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Retainage · Wyoming

Wyoming retainage law: 5% public cap, due 41 days after notice (2026)

By Sami Chicha, EditorUpdated Checked against primary sources · not yet reviewed by a licensed professionalFact-checked
Quick answer

On Wyoming public works, a public entity may retain no more than 5% of the calculated value of completed work, held in an account in the contractor's name assigned to the entity (W.S. 16-6-702(b)). After it certifies substantial completion and publishes notice for two consecutive weeks, it pays the general contractor on the 41st day after the notice first ran, less amounts for incomplete or nonconforming work.

Private work

Wyoming · Private workVerified 2026-09-22
Retainage cap
Not in our verified record
Deadline
Not in our verified record
Statute
Not in our verified record

Public work

Wyoming · Public workVerified 2026-09-22
Retainage cap
5%
A public entity may retain no more than 5% of the calculated value of completed work, and the retained payment must be held in an account in the contractor's name that is assigned to the public entity. The article does not apply where federal or other outside funding imposes inconsistent retention or payment requirements (W.S. 16-6-706).
Deadline
41 days
Substantial completion: the public entity issues a certificate of substantial completion, publishes notice weekly for two consecutive weeks and posts it, and payment of retainage falls due on the 41st day after that notice was first published and posted, less amounts withheld for incomplete or nonconforming portions (which are paid at final completion).
Statute
Wyo. Stat. § 16-6-116(a) (substantial completion and 41-day payment); § 16-6-702(b).
What the statute says
In all contracts with a public entity for a public work, the public entity may retain no more than five percent (5%) of the calculated value of any work completed as retainage. The retained payment shall be due and payable as prescribed by W.S. 16-6-116(a). The retained payment shall be held in an account in the name of the contractor which account has been assigned to the public entity.
Wyo. Stat. § 16-6-116(a) (substantial completion and 41-day payment); § 16-6-702(b). · Official text · retrieved 2026-09-22

Who this applies to

The retainage provisions of Title 16, chapter 6 apply only to contracts with a public entity for a public work [1], and that is the only setting this page covers. For a private job, the answer lies in the contract and with a lawyer who has read it.

Within public work, the rule runs between the public entity and the general contractor it pays. It gives way where federal or other outside funding imposes retention or payment requirements that are inconsistent with it (W.S. 16-6-706) [1].

What the rule says

In all contracts with a public entity for a public work, the entity may retain no more than 5% [1] of the calculated value of any work completed. The retained payment is kept in an account in the contractor's name, and that account is assigned to the public entity.

The percentage does not step down on its own, but early release is possible. If the entity finds that satisfactory progress is being made in all phases of the work, it may, on the contractor's written request, authorize payment from the withheld percentage, after deciding that satisfactory and substantial reasons exist and obtaining written approval from any surety.

Normal release follows a published timetable:

  1. The public entity issues a certificate of substantial completion.
  2. Notice is published once a week for two consecutive weeks [1] and posted.
  3. On the 41st day [1] after the notice was first published and posted, the entity pays the general contractor the retained payment together with any other amount due under the contract.
  4. Money for any portion that is incomplete, or not done in accordance with the contract and its documents, can be held back; it is paid at final completion.

How to comply

Two related sections fill in the picture: § 16-6-703 deals with completion of the work by the public entity and how the retained payment is applied, and § 16-6-117 covers claims against the general contractor's surety bond [1]. The statute text and the contract are the final reference for a given project.

Related

Run the numbers for Wyoming

How retainage is held on each payment and when it comes back: Retainage in construction. Bill it on the pay application template, which carries retainage on work and on stored materials.

Retainage laws: other states

Sources

  1. Wyoming Statutes Title 16 (City, County, State and Local Powers), official LSO compiled PDF - Sec. 16-6-116, Sec. 16-6-702 through Sec. 16-6-706 (retrieved 2026-09-22)

Changelog

  1. : 1 more jurisdiction verified and published, 47 of 51 in all.
  2. : California private work corrected: Civ. Code § 8811 (SB 61) caps retention at 5% for contracts entered into on or after January 1, 2026; the row had said no cap.
  3. : Missouri private work corrected: Mo. Rev. Stat. §§ 436.300 to 436.336 cap private retainage at 10% and require release within 30 days of substantial completion; the row had said no private retainage rule.
  4. : Tennessee corrected: Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-34-203 caps owner-to-prime retainage at 5% of the contract, on public and private work; escrow applies to prime contracts of $500,000 or more, and the $300-a-day damages do not apply to public owners.
  5. : Idaho private work added: Idaho Code § 29-115 caps private retention at 5% and requires release within 35 days of final completion; the row had left private work out.
  6. : Rhode Island corrected: the 5% cap in R.I. Gen. Laws § 37-12-10.1 also covers private lienable work of $250,000 or more, and a retainage application may be submitted only 60 days after substantial completion unless the contract allows earlier.
  7. : Oklahoma public work corrected: since November 1, 2022, 61 O.S. §§ 113.1 and 226 reduce retainage to 2.5% of the amount earned to date after 50% completion with satisfactory progress, with no bond condition.
  8. : Montana public work corrected: state and local public contracts are capped at 5% under Mont. Code Ann. § 18-2-316, and final payment on building contracts is due within 30 days of final acceptance (§ 18-2-306).
  9. : Delaware public work corrected: 29 Del. C. § 6516(f)(3) requires retainage to be paid within 60 days after completion or notice of completion, with interest available from the 61st day; the row had no release deadline.
  10. : District of Columbia corrected: D.C. Code § 2-203.01 requires a 10% retent on District construction contracts until completion and acceptance, and the Private Contractor and Subcontractor Prompt Payment Act counts retainage as an undisputed amount due on its schedule; both rows had said no statute.
  11. : Colorado private work updated: HB26-1311 lets a contractor or subcontractor tender a retainage bond of up to 5% in lieu of retainage on contracts from August 12, 2026, and the owner must accept a compliant bond.
  12. : Kentucky private work updated: 2025 Ky. Acts ch. 156 raised the KRS 371.160 escrow threshold to $2,000,000 and barred waiving it by contract.
  13. : 10 more jurisdictions verified and published, 46 of 51 in all.
  14. : Page published.
  15. : Dataset first published with 36 of 51 jurisdictions verified.