​​Purpose: To establish a process and structure for reviewing contract solicitations, proposed sole-source contracts, and contract renewal options in order to maximize opportunities for Minority Business Enterprises to participate in State procurement contracts.

Background: The 2001 General Assembly significantly changed the Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) Program, most notably increasing the overall MBE participation goal to 25%. Within that 25% overall goal, the law now establishes sub-goals of awarding 7% of total contract dollars to African American-owned MBEs and 10% of total contract dollars to women-owned MBEs.

The law requires State agencies to meet the maximum feasible portion of the MBE goals by using race-neutral measures. Race-neutral measures are methods that are or can be used to assist all small businesses.

To successfully meet the challenges presented by the MBE law, it is essential that State agencies be aggressive in pursuing all legitimate strategies to increase MBE participation in State contracts.

To ensure that State agencies examine all opportunities to increase MBE participation, every agency must establish a Procurement Review Group to review procurement solicitations, proposals to exercise contract options, and proposals to award sole-source contracts when the resulting contract is expected to exceed $200,000.

Procedure: Procurement Review Group

1. The head of a procurement agency shall designate one or more standing procurement review groups. A Procurement Review Group must include the following members:
   1. The agency's chief procurement official or a senior-level procurement official designated to act in the place of the chief procurement official; and
   2. The agency’s MBE liaison officer or a senior-level alternate designated to act in the place of the MBE liaison officer.
   It is recommended that the agency’s legal counsel provide support and advice to the Procurement Review Group.
2. The Procurement Review Group shall meet as often as is necessary, but at least monthly.
3. The Procurement Review Group shall review proposed procurement solicitations, proposals to exercise contract options, and proposals to award sole-source contracts when the resulting contract is expected to exceed $200,000.
4. The Procurement Review Group shall make recommendations to the agency head and the solicitation's procurement officer concerning specific MBE contract goals and appropriate procurement methods to encourage maximum MBE and small business participation in each proposed contract.
5. The Procurement Review Group’s evaluation of each proposed procurement shall include review and assessment of the following, as relevant:
   1. The extent to which direct solicitation, subcontracting, race-neutral measures, or a combination will most likely result in maximum MBE participation.
   2. Are MBEs and small businesses available to perform contracts at the prime contract level? Do enough MBEs exist at the prime contractor level to reasonably assure maximum opportunities for MBEs to compete for and potentially obtain the contract at that level?
   3. Are MBE subcontracting opportunities feasible?
   4. Does the base of potentially-available MBEs for the work components of the contract make the MBE subcontract goals attainable?
      1. MBE base of providers for each work component
      2. Geographical proximity of MBEs to the work location
   5. Does the number of small businesses (as defined in COMAR 21.01.02.01B(80)) warrant designating the procurement as a small business preference procurement under COMAR 21.11.01?
   6. Are the evaluation factors (when the solicitation is by competitive sealed proposals) designed to ensure that they do not unreasonably limit or inhibit participation by small businesses, including MBEs?  Should the solicitation include the economic-benefits evaluation factor under COMAR 21.05.03.03A(3)?
   7. Are the structure, specifications, and requirements of the solicitation designed to ensure that they do not unreasonably limit or inhibit participation by small businesses, including MBEs?  Inhibiting factors may include unnecessary or prohibitive bonding requirements, restrictive specifications, unnecessary or unreasonable performance parameters, and unnecessary or unreasonable experience requirements.  General policies for developing specifications are set forth in COMAR 21.04.01.
   8. Is it feasible to divide a complex procurement into separate procurements consistent with MBE and small business capacity?
   9. Sole-source contracts: Are there work components that can reasonably be subcontracted to MBEs and other small businesses?
   10. Renewal options: What are the benefits of exercising the option versus re-competing the contract?  Consider such factors as past performance, potential for cost reduction, and current opportunities for small business or MBE participation.
6. The recommendations of the Procurement Review Group must be documented in a written determination. When requested, the agency shall provide a copy of the determination to the Board of Public Works.