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Washington · Painter · 2 counties
Painter prevailing wage, Whatcom County group, Washington (2 counties)
L&I sets the same painter rates, row for row, in 2 counties: Skagit and Whatcom. Every figure on this page applies in each of them.
$58.84an hour, total
$43.14 wage + $15.70 fringe benefits
On Washington public works in each of these 2 counties, a painter must be paid at least $58.84 an hour in total: $43.14 in wages plus $15.70 in fringe benefits for health, pension, vacation, training and other plans. L&I's rate took effect September 2, 2026.
L&I published this rate on August 3, 2026 and it took effect September 2, 2026. Checked against L&I's wage lookup on October 24, 2026.
L&I also sets a residential painter rate in the Whatcom County group: $30.66 an hour. It applies only to the residential projects L&I defines. Residential rates and when they apply.
Base wage and fringe: $43.14 + $15.70
The wage is the taxable hourly rate. The other lines are what Washington law calls "usual benefits": contributions to health, pension, vacation and holiday, apprenticeship and similar plans. A contractor that doesn't provide a benefit pays its value as wages instead (RCW 39.12.010).
| Base wage (taxable) | $43.14 |
| Health and welfare | $8.18 |
| Pension | $6.15 |
| Training | $1.22 |
| Other benefits | $0.15 |
| Total straight-time hourly rate | $58.84 |
Set from: collective bargaining agreement, Western Washington Area Agreement for the Professional Painting Industry between IUPAT District Council 5 and Western Washington Signatory Painting Employers. Where a county has a collective bargaining agreement, L&I adopts its wage and benefits; with more than one, the higher rate prevails. Otherwise L&I uses wage surveys (RCW 39.12.015).
Davis-Bacon painter rates in these counties
The counties share L&I's rates, but not always the same federal wage determination. When a contract requires both the state rate and the Davis-Bacon rate, paying the higher of the two meets both. The contract documents say which apply.
| County | Federal classification | Base + fringe | WD | vs L&I |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Skagit County | Federal rates listed on the county page; no one-to-one match | |||
| Whatcom County | Federal rates listed on the county page; no one-to-one match | |||
Holidays
L&I holiday code 6Z:
Holidays: New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Friday after Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day (7). Any holiday which falls on a Sunday shall be observed as a holiday on the following Monday. Any holiday which falls on a Saturday shall be observed as a holiday on the preceding Friday.
When this rate changes
- Rates lock at the bid date. A project uses “the rates that are in effect on the date when bids by prime contractors are due”, and they stay for the life of the contract. If the contract isn't awarded within six months of the bid date, the award-date rates apply. Contracts without bids use the date they're signed (WAC 296-127-011).
- L&I publishes on the first business day of February and August, and rates take effect 30 days later. Corrections can be published at any time and also take effect 30 days later (WAC 296-127-011(1); L&I publications and corrections). L&I's next set is due February 1, 2027, effective March 3, 2027.
- L&I doesn't republish every rate each period. A rate stays until L&I changes it, so each one has its own date. This one was published August 3, 2026 and took effect September 2, 2026.
Residential painter rates in the Whatcom County group
Residential rates apply only to construction, alteration, repair, improvement or maintenance of single-family homes, duplexes, apartments, condominiums and other residential buildings no more than four stories tall (basement included), and only for affordable housing (including permanent supportive and transitional housing), weatherization or rehabilitation of low-income homes, and homeless and domestic-violence shelters. Utilities, streets and structures unrelated to the housing use commercial rates. (WAC 296-127-010(9))
| Classification | Total | Base | Fringes | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residential Painters: Journey Level | $30.66 | $30.66 | $0.00 | Aug 31, 2025 |
How the Whatcom County group compares
The main painter rate in every county that has one, and how the pay splits here and in the nearest counties. All bars use the same scale.
Every county in Washington
Wage and fringe benefits, nearby
- Whatcom County groupbase $43.14$58.84
- Skagit Countybase $43.14$58.84
- Snohomish Countybase $43.14$58.84
- Chelan Countybase $36.02$52.40
Which county is in which painter group
Every Washington county with a painter rate. Counties L&I treats alike share one page; the rest have their own. You pay the rate for the county where the work is done.
| Counties | Main classification | Total | Base |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whatcom County group, 2 counties: Skagit, Whatcom | Journey Level | $58.84 | $43.14 |
| Clallam County | Journey Level | $58.84 | $43.14 |
| Grays Harbor County | Journey Level | $58.84 | $43.14 |
| Island County | Journey Level | $58.84 | $43.14 |
| Jefferson County | Journey Level | $58.84 | $43.14 |
| King County | Journey Level | $58.84 | $43.14 |
| Kitsap County | Journey Level | $58.84 | $43.14 |
| Lewis County | Journey Level | $58.84 | $43.14 |
| Mason County | Journey Level | $58.84 | $43.14 |
| Pierce County | Journey Level | $58.84 | $43.14 |
| San Juan County | Journey Level | $58.84 | $43.14 |
| Snohomish County | Journey Level | $58.84 | $43.14 |
| Thurston County | Journey Level | $58.84 | $43.14 |
| Pacific County group, 2 counties: Pacific, Wahkiakum | Commercial Painter | $55.64 | $38.12 |
| Clark County | Commercial Painter | $55.64 | $38.12 |
| Cowlitz County | Commercial Painter | $55.64 | $38.12 |
| Klickitat County | Commercial Painter | $55.64 | $38.12 |
| Skamania County | Commercial Painter | $55.64 | $38.12 |
| Grant County group, 12 counties: Adams, Asotin, Columbia, Douglas, Ferry, Franklin, Garfield, Grant, Lincoln, Pend Oreille, Stevens, Walla Walla | Commercial Painter | $52.40 | $36.02 |
| Benton County | Commercial Painter | $52.40 | $36.02 |
| Chelan County | Commercial Painter | $52.40 | $36.02 |
| Kittitas County | Commercial Painter | $52.40 | $36.02 |
| Okanogan County | Commercial Painter | $52.40 | $36.02 |
| Spokane County | Commercial Painter | $52.40 | $36.02 |
| Whitman County | Commercial Painter | $52.40 | $36.02 |
| Yakima County | Commercial Painter | $52.40 | $36.02 |
3 groups of counties with identical L&I rates, and 23 counties with rates of their own.
More from L&I on this rate
- Scope of work, WAC 296-127-01356: which tasks this trade covers. L&I says the right classification “depends upon determinations published by L&I” (L&I).
- L&I's prevailing wage lookup, for any county, trade and bid date
- Apprentices: registered apprentices are paid L&I's apprentice rate for the trade. Anyone without a registered agreement counts as a journey-level worker (RCW 39.12.021).
Are you being paid this rate?
Add your wage to what your employer pays into health, pension and other plans for you, and compare it with $58.84. Each contractor files an L&I-approved Statement of Intent to Pay Prevailing Wages before it's paid, and an Affidavit of Wages Paid when the job is accepted (RCW 39.12.040). On contracts over $10,000 the approved intent and L&I's contact details are posted on the job site (RCW 39.12.020).
Source
Washington State Department of Labor & Industries, prevailing wage lookup, Painters (PAIN), published August 3, 2026, effective September 2, 2026: secure.lni.wa.gov/wagelookup/. L&I keeps a wage record for each county; for the row this page leads with:
- Skagit County: L&I wage record 149796
- Whatcom County: L&I wage record 149796
Each figure comes from L&I's lookup and is checked against L&I's CSV export and a second, separate query. How we check · Download every Washington rate as CSV · Report an error