailing wage, it could have done so through statute," Shapiro's order reads.
The plaintiffs, the Associated Builders and Contractors of Michigan, has until Oct. 31 to appeal.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer celebrated the win, tweeting a thank you to Attorney General Dana Nessel, writing: "This ensures more opportunities and good paying jobs for working families while saving taxpayers money and time on crucial infrastructure projects."
Nessel also praised the ruling, noting it "affirms the authority of the state to set best business practices and require fair wages be paid by those who do business with Michigan."
She said: “Michigan workers deserve to be paid a competitive wage."
Because Shapiro's order dismisses the lawsuit, he did not address the merits of ABC's request for a preliminary injunction.
ABC, whose members make up more than 80% of contractors in the state, wanted an order holding Whitmer's prevailing wage directive is unenforceable because the Legislature repealed prevailing wage in 2018.
Whitmer issued her executive directive in October 2021, ordering the DTMB, which oversees state procurement, to incorporate prevailing wages when negotiating state construction projects.
In September, ABC attorney Derk Wilcox told Shapiro ABC members would lose out on bidding opportunities because they will have no say on prevailing wage or job classifications. The Attorney General's office argued ABC lacked standing.
Shapiro disagreed with the state at that time, concluding the claims are justiciable because injury to ABC's members is "not purely hypothetical" because they "must alter their business practices to obtain a state-government contract."
