Central to the lawsuit is a construction contract for the maintenance of the Interstate 74 bridge over the Mississippi River south of Bettendorf, Iowa, where a current construction project by the Iowa and Illinois Departments of Transportation is not paying prevailing wages to laborers.

"The Illinois Prevailing Wage Act is very clear," Hynes said. "Contractors receiving state money for capital projects must pay prevailing wages. I support this lawsuit and will gladly deny any payments on this project until it is properly resolved."

When the violation first came to Hynes' attention, he immediately directed his staff to suspend all payments on the project. Hynes and the Quad Cities Foundation for Fair Contracting Trust then agreed to a court order that prohibited the Comptroller from releasing any payments on the bridge maintenance, pending further review of the project.

"Comptroller Hynes' timely Executive Order, stopping payment of Illinois funds to violators of the Illinois Prevailing Wage Act, will ensure that all working people of this great State get a fair and equitable wage," said William D. Gissel, Administrator for the trust.

The Quad Cities Foundation for Fair Contracting Trust filed the lawsuit last month naming the State of Illinois, the Illinois Department of Transportation, the Iowa Department of Transportation, Cramer and Associates, Inc. (construction company) and Illinois Comptroller Daniel W. Hynes as the defendants. Hynes is named in the suit because as Comptroller he is the state's paying agent. The suit seeks to ensure that the Prevailing Wage Act is complied with, including the payment of prevailing wages to laborers, a stipulation that Hynes said he wholeheartedly supports.

"I feel like I'm on the wrong side of the court room on this," Hynes said. "Despite being named a defendant, I agree with the plaintiff's claim and will stand with labor to see that the requirements of the law are met."

The suit alleges that because the contractor on the project is not paying prevailing wages, it is causing irreparable harm to laborers. Illinois and Iowa share responsibility for the bridge's maintenance. The state of Iowa has awarded a contract for $72,925 for maintenance, with each state bearing half of the cost. Iowa does not have a Prevailing Wage Act, and the contract with Cramer and Associates, Inc. did not contain any provisions requiring the payment of prevailing wages. Cramer and Associates, Inc. is not paying prevailing wages.

The lawsuit seeks a judgement commanding the state of Illinois and the Illinois Department of Transportation to comply with the Illinois Prevailing Wage Act for any and all construction projects, including those in which public funds are transferred to a third party for eventual payment. The lawsuit does not seek damages from Iowa.

Hynes recently appointed a Prevailing Wage Enforcement Office on his staff to review all capital projects whose funding requires the payment of prevailing wages. Hynes has the ability as Comptroller to stop all payments on projects that are not in compliance with state law. Because this case involves payment to the state of Iowa, a construction contract did not come through Hynes' office for review.

The case was filed last month in the circuit court of Rock Island County and is scheduled for a hearing, where the merits of the case will be argued on February 18, 2003.