The July 2 headline on PBN.com was disturbingly familiar: “R.I. Black Business Association: R.I. failing to comply with minority-contracting policy.”
The state has a long history of failing to comply with its own minimum contracting rules for minority- and women-owned businesses.
But the story this time is more challenging to sort out because the state can point to significant improvements. Dorinda L. Keene, the assistant administrator for Minority Business Enterprise compliance, says the state exceeded the minimum requirements in fiscal years 2018 and 2019, the two most recent years available.
But the state was rightly criticized for again not following the policy in recent months on minority contracting for $34 million in COVID-19-related spending, leading to the Black business group’s calls for sweeping reforms.
The emergency nature of some of that coronavirus-related construction spending is not a good reason to sidestep rules the state for decades has struggled to follow in normal economic times.
This week’s cover story asks a broader question, in the aftermath of local and national protests over racial inequities: “Can R.I. level the field for minority business owners?”
While the state can do more, so can the private sector.
A state-commissioned report in January proposed an accelerator for minority-owned businesses, modeled after a privately funded program in Ohio. By joining or taking the lead on the latter, private industry would make a statement loud enough for every minority-owned business and elected official to hear.