The Inflation Reduction Act’s Compliance Practices emphasize the importance of adhering to established labor and wage standards, while providing clear guidelines for reporting suspected violations to ensure transparency and accountability in the implementation of clean energy projects. Click on the questions below for the answers.
Taxpayers seeking to meet the prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements are encouraged to take additional actions that can facilitate compliance. These actions include:
• Regularly reviewing payroll records.
• Ensuring any contracts entered into with contractors require that the contractors and their subcontractors adhere to prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements.
• Regularly reviewing compliance with the prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements (including the proper worker classifications of laborers and mechanics, the applicable prevailing wage rates, and the percentage of labor hours performed by qualified apprentices).
• Posting information about paying prevailing wages in a prominent and accessible location, or otherwise providing written notice regarding the payment of prevailing wage rates.
• Establishing procedures for individuals to report suspected failures to comply with the prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements without retaliation or adverse action.
• Investigating reports of suspected failures to comply with the prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements.
• Contacting the DOL’s Office of Apprenticeship or relevant state apprenticeship agency for assistance in locating registered apprenticeship programs.
Anyone with information about an alleged federal tax law violation, including a suspected violation of the prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements, can report the suspected violation to the IRS by submitting a Form 3949-A, Information Referral PDF.
Useful information to include with the form includes:
• The nature of the suspected violation(including key words such as “prevailing wage” and/or “apprenticeship” in the “Comments” section);
• Any specific information or evidence about the failure to comply with the prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements;
• Name or employer identification number of the employer (if available); and
• Address of the job site.
The IRS takes referrals of alleged tax law violations seriously and considers all relevant information on any applicable audit.
The Taxpayer First Act protects employees who report or assist in an investigation regarding underpayment of taxes or any conduct which the employee reasonably believes constitutes a potential violations of tax law or federal law relating to tax fraud.
Because of taxpayer privacy laws, however, the IRS cannot provide information about the status of an audit or investigation.
