One year after first grid-locking on a vote, 6-6, to approve a prevailing wage ordinance and then narrowly passing the ordinance, 6-5, just one month later, the Fayette County Board overwhelmingly voted down an ordinance on prevailing wage Tuesday night by a vote of 10-1. The Prevailing Wage Act establishes wage rates that are required to be paid to all laborers, workers, and mechanics who are engaged in public works projects. Under the act, all public bodies, such as counties, municipalities and school districts are required to pass a resolution or an ordinance to set prevailing wage rates. According to an April 2018 review of the prevailing wage act by Robbins Schwartz law firm in Chicago, if a public entity does not ascertain prevailing wage rates by June, the Department of Labor’s prevailing wage rates will determine the rates for the county. And while there is no established penalty for a public body who does not approve a prevailing wage ordinance or resolution, it is illegal for public bodies, contractors and subcontractors to pay less than the prevailing wage rates for projects paid for with public funds. After a brief history on the prevailing wage, a roll call vote was taken on the prevailing wage ordinance with board member Glen Daniels casting the lone vote in favor of the ordinance and board members Jeff Beckman, Darrel Schaal, Dean Bernhardt, Glen Gurtner, Jake Harris, Jenny Waggoner, Wade Wilhour, Keith Cole, John Daniels Jr. and Bryce Kistler voting in opposition of the ordinance. Board members Chad Austin and Glenda Bartels were not in attendance for the vote.