Idaho Payment Bond Claim — The 90-Day Remote-Claimant Notice, the Two Suit Clocks and the County Venue Rule (Idaho Code § 54-1927, 2026)
✓ Verified against Idaho statutes · Reviewed October 2026 · By Michael Evan — Founder · 50 states · 799 rules
Idaho mechanics lien deadlines at a glance
Preliminary Notice
None — N/A
Mechanics Lien
90 days — From last date of furnishing
Enforcement
6 months — From filing
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Why Idaho Public Work Runs on a Bond
On a private Idaho job, an unpaid subcontractor or supplier records a claim of lien with the county recorder within 90 days under Idaho Code § 45-507, after the disclosures covered in the Idaho pre-claim notice guide . A Boise School District addition, an Idaho Transportation Department interchange in Canyon County, a Boise State or University of Idaho building, or a Meridian wastewater upgrade is different. Public property cannot be sold to pay a contractor’s debt, so the claimant’s security is the contractor’s payment bond. Idaho’s version of the federal Miller Act is the Public Contracts Bond Act , Idaho Code §§ 54-1925 through 54-1930. Its claim section, § 54-1927, reads almost word for word like the federal statute: a 90-day notice from second-tier claimants, a one-year suit window, and a venue rule. The two places Idaho departs from the federal model are the suit clock for first-tier subcontractors and a two-way attorney fee rule, and both are easy to miss. The Mechanics Lien Management Method treats an Idaho public job as a tier-first file . Before you calendar anything, write down who you contracted with. That one fact decides whether you owe a notice and which of the two suit clocks applies to you.
The Bond: 85% of the Contract on Jobs of $50,000 or More
Idaho Code § 54-1926 requires the contractor to furnish two bonds before any public works contract of $50,000 or more is executed. The rule reaches the State of Idaho and its counties, cities, towns, school districts, public educational institutions, political subdivisions, public authorities and their officers, boards and agencies. The bonds bind on execution of the contract. The payment bond is fixed by the contracting body but may be no less than 85% of the contract amount . It exists solely to protect persons supplying labor or materials, or renting, leasing or otherwise supplying equipment, to the contractor or its subcontractors. Equipment lessors are named expressly, which matters for crane, lift and scaffolding companies that are sometimes told they are “just a rental.” The separate performance bond, also at least 85%, protects only the public body. Because the bond is a public-contract document, the first step on any claim is getting a copy. Ask the awarding agency’s purchasing or business office in writing for the payment bond and the surety’s name and address. Section 54-1927 also allows a claimant to obtain a certified copy of the bond and contract from the agency on application and affidavit, for a reasonable fee.
Who Owes the 90-Day Notice
Section 54-1927 gives every claimant that furnished labor, material or equipment on the bonded contract a right to sue on the bond once it has gone unpaid for 90 days after its last day of work or delivery. One group must do something first: a claimant with a direct contract with a subcontractor but no contract, express or implied, with the bonded contractor . That claimant has no right of action unless it gives written notice to the contractor within 90 days of its last labor or material. The notice must state with substantial accuracy the amount claimed and the name of the person to whom the material or equipment was supplied or for whom the labor was done. It must be served by registered or certified mail , postage prepaid, in an envelope addressed to the contractor at any place it maintains an office or conducts business, or at its residence. Idaho names one recipient, not two. The statute does not require a copy to the surety, which sets it apart from neighbors such as Oregon . Send the surety a copy anyway. It costs a second certified-mail fee and tells the party that will write the check that a claim is coming.
Two Suit Clocks and One County
Section 54-1927 sets the outer limit at one year from the date the claimant performed the last labor or furnished the last material or equipment . Then it adds an exception: if the claimant is a subcontractor of the contractor , the year runs from the date final payment under the subcontract became due . For a first-tier sub on a long job, that date can fall well after its last day on site, often when retainage on the subcontract comes due. The exception helps only the party it names. A supplier or sub-subcontractor counts from its own last delivery or work day. When you are not sure whether you are a “subcontractor of the contractor,” calendar the earlier of the two dates. There is also a front end: no claimant can sue until 90 days have passed since its last labor or material without full payment. Venue is fixed by statute. Every suit on the payment bond must be brought in an appropriate court in a county in which the contract was to be performed, and not elsewhere . Section 54-1929 then awards the prevailing party a reasonable attorney fee on each cause of action. That rule cuts both ways, so the claim amount in your notice and complaint should be one you can prove line by line. If your one-year date is within 90 days, take the file to an Idaho construction attorney now.
Every Idaho Public-Project Claim Deadline in One Table
The Mechanics Lien Management State System calendars the 90-day notice and the one-year suit date from the last-furnishing date you enter. Private-work rules are on the Idaho lien statutes page, and the calculator is on the Idaho mechanics lien hub . The no-bond row matters more in Idaho than in most states. Under § 54-1928, a public body that fails or neglects to obtain the payment bond must, on demand, pay the labor and material claimants itself, and each one may sue the public body directly in a county where the contract was performed within one year after furnishing. If the agency cannot produce a bond, put your demand to the agency in writing. The last row covers federal prime contracts in Idaho, such as work at Mountain Home Air Force Base or for federal land agencies. Those run under the federal Miller Act, which has no subcontract-payment exception to its one-year suit clock.
Pull the Bond, Mail One Notice, Sue in the Right County
Idaho Public Works Workflow Request the payment bond from the awarding agency. If you work for a subcontractor, send the 90-day notice to the bonded contractor by certified mail and keep the receipt. Confirm which suit clock is yours, and file in the project county well inside the year. Pair it with these resources: Because the claim ends in a lawsuit against the surety, connect early with an Idaho construction attorney through the Mechanics Lien Management network, or request a formal attorney review of the claim file.
Ninety Days Goes Fast on a Public Job
The Mechanics Lien Management deadline calculator tracks the 90-day notice and the one-year suit date on every Idaho public job. Miss the deadline and you lose your claim rights entirely.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the notice deadline for an Idaho payment bond claim?
Ninety days from the last day the claimant performed labor or furnished material, and only for a claimant that has a direct contract with a subcontractor but no contract, express or implied, with the bonded contractor. Under Idaho Code § 54-1927, that claimant gives written notice to the contractor stating with substantial accuracy the amount claimed and the name of the party it supplied or worked for. A subcontractor or supplier hired directly by the bonded contractor owes no notice under the statute.
Who gets the Idaho bond claim notice?
The bonded contractor alone. Section 54-1927 requires the notice to be served by registered or certified mail, postage prepaid, in an envelope addressed to the contractor at any place it maintains an office or conducts business, or at its residence. The statute does not require a copy to the surety or the public owner, though sending one to the surety costs little and puts it on alert.
When is the deadline to sue on an Idaho public works bond?
One year, counted two different ways. Under Idaho Code § 54-1927, suit must be commenced within one year from the date the claimant performed the last labor or furnished the last material or equipment. If the claimant is a subcontractor of the contractor, the year instead runs from the date final payment under the subcontract became due. The claimant also cannot sue until it has gone unpaid for 90 days after its last labor or material.
Where do you file an Idaho bond lawsuit?
In an appropriate court in a county in which the contract was to be performed, and nowhere else. Section 54-1927 makes that venue rule part of the right to sue. A Spokane supplier that delivered to a Coeur d'Alene school job files the bond action in an Idaho court in Kootenai County, not in Washington.
Which Idaho public jobs require a payment bond?
Idaho Code § 54-1926 requires a payment bond before any contract of $50,000 or more is executed for the construction, alteration or repair of a public building, public work or improvement of the state, a county, city, town, school district, public educational institution, or other political subdivision or public authority. The bond must be at least 85% of the contract amount and protects persons supplying labor or materials, or renting or leasing equipment, to the contractor or its subcontractors.
What if the Idaho public body never got a payment bond?
The public body becomes the payor. Under Idaho Code § 54-1928, a public body that fails or neglects to obtain the required payment bond must, on demand, promptly pay everyone who supplied materials or performed labor on the contract. Each such creditor has a direct right of action against the public body in a county where the contract was to be performed, commenced within one year after the materials or labor were furnished.
Does the loser pay attorney fees in an Idaho bond case?
Yes, in both directions. Idaho Code § 54-1929 awards a reasonable attorney fee, taxed as costs, to the prevailing party on each separate cause of action in a suit on the payment bond or against a public body that failed to obtain one. That makes a well-documented claim stronger and a weak or inflated claim riskier, because a claimant that loses can be ordered to pay the surety's fees.