Heated debate over whether Calif.’s prevailing wage requirement stymies affordable housing

As a shortage of affordable housing plagues California, the state’s mandates that developers pay prevailing wage on most taxpayer-subsidized low-income housing projects are a source of contentious debate.

The cost of constructing low-income housing in California now averages $332,000 per unit. In an effort to determine the causes of high price tags on these projects, in 2014 the state released a report that officially said the impact of prevailing wage couldn’t be determined.