§ 52-0113. Minority and women-owned business enterprise program.

1. a. In the performance of projects pursuant to this article minority
and women-owned business enterprises shall be given the opportunity for
meaningful participation. The department or the office shall establish
measures and procedures to secure meaningful participation and identify
those contracts and items of work for which minority and women-owned
business enterprises may best bid to actively and affirmatively promote
and assist their participation in the projects, so as to facilitate the
award of a fair share of contracts to such enterprises; provided,
however, that nothing in this article shall be construed to limit the
ability of the department or office to assure that qualified minority
and women-owned business enterprises may participate in the program. For
purposes hereof, minority business enterprise shall mean any business
enterprise which is at least fifty-one per centum owned by, or in the
case of a publicly owned business, at least fifty-one per centum of the
stock of which is owned by citizens or permanent resident noncitizens
who are Black, Hispanic, Asian or American Indian, Pacific Islander or
Alaskan natives and such ownership interest is real, substantial and
continuing and have the authority to independently control the day to
day business decisions of the entity for at least one year; and
women-owned business enterprise shall mean any business enterprise which
is at least fifty-one per centum owned by, or in the case of a publicly
owned business, at least fifty-one per centum of the stock of which is
owned by citizens or permanent resident noncitizens who are women, and
such ownership interest is real, substantial and continuing and have the
authority to independently control the day to day business decisions of
the entity for at least one year.

The provisions of this paragraph shall not be construed to limit the
ability of any minority or women-owned business enterprise to bid on any
contract.

b. In the implementation of this section, the department or the office
shall consider compliance by any contractor with the requirements of any
federal, state, or local law concerning minority and women-owned
business enterprises, which may effectuate the requirements of this
section. If the department or the office determines that by virtue of
the imposition of the requirements of any such law, in respect to
capital project contracts, the provisions thereof duplicate or conflict
with such law, the department may waive the applicability of this
section to the extent of such duplication or conflict.

c. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to require that overall
state and federal requirements for participation of minority and
women-owned business enterprises in programs authorized under this
article be applied without regard to local circumstances to all projects
or in all communities.

2. In order to implement the requirements and objectives of this
section, the department and the office shall establish procedures to
monitor the contractors' compliance with provisions hereof, provide
assistance in obtaining competing qualified minority and women-owned
business enterprises to perform contracts proposed to be awarded, and
take other appropriate measures to improve the access of minority and
women-owned business enterprises to these contracts.