§ 4003. Contractor's and subcontractor's payment obligations

(a) Performance by a subcontractor in accordance with the provisions of its contract shall entitle it to payment from the party with which it contracts.

(b) Notwithstanding any contrary agreement, a contractor or subcontractor shall disclose to a subcontractor, before a subcontract is entered, the due date for receipt of payments from the owner. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, if a contractor or subcontractor fails to accurately disclose the due date to a subcontractor, the contractor or subcontractor shall be obligated to pay the subcontractor as though the 20-day due dates in subsection 4002(c) of this title were met by the owner.

(c) Notwithstanding any contrary agreement, when a subcontractor has performed in accordance with the provisions of its contract, a contractor shall pay to the subcontractor, and each subcontractor shall in turn pay to its subcontractors, the full or proportional amount received for each such subcontractor's work and materials based on work completed or service provided under the subcontract, seven days after receipt of each progress or final payment or seven days after receipt of the subcontractor's invoice, whichever is later.

(d) Notwithstanding any contrary agreement, if any progress or final payment to a subcontractor is delayed beyond the due date established in subsections (b) or (c) of this section, the contractor or subcontractor shall pay its subcontractor interest, beginning on the next day, at an interest rate equal to that established by 12 V.S.A. § 2903(b), on such unpaid balance as may be due. (Added 1991, No. 74, § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1992.)