---
type: "Bill"
title: "AN ACT RELATING TO PUBLIC PROPERTY AND WORKS -- LABOR AND PAYMENT OF DEBTS BY CONTRACTORS (Relieves regulatory burden by authorizing submission of certified payroll using federal forms for all public works.)"
description: "AN ACT RELATING TO PUBLIC PROPERTY AND WORKS -- LABOR AND PAYMENT OF DEBTS BY CONTRACTORS (Relieves regulatory burden by authorizing submission of certified payroll using federal forms for all public works.)"
jurisdiction: "us/states/ri"
legislature: "Rhode Island General Assembly"
session: "2021"
identifier: "HB 5856"
citation: "Rhode Island HB 5856 (2021)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Construction", "Labor", "Property", "Public Works", "Wages"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Biah", "Costantino", "Hawkins"]
version_count: 1
action_count: 14
vote_count: 1
first_action: "2021-02-24"
last_action: "2021-07-08"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/9ab0df4d-636c-46e4-b82b-43a650d92b70"
source_url: "https://status.rilegislature.gov/"
source_hash: "ba7cc4d8ebc2c8a46fe97e1dfda759e436ebe2f9cdbdf3e3693af9e98b45ced1"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-ri"]
---

# Rhode Island HB 5856 (2021) — AN ACT RELATING TO PUBLIC PROPERTY AND WORKS -- LABOR AND PAYMENT OF DEBTS BY CONTRACTORS (Relieves regulatory burden by authorizing submission of certified payroll using federal forms for all public works.)

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **5856 SUB A** (committee substitute) — [source](http://webserver.rilin.state.ri.us/BillText/BillText21/HouseText21/H5856A.pdf)

## Votes

- PASSAGE — **67–0** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- Biah — primary (person)
- Costantino — primary (person)
- Hawkins — primary (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2021-02-24** 02/24/2021 Introduced, referred to House Labor `introduction, referral-committee`
- **2021-03-05** 03/05/2021 Scheduled for hearing and/or consideration (03/10/2021)
- **2021-03-10** 03/10/2021 Committee recommended measure be held for further study
- **2021-06-19** 06/19/2021 Scheduled for consideration
- **2021-06-20** 06/20/2021 Meeting postponed (06/22/2021)
- **2021-06-20** 06/20/2021 Scheduled for consideration (06/23/2021)
- **2021-06-20** 06/20/2021 Proposed Substitute
- **2021-06-23** 06/23/2021 Committee recommends passage of Sub A `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2021-06-23** 06/23/2021 Placed on House Calendar (06/25/2021)
- **2021-06-25** 06/25/2021 House passed Sub A `passage`
- **2021-06-26** 06/26/2021 Placed on the Senate Consent Calendar (06/29/2021)
- **2021-06-29** 06/29/2021 Senate passed Sub A in concurrence `passage`
- **2021-06-30** 06/30/2021 Transmitted to Governor `executive-receipt`
- **2021-07-08** 07/08/2021 Effective without Governor's signature `became-law`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/9ab0df4d-636c-46e4-b82b-43a650d92b70`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Rhode Island legislature records).