LCPtracker Guide to IDOL Export Functionality

Purpose & Important Notes

Beginning in September 2020, weekly certified payroll reports are required to be filed online with the Illinois Department of Labor, or IDOL, by the 15th of each month for all state-funded public works projects. Please note that this does not include projects that are strictly Federally funded.

The following training document will describe information regarding account set up and functionality of using LCPtracker to generate the CSV file that can then be uploaded directly to IDOL’s submittal portal called “Certified Transcript of Payroll Portal”.

This guide will explain steps taken by both an LCPtracker database Administrator (Admin) and a Contractor. We will go through and outline the following steps within this guide:

• How to find instructions and resource information on the IDOL website
• Understanding the certified payroll data on the CSV file exported from LCPtracker
• Administrator information, including how to set up projects and contractors with IDOL required information
• Contractor information, including how to properly set up payroll data, employee profiles and your own company information to meet the IDOL requirements

Important Notes:

Please be aware that there is information required by IDOL that historically has not been collected in LCPtracker. By following this guide and making sure the information that is collected within LCPtracker is entered, Contractors will be able to meet the minimum required fields by IDOL to be able to upload their payroll file.

However, Contractors may need to provide any additional information to IDOL. This can be done by filling out the export file prior to uploading into the IDOL system OR can be adjusted after the file has been uploaded within the IDOL portal.

Please keep in mind that requirements for the IDOL CPR upload may change over time. It is the responsibility of the Contractor and Administrator to follow and meet the regulations set forth by the IDOL.

Illinois Dept of Labor Resources

Pursuant to PA 100-1177 and 820 ILCS 130/5.1, the Illinois Department of Labor is charged with developing and maintaining an online portal for prevailing wage construction contractors to file their certified payrolls with the department.

As of September 1, 2020 all work performed on new and existing projects must have certified payroll reports (CPRs) filed online with IDOL by the 15th of each month for all Illinois State public works projects.

Below are links or information to resource material published by the Illinois Department of Labor. LCPtracker will attempt to maintain links to the most current information on the IDOL website, but we recommend verifying legislation or resource material directly with the IDOL.

Any questions on utilizing the IDOL Certified Transcript of Payroll Portal to register and submit certified payrolls should also be directed to IDOL.

Click here to find information on the IDOL’s website on the Prevailing Wage Act, including how to access current Prevailing Wage rates and legislation.

Please also click here to find out more information on the IDOL website as well as to view requirements for data collection.

Administrative Code, 56 Ill. Adm. Code 100 (Legislative Website) 

See the law, 820 ILCS 130/0.01-12 (Legislative Website)

Creating or Accessing an Illinois Public ID Account

You will need to create an Illinois Public ID Account in order to submit CPR into the Certified Transcript of Payroll Portal. Please click here to create your new account or recover your password or username.

After your account has been created, you will navigate to the Certified Transcript of Payroll Portal and select "Public Account" and login using the username/password created.

Further instructions will be provided throughout the prevailing wage portal to assist you with the process.

IDOL Training Videos and Guides

IDOL has training material, including written material and video recordings, to learn how to access and file certified payroll online through the portal. Training material can be found on this IDOL webpage

By using LCPtracker, you will be able to simply upload much of your payroll information through a CSV file.

Purpose & Administrator Information

Overall Set Up Steps for Administrators

1. Verify Project Set Up information entered
2. Verify Client Information entered
3. Verify Contractor Information entered (*Note that Contractors will also be able to view and update their information as well.)
4. Add the Ethnicity Demographic Classification to be required for specific projects that will upload to the Illinois DOL portal.
5. Review the Employee information required by IDOL. Make sure the fields such as Address, Phone Number, Race, Ethnicity, Gender, Veteran Status and Address Validation are set to a hard stop requirement in your database. For assistance, please contact your LCPtracker Customer Sucess Manager.

Project Set Up for Administrators

For either new projects being created, or updating existing ones already in the system, please ensure that the following fields are properly filled out. This information will be submitted to the Illinois Department of Labor.

To enter or update, please go to the Add/Edit Project Page under your Set Up Tab.

• Project Code
• Project Address is completed and “IL-Illinois” is selected as the State
• Project Address entered is a valid and deliverable address according to USPS
• Select the box “Show IDOL Export File” for those IL State funded projects where CPRs need to be submitted to IDOL. This does not include projects that are solely Federally funded.
  

Multi-Funded Projects

For those projects with two or more funding types where multiple Jurisdictions are assigned to a project, Administrators will need to designate which Jurisdiction’s crafts will appear on the IDOL Export file.

In the Project Set Up page, once two or more Jurisdictions are selected for a project, the “State” is set to “IL- Illinois”, and the “Show IDOL Export File” has been checked, a drop-down selector will appear that allows the Admin to choose the Jurisdiction that contains the IL State wages so that they will appear on the CSV file.

Note that there is a separate selector which allows an Admin to choose what Jurisdiction will show first on the CPR, but this is for what craft appears first on the PDF version of the CPR and not on the CSV version that is uploaded to the IDOL portal.

Agency (Client Information) Set Up for Administrators

This section applies to agencies where there is always one agency address for any projects that fall under the entire database. Using Chicago Housing Authority as an example, while there are many construction projects with different addresses within their LCPtracker database, there is only one main contact address for contacting the agency of Chicago Housing Authority.

This is the address that will be entered on this page and what will be submitted to the IDOL when Contractors on your projects upload their CPRs.

Please DO NOT change the information listed in the TOP FIELD “Org./Client Name”. This is the name being displayed to all users of your database, as well as what LCPtracker Staff is familiar with. If you feel that updates might be needed, feel free to contact your LCPtracker Customer Success Manager to review changes.

The address entered must be a valid, deliverable address to the USPS for the IDOL system to accept an upload without issue.

Contractor Set Up for Administrators

When setting up new Contractor accounts, or reviewing existing ones, please ensure that the following fields have been entered properly. These will be submitted to the Illinois Department of Labor.

If these fields are not currently required within LCPtracker, please contact your LCPtracker Customer Success Manager to be assisted in turning on the field requirement. This will be important in ensuring files will be accepted by the IDOL for every company.

• Company Name
• Federal Tax ID Number
• Contact Name
• Phone Number
• Contact Email
• Address (*This must be checked against the USPS website to ensure it is a valid, deliverable address.)

The fields highlighted below must be entered in the Contractor Set Up page to be accepted by IDOL.

Require Demographic Classifications

The Illinois Department of Labor is requiring the collection of an employee’s ethnicity as well as their veteran status, both of which are collected in LCPtracker under the Demographic Classification section.

LCPtracker recommends that Administrators require these items be submitted by Contractors for every employee under IL State-funded projects. These requirements can be set on a per-project basis, for specific Departments, or even all Departments in a database.

If you need assistance verifying or setting these requirements up in your account, please contact your LCPtracker Customer Success Manager.

Requirement 1: Ethnicity of each employee. The response entered by the Contractor is either: 

• Y = Hispanic/Latino
• N = Not Hispanic/Latino

LCPtracker has built a demographic classification selection for “Ethnicity – IDOL List” that can be set to be required for those specific projects that will be uploading to the IDOL. An Admin can set this to be required which will feed the information to the CSV file when exported from LCPtracker.

If this has not been set up within LCPtracker, the Contractor will manually need to enter this information on every CSV export file prior to uploading to IDOL.

Requirement 2: The Veteran status of each employee

LCPtracker has built a demographic classification selection for “Veteran Status” that can be set to be required for those specific projects that will be uploading to the IDOL. An Admin can set this to be required which will feed the information to the CSV file when exported from LCPtracker.

If this has not been set up within LCPtracker, the Contractor will manually need to enter this information on every CSV export file prior to uploading to IDOL.

Requirement 3: Demographic Type of Race-IDOL List

A new Demographic Type of ‘Race-IDOL List’ has been added to all databases, including LCPcertified, for us on the Illinois Department of Labor export file. 

Each Administrator can set their own requirements by project or by Department. For assistance in proper set up, please contact the LCPtracker Support Department or your LCPtracker Customer Success Manager.

“Required” is not enabled by default as this means it would be required for every employee on every project within the database. Instead, Administrators will use other controls to set up requirements on a  per-project or per-department basis.

If necessary, this entire type can be disabled in a database, but first, all the classifications must be disabled.

To set these as required, you will go through the following steps:

• Set Up tab
• Demographic Setup
• Project Demographic Requirements
  
• Click Add Projects or Departments
  

To Set Requirement 1:

• Enter the Demographic Type
  • Ethnicity-IDOL List
• Select the Project(s) you want to turn this on as a requirement for
• Click Save

To Set Requirement 2:

• Enter the Demographic Type
  • Veteran Status
• Select the Project(s) you want to turn this on as a requirement for
• Click Save

Once you have saved your entry, the contractor will now be required to enter this demographic classification before they can certify their payroll for the project(s) set up.

Please note that if you set this demographic classification as required for a Department, any new projects added AFTER you have set this up will need to be added individually as the requirement only flows to the projects that are CURRENTLY setup with the specific Department assigned.

To Set Requirement 3:

• Enter the Demographic Type
  • Race-IDOL List
• Select the Project(s) you want to turn this on as a requirement for
• Click Save

The new Race-IDOL List Classification options can be found under the Demographic Setup Section (Set Up tab > Demographic Setup > Demographic Classifications).

To set requirements for the Race-IDOL List, navigate to the Project Demographic Requirements (Set Up Tab > Demographic Setup > Project Demographic Requirements).

Turning on a requirement to a project, means that any employee where a Certified Payroll Report is being submitted on that project, must have at least one selection made for the Race-IDOL List.

Administrators must enable Val_64 for either all Departments, or at minimum, for only the Departments chosen to enforce the requirements set.

Under the Add/Edit Employee page, the Contractor or Admin can go to the Demographic Classification section to add a selection for each employee.

Enforcing Employee Information to be Collected

The following fields in the Employee Set Up page are required to upload payroll files into the IDOL Certified Transcript of Payroll Portal. This information is required by IL State legislation. See the law, 820 ILCS 130/0.01-12 (Legislative Website)

LCPtracker has both Validations and App settings that we recommend be set as a hard stop requirement within your database. As an Admin, please work with your LCPtracker Customer Success Manager to ensure the following fields are set to be required.

• Employee Name
• Full Address
• Address Validation required
• Phone Number
• Last 4 of SSN – Admins may still collect the Full SSN and only the last 4 will show on the export
• Race – This field is called Ethnicity in LCPtracker
• *Ethnicity – Collected under Demographic Classifications for Ethnicity-IDOL List
• Gender
• *Veteran Status – Also collected under Demographic Classifications

*See information above on how to set these two demographic classifications as required for only the projects that will be uploaded to the IDOL portal.

How to Validate an Address by USPS

It is especially important to ensure that the company address is a valid, deliverable address against the USPS database for any address submitted to the IDOL portal.

LCPtracker requires that Employee Addresses be validated within the system, but at present time, the Contractor and Project addresses must be validated by users prior to entering them into LCP.

To check if an address is valid against USPS, please click here to go to the USPS website and follow these steps:

• Enter the address into the USPS fields
• If multiple options are returned, please select what is appropriate
• Next to the address returned, click on the arrow to the right to view more information
• Look down to the bottom to view the “DPV Confirmation Indicator”
  If this shows “N” you do not have a valid address and will need to update it. A return of “Y, D or S” will be valid for the IDOL purposes.

Again, if the “DPV Confirmation Indicator” shows “N” you do not have a valid address and will need to update it.

A return of “Y, D or S” will be valid for the IDOL purposes.

Contractor Information

Overall Steps for Contractors

Below are the overall steps to take to: verify your data in LCPtracker to prepare for a successful upload into the IDOL Certified Transcript of Payroll Portal, and what to do after certifying your payroll in LCPtracker.

More detailed information on these steps can be found in the following sections of this guide.

1. Verify your company information in LCPtracker
2. Verify your company address is a valid, deliverable address to USPS
3. Verify IDOL-required Employee Set Up information for all of your employees in LCPtracker
4. Submit payroll normally in LCPtracker
5. After a weekly payroll is certified, an export file will generate that can then be uploaded to the IDOL Certified Transcript of Payroll Portal. Learn about generating the file here.
6. Log into the IDOL Certified Transcript of Payroll Portal and upload the CSV file as directed. See information above on creating an account and accessing the portal.
7. Once logged into the IDOL Certified Transcript of Payroll Portal, correct any information as needed.
8. You will also need to fill out and submit the “Fringe Benefit Affidavit”. The template and directions for upload can be found within the portal. Any questions on this form should be directed to IDOL.
9. Contractors will verify a Statement of Compliance in the IDOL portal to complete a CPR submission.

Verifying Your Company Information

Please ensure that the following fields have been entered properly into LCPtracker for you account. These will be submitted to the Illinois Department of Labor.

Navigate to your Set Up tab > Company Information page

• Company Name
• Federal Tax ID Number
• Contact Name
• Phone Number
• Contact Email
• Address (*This must be checked against the USPS website to ensure it is a valid, deliverable address.)

It is especially important to ensure that your company addresses a valid, deliverable address against the USPS database. LCPtracker requires that Employee Addresses be validated within the system, but at present time, the Contractor and Project addresses must be validated by users prior to entering them into LCP. 

The fields below must be entered in the Contractor Set Up page to be accepted by IDOL.

Setting Up Subcontractor Accounts

If you hire new Subcontractors on to a project and they need new LCPtracker accounts set up, please ensure that you have entered all of the required data and validated their company address just as you have done for your own. This will be important in ensuring your Subcontractors do not experience any issues in uploading their payroll into the IDOL system.

Employee Information

The following fields in the Employee Set Up page are required to upload your payroll files into the IDOL Certified Transcript of Payroll Portal. This information is required by IL State legislation. See the law, 820 ILCS 130/0.01-12 (Legislative Website)

• Employee Name
• Address
• Phone
• Last 4 of SSN
• Work Craft/Classification
• If Journeyman, Apprentice or Foreman
• Race
• Ethnicity
• Gender
• Veteran Status (Under Demographic Classifications)
• Ethnicity-IDOL List (Under Demographic Classifications)

*Note that additional fields may also be required per your Administrator’s chosen database settings.

This may include an Administrator requiring that the Full SSN be required even though the IDOL export is only requiring the last 4 digits. Some Administrators have additional requirements that may also need to be fulfilled.

Payroll Entry & Certification

If you are a Contractor new to LCPtracker, here is a very high-level overview to the steps to enter and certify payroll into the software.

The payroll entry process has not changed for IDOL projects at this point.

The three main steps in entering and certifying CPRs in LCPtracker are completed by following the numbered tabs.

• 1. Payroll Records - Manually enter or upload payroll records
• 2. Notices - Check to see if LCPtracker flagged any possible errors on your payrolls
• 3. Certification - Complete the certification process and to generate the XML files

To begin entering payroll, navigate to the 1. Payroll Records tab and click on Enter Records if you are manually entering payroll, OR Upload Records if you will be using some form of upload.

For more detailed directions on entering and certifying payroll in LCPtracker, please go to the Knowledge Base button on the top of each screen. Here you will find training documents and videos to assist you further.

LCPtracker also offers a Support Team available to assist you. They can be reached by:

• Email: support@lcptracker.com
• Phone: (714)669-0052 Option 4
• Live Chat: Click on the “Live Chat” button at the top of each screen to begin a chat

Generating the CSV Export File

After a weekly payroll is certified, a CSV export file will generate that can then be uploaded to the IDOL Certified Transcript of Payroll Portal.

This will be found under your Projects tab > Certified Payrolls. Any project that was set up by your Administrator as having a project in Illinois will automatically have an “IDOL Export” file generated.

Saving the File

1. Export and save the “IDOL Export” file (in CSV format) to your computer or other data storage receptacle. This step needs to be completed for:
   • Performing CPRs
   • Non-Performing CPRs
   • Amended CPRs
2. If you choose to open your file to review, add or edit any information, please read the section below for important things to take note of.

Verifying Your CSV Data

Important Notes:

• This export has a CSV file type as this is what is accepted by the IDOL portal.
• When you open this file to review, add or edit data, it will be viewable as an Excel file type (.xlsx).
• When you re-save the file, please remember to save as a CSV file type.
• LCPtracker has formatted the file so that any leading zeros on certain fields should remain intact even if the CSV file was opened and re-saved, but we recommend verifying data after upload to the IDOL portal. This might include employee last 4 of SSN (e.g. 0223) , Project Code (e.g. 0025067) or, least likely, zip codes.

If there are items that you find that need to be corrected, you can choose to do so in the upload file before you submit it into the IDOL portal, OR, things can be adjusted after upload in the Portal itself.

Please refer to the schema mapping table in this document to understand where the data is coming from within LCPtracker.

The following are items that LCPtracker recommends reviewing, editing, or adding prior to or after upload.

LCPtracker Support Team Assistance

Should you need additional assistance on items within LCPtracker, please contact our LCPtracker support team through one of the following options:

• Email: support@lcptracker.com
• Phone: (714)669-0052 Option 4
• Live Chat: Click on the “Live Chat” button at the top of each screen to begin a chat

Should you have questions, comments on the information collected in the IDOL portal, please contact the Illinois Department of Labor.

Checklist for Admins & Contractors

IDOL Checklist for LCPtracker

Using the LCPtracker Guide that goes through the CSV Schema mapping, the attached checklist will help both the Admin and the Contractor perform certain steps within LCPtracker to help fill in the information on the CSV excel file. (The checklist is attached as a PDF to the bottom of this article.)

CSV Schema Mapping  

Below are the elements defined by the CSV schema and will be populated by data entered into LCPtracker. As of September 8, 2020 the most current CSV schema, in full, issued by IDOL can be found here.

LCPtracker collects some additional information that is either not required to be reported by IDOL and vice versa.