Mass. Gen. Laws » Part I Title III Chapter 30
Massachusetts General Laws

Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 30, § 39K (2026)

Public building construction contracts; payments

✓ current as of July 2026
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Section 39K. Every contract for the construction, reconstruction, alteration, remodeling, repair or demolition of any public building by the commonwealth, or by any county, city, town, district, board, commission or other public body, when the amount is more than five thousand dollars in the case of the commonwealth and more than two thousand dollars in the case of any county, city, town, district, board, commission or other public body, shall contain the following paragraph:— Within fifteen days (30 days in the case of the commonwealth, including local housing authorities) after receipt from the contractor, at the place designated by the awarding authority if such a place is so designated, of a periodic estimate requesting payment of the amount due for the preceding month, the awarding authority will make a periodic payment to the contractor for the work performed during the preceding month and for the materials not incorporated in the work but delivered and suitably stored at the site (or at some location agreed upon in writing) to which the contractor has title or to which a subcontractor has title and has authorized the contractor to transfer title to the awarding authority, upon certification by the contractor that he is the lawful owner and that the materials are free from all encumbrances, but less (1) a retention based on its estimate of the fair value of its claims against the contractor and less (2) a retention for direct payments to subcontractors based on demands for same in accordance with the provisions of section thirty-nine F, and less (3) a retention not exceeding five per cent of the approved amount of the periodic payment. After the receipt of a periodic estimate requesting final payment and within sixty-five days after (a) the contractor fully completes the work or substantially completes the work so that the value of the work remaining to be done is, in the estimate of the awarding authority, less than one per cent of the original contract price, or (b) the contractor substantially completes the work and the awarding authority takes possession for occupancy, whichever occurs first, the awarding authority shall pay the contractor the entire balance due on the contract less (1) a retention based on its estimate of the fair value of its claims against the contractor and of the cost of completing the incomplete and unsatisfactory items of work and less (2) a retention for direct payments to subcontractors based on demands for same in accordance with the provisions of section thirty-nine F, or based on the record of payments by the contractor to the subcontractors under this contract if such record of payment indicates that the contractor has not paid subcontractors as provided in section thirty-nine F. If the awarding authority fails to make payment as herein provided, there shall be added to each such payment daily interest at the rate of three percentage points above the rediscount rate than charged by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston commencing on the first day after said payment is due and continuing until the payment is delivered or mailed to the contractor; provided, that no interest shall be due, in any event, on the amount due on a periodic estimate for final payment until fifteen days (twenty-four days in the case of the commonwealth) after receipt of such a periodic estimate from the contractor, at the place designated by the awarding authority if such a place is so designated. The contractor agrees to pay to each subcontractor a portion of any such interest paid in accordance with the amount due each subcontractor.

The awarding authority may make changes in any periodic estimate submitted by the contractor and the payment due on said periodic estimate shall be computed in accordance with the changes so made, but such changes or any requirement for a corrected periodic estimate shall not affect the due date for the periodic payment or the date for the commencement of interest charges on the amount of the periodic payment computed in accordance with the changes made, as provided herein; provided, that the awarding authority may, within seven days after receipt, return to the contractor for correction, any periodic estimate which is not in the required form or which contains computations not arithmetically correct and, in that event, the date of receipt of such periodic estimate shall be the date of receipt of the corrected periodic estimate in proper form and with arithmetically correct computations. The date of receipt of a periodic estimate received on a Saturday shall be the first working day thereafter. The provisions of section thirty-nine G shall not apply to any contract for the construction, reconstruction, alteration, remodeling, repair or demolition of any public building to which this section applies.

All periodic estimates shall be submitted to the awarding authority, or to its designee as set forth in writing to the contractor, and the date of receipt by the awarding authority or its designee shall be marked on the estimate. All periodic estimates shall contain a separate item for each filed subtrade and each sub-subtrade listed in sub-bid form as required by specifications and a column listing the amount paid to each subcontractor and sub-subcontractor as of the date the periodic estimate is filed. The person making payment for the awarding authority shall add the daily interest provided for herein to each payment for each day beyond the due date based on the date of receipt marked on the estimate.

A certificate of the architect to the effect that the contractor has fully or substantially completed the work shall, subject to the provisions of section thirty-nine J, be conclusive for the purposes of this section.

Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, at any time after the value of the work remaining to be done is, in the estimation of the awarding authority, less than 1 per cent of the adjusted contract price, or the awarding authority has determined that the contractor has substantially completed the work and the awarding authority has taken possession for occupancy, the awarding authority may send to the general contractor by certified mail, return receipt requested, a complete and final list of all incomplete and unsatisfactory work items, including, for each item on the list, a good faith estimate of the fair and reasonable cost of completing such item. The general contractor shall then complete all such work items within 30 days of receipt of such list or before the contract completion date, whichever is later. If the general contractor fails to complete all incomplete and unsatisfactory work items within 45 days after receipt of such items furnished by the awarding authority or before the contract completion date, whichever is later, subsequent to an additional 14 days' written notice to the general contractor by certified mail, return receipt requested, the awarding authority may terminate the contract and complete the incomplete and unsatisfactory work items and charge the cost of same to the general contractor and such termination shall be without prejudice to any other rights or remedies the awarding authority may have under the contract. The awarding authority shall note any such termination in the evaluation form to be filed by the awarding authority pursuant to the provisions of section 44D of chapter 149.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 13 cases, 1962–2003 · leading case: Peabody N.E., Inc. v. Town of Marshfield, 689 N.E.2d 774 (Mass. 1998).
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Peabody N.E., Inc. v. Town of Marshfield, 689 N.E.2d 774 (Mass. 1998). · cites it 3× “After receiving the master’s final report, the judge ruled that (1) the plaintiff’s breach of contract precluded it from recovering on the contract; (2) the plaintiff’s breach also precluded an award of prejudgment interest pursuant to G. L. c. 30, § 39K; and (3) the plaintiff…”
J.C. Higgins Co. v. Bond Bros., 791 N.E.2d 367 (Mass. App. Ct. 2003). · cites it 8× “In this case, we consider whether prejudgment interest on disputed amounts recovered by a subcontractor from a general contractor on a public construction project should accrue under G. L. c. 30, § 39K, or G. L. c. 231, § 6C.”
Acme Plastering Co. v. Boston Hous. Auth., 490 N.E.2d 445 (Mass. App. Ct. 1986). · cites it 3× “On motion of the plaintiff, an amended judgment, which added interest under G. L. c. 30, § 39K, was entered in the amount of $181,319.”
Thomas O'Connor & Co. v. City of Medford, 448 N.E.2d 1276 (Mass. App. Ct. 1983). “The city did not prepare the semi-final estimate required to exercise its rights under G. L. c. 30, § 39K. Interest was, therefore, properly awarded under that section.”
Indus. Eng'g & Metal Fabricators, Inc. v. Fontaine Bros., 319 N.E.2d 726 (Mass. App. Ct. 1974). · cites it 2× “” 1 Assuming (without *698 deciding) that the provisions of G. L. c. 30, § 39K, were intended to apply to contracts and subcontracts of the types found in the present case, and passing any question as to whether the interest provisions of § 39K were intended to apply to a…”
Reynolds Bros. v. Town of Norwood, 414 Mass. 295 (Mass. 1993). “” Consistent with that reasoning, the Appeals Court in that case affirmed an award of interest under G. L. c. 30, § 39K, which contains provisions relative to interest on late payments to contractors similar to those of c.”
Acme Plastering Co. v. Boston Hous. Auth., 521 N.E.2d 418 (Mass. App. Ct. 1988). “The Boston Housing Authority (BHA) moved to recall the execution on the sole ground that this court and the Supreme Judicial Court *986 had denied Acme’s request for § 6C interest by rejecting, respectively, the petition for rehearing and the application for further appellate…”
E. Amanti & Sons, Inc. v. Triton Reg'l Sch. Dist., 14 Mass. L. Rptr. 3 (Mass. Super. Ct. 2001). · cites it 2× “Triton’s reliance on G.L.c. 30, §39K here is misplaced. G.L.c.”
A. Bonfatti & Co. v. Town of Rockport, 429 N.E.2d 75 (Mass. App. Ct. 1981). · cites it 2× “Under G. L. c. 30, § 39K, a public body must pay to the contractor on a public construction job the amount of the final payment requisition within sixty-five days after the contractor fully completes the work.”
Pioneer Steel Erectors, Inc. v. Commonwealth, 181 N.E.2d 670 (Mass. 1962). “The legislative intent to impose an obligation is suggested by the provision for interest in G. L. c. 30, § 39K, inserted by St. 1961, c.”
Peabody N.E., Inc. v. Town of Marshfield, 4 Mass. L. Rptr. 413 (Mass. Super. Ct. 1995). · cites it 3× “Peabody’s breach also precludes the application of G.L.c. 30, §39K, which regulates payments to contractors on public construction projects, to the present action.”
Bushkin Assocs., Inc. v. Raytheon Co., 717 F. Supp. 18 (D. Mass. 1989). “Section 39K provides for interest payments for work done on public buildings in accordance with a particular construction contract and then only when the “contractor substantially completes the work.”
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