Title: Certification of Minority Business Enterprises

Summary: Deletes provisions establishing Minority Business Certification Task Force, requiring that criteria for certification of minority business enterprises be approved by task force, & authorizing task force to amend statewide & interlocal agreement for certification of minority business enterprises.

Full Text:
An act relating to the certification of minority business enterprises; amending s. 287.0943, F.S.; deleting provisions establishing the Minority Business Certification Task Force, requiring that criteria for the certification of minority business enterprises be approved by the task force, and authorizing the task force to amend the statewide and interlocal agreement for the certification of minority business enterprises; conforming provisions; providing an effective date. 13 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 15 Section 1. Subsection (2) and paragraph (e) of subsection (3) of section 287.0943, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 287.0943 Certification of minority business enterprises.-(2) (a) The office is hereby directed to convene a "Minority Business Certification Task Force." The task force shall meet as often as necessary, but no less frequently than annually. (b) The task force shall be regionally balanced and comprised of officials representing the department, counties, municipalities, school boards, special districts, and other political subdivisions of the state who administer programs to assist minority businesses in procurement or development in government-sponsored programs. The following organizations may appoint two members each of the task force who fit the description above: 1. The Florida League of Cities, Inc. 2. The Florida Association of Counties. 3. The Florida School Boards Association, Inc. 4. The Association of Special Districts. 5. The Florida Association of Minority Business Enterprise Officials. 6. The Florida Association of Government Purchasing Officials. 39 In addition, the Office of Supplier Diversity shall appoint seven members consisting of three representatives of minority business enterprises, one of whom should be a woman business owner, two officials of the office, and two at-large members to ensure balance. A quorum shall consist of one-third of the current members, and the task force may take action by majority vote. Any vacancy may only be filled by the organization or agency originally authorized to appoint the position. (c) The purpose of the task force will be to propose uniform criteria and procedures by which participating entities and organizations can qualify businesses to participate in procurement or contracting programs as certified minority business enterprises in accordance with the certification criteria established by law. (d) A final list of the criteria and procedures proposed by the task force shall be considered by the secretary. The task force may seek technical assistance from qualified providers of technical, business, and managerial expertise to ensure the reliability of the certification criteria developed. (a) (e) In assessing the status of ownership and control, certification criteria shall, at a minimum: 1. Link ownership by a minority person as defined in s. 288.703, or as dictated by the legal obligations of a certifying organization, to day-to-day control and financial risk by the qualifying minority owner, and to demonstrated expertise or licensure of a minority owner in any trade or profession that the minority business enterprise will offer to the state when certified. Businesses must comply with all state licensing requirements before becoming certified as a minority business enterprise. 2. If present ownership was obtained by transfer, require the minority person on whom eligibility is based to have owned at least percent of the applicant firm for a minimum of years, when any previous majority ownership interest in the firm was by a nonminority who is or was a relative, former employer, or current employer of the minority person on whom eligibility is based. This requirement does not apply to minority persons who are otherwise eligible who take a 51-percent-or-greater interest in a firm that requires professional licensure to operate and who will be the qualifying licenseholder for the firm when certified. A transfer made within a related immediate family group from a nonminority person to a minority person in order to establish ownership by a minority person is shall be deemed to be have been made solely for purposes of satisfying certification criteria and renders shall render such ownership invalid for purposes of qualifying for such certification if the combined total net asset value of all members of such family group exceeds $1 million. For purposes of this subparagraph, the term "related immediate family group" means one or more children under years of age and a parent of such children or the spouse of such parent residing in the same house or living unit. 3. Require that prospective certified minority business enterprises be currently performing or seeking to perform a useful business function. For purposes of this subparagraph, the term A "useful business function" means is defined as a business function that which results in the provision of materials, supplies, equipment, or services to customers. Acting as a conduit to transfer funds to a nonminority business does not constitute a useful business function unless it is done so in a normal industry practice. As used in this section, the term "acting as a conduit" means, in part, not acting as a regular dealer by making sales of material, goods, or supplies from items bought, kept in stock, and regularly sold to the public in the usual course of business. Brokers, manufacturer's representatives, sales representatives, and nonstocking distributors are considered as conduits that do not perform a useful business function, unless normal industry practice dictates. (b) (f) When a business receives payments or awards exceeding $100,000 in any one fiscal year, a review of its certification status or an audit must will be conducted within years. In addition, the Office of Supplier Diversity may, as it deems appropriate, require that random reviews or audits will be conducted as deemed appropriate by the Office of Supplier Diversity.(c) (g) The certification criteria approved by the task force and adopted by the Department of Management Services shall be included in a statewide and interlocal agreement as defined in s. 287.09431 and, in accordance with s. 163.01, shall be executed according to the terms included therein. (d) (h) The certification procedures should allow an applicant seeking certification to designate on the application form the information the applicant considers to be proprietary, confidential business information. As used in this paragraph, "proprietary, confidential business information" includes, but is not limited to, any information that would be exempt from public inspection pursuant to the provisions of chapter 119; trade secrets; internal auditing controls and reports; contract costs; or other information the disclosure of which would injure the affected party in the marketplace or otherwise violate s. 286.041. The executor in receipt of the application shall issue written and final notice of any information for which noninspection is requested but not provided for by law. (e) (i) A business that is certified under the provisions of the statewide and interlocal agreement is shall be deemed a certified minority enterprise in all jurisdictions or organizations where the agreement is in effect, and that business is deemed available to do business as such within any such jurisdiction or with any such organization statewide. All state agencies must accept minority business enterprises certified in accordance with the statewide and interlocal agreement of s. 287.09431, and that business is shall also be deemed a "certified minority business enterprise" as defined in s. 288.703. However, any governmental jurisdiction or organization that administers a minority business purchasing program may reserve the right to establish further certification procedures necessary to comply with federal law. (j) The statewide and interlocal agreement shall be guided by the terms and conditions found therein and may be amended at any meeting of the task force and subsequently adopted by the secretary of the Department of Management Services. The amended agreement must be enacted, initialed, and legally executed by at least two-thirds of the certifying entities party to the existing agreement and adopted by the state as originally executed in order to bind the certifying entity. (k) The task force shall meet for the first time no later than days after the effective date of this act. (3) (e) Any participating program receiving three or more challenges to its certification decisions pursuant to subsection (4) from other organizations that are executors to the statewide and interlocal agreement, is shall be subject to a review by the office, as provided in paragraphs (a) and (b), of the organization's capacity to perform under such agreement and in accordance with the certification core criteria established by the task force.The office shall submit a report to the secretary of the Department of Management Services regarding the results of the review. Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012.