Other Publications

Published by Mason Tillman Associates, Ltd.

Volume II of the State of New York's Policy Review Report provided race and gender-neutral recommendations to mitigate the disparities in MWBE participation on state contracts. The study recommended enhancements to the MWBE Program Components of by streamlining the MWBE certification process, (1) modifying the certification application for new businesses, (2) reviewing the certification application for completeness within 30 days, (3) authorizing and training the entrepreneurial assistance program to certify certification applications as complete, (4) providing pre-application training sessions, (5) establishing a hotline number and website to receive public reports of certification fraud, (6) establishing penalties for submission of fraudulent applications, (7) developing a “train the trainer” program, and (8) revamping the recertification application requirements and required documents.

Published by BBC Research & Consulting

This disparity study was conducted on contracts and procurements that the Commonwealth of Virginia awarded from July 1, 2014 through June 30, 2019 in the areas of construction, services, and goods. The study assessed whether woman and minority-owned (WAM) businesses face any barriers as part of the Commonwealth’s contracting processes, particularly for subcontractor plan contracts and no subcontractor plan contracts. Subcontract plans did not appear to improve outcomes for minority and women-owned businesses on Commonwealth contracts and procurements. Minority and women-owned businesses considered together exhibited substantial disparities on both subcontract plan contracts (disparity index of 40) and no subcontract plan contracts (disparity index of 46). Disparity analysis results indicated substantial disparities for all relevant racial/ethnic and gender groups on prime contracts that the Commonwealth awarded during the study period. Results from the disparity study indicated that there are many minority and women-owned businesses in Virginia but most of them have relatively low capacities for Commonwealth work. The Commonwealth should consider various technical assistance, business development, mentor-protégé, and joint venture programs to help businesses build the capacity required to compete for relatively large Commonwealth and HEI contracts and procurements.

Published by Keen Independent Research for City of Madison, Wisconsin

This study assisted in determining if there is a level playing field for minority and women-owned firms when competing for the City of Madison’s public works contracts and subcontracts. About 2 percent of businesses related to public works construction contracting in Dane County are owned by racial and ethnic minorities. About 7 percent of public works contracting businesses are owned by non-minority women. Minority residents comprise 15 percent and women are 49 percent of the Dane County workforce. The study team identified 600 City-funded public works contracts totaling $331 million awarded from 2008 through 2013. Minority-owned firms received about $6 million in City-funded public works contract dollars from 2008 through 2013, including subcontracts. The study team concluded that the small business enterprise (SBE) Program encouraged MBE and women-owned businesses (WBE) utilization to the point that there were no disparities between the utilization and dollar-weighted availability of minority and women-owned firms on City-funded contracts. This is because of low current availability of minority and women-owned firms for this work after considering the types and sizes of prime contracts and subcontracts. Therefore, it appears that the SBE Program alone does not create a level playing field for minority and women-owned firms in City public works contracting.