I 
113TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4439 
To ensure that minority-owned and women-owned businesses have a full 
and fair opportunity to compete in covered rail projects and contracts, 
and that the Federal Government does not subsidize discrimination in 
covered rail projects. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 9, 2014 
Ms. BROWN of Florida introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the 
Committee on Small Business, for a period to be subsequently determined 
by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To ensure that minority-owned and women-owned businesses 
have a full and fair opportunity to compete in covered 
rail projects and contracts, and that the Federal Govern-
ment does not subsidize discrimination in covered rail 
projects. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS ENTERPRISE PRO-
GRAM. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
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(1) While significant progress has occurred due 
to the enactment of a disadvantaged business enter-
prise program for highways and mass transit, in-
cluding commuter rail passenger transportation, dis-
crimination and related barriers continue to pose 
significant obstacles for minority-owned and women- 
owned businesses seeking to do business in federally 
assisted surface transportation-related markets, in-
cluding intercity rail passenger transportation mar-
kets. This continuing discrimination warrants the es-
tablishment of the disadvantaged business enterprise 
program under this section. 
(2) Discrimination poses serious barriers to the 
full and fair participation of minority and women 
business owners, including African-Americans, His-
panic-Americans, 
Asian-Americans, 
and 
Native 
Americans in federally assisted surface transpor-
tation-related projects and contracts, including inter-
city rail passenger transportation projects and con-
tracts. 
(3) Discrimination impacts minority and women 
business owners in every geographic region of the 
United States and throughout all of the surface 
transportation-related industries, including intercity 
rail passenger transportation industries. 
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(4) Congress has reviewed evidence of discrimi-
nation against minority and women business owners 
throughout the transportation sector, including— 
(A) statistical analyses demonstrating sig-
nificant disparities in the utilization of minor-
ity-owned and women-owned businesses in fed-
erally and locally funded transportation con-
tracting; 
(B) statistical analyses of private sector 
disparities in business success by minority- 
owned and women-owned businesses in trans-
portation industries; 
(C) research compiling anecdotal reports of 
discrimination against individual minority and 
women business owners; 
(D) individual reports of discrimination 
against minority and women business owners 
and the organizations and individuals who rep-
resent minority and women business owners; 
(E) analyses demonstrating significant re-
ductions in the participation of minority and 
women businesses in jurisdictions that have re-
duced or eliminated their minority-owned and 
women-owned business programs; 
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(F) statistical analyses showing significant 
disparities in the credit available to minority- 
owned and women-owned businesses; 
(G) research and statistical analyses dem-
onstrating how discrimination negatively im-
pacts firm formation, growth, and success; 
(H) experience of State departments of 
transportation and localities demonstrating that 
race-neutral and gender-neutral efforts alone 
are insufficient to remedy discrimination; and 
(I) other qualitative and quantitative evi-
dence of discrimination against minority-owned 
and women-owned businesses in the transpor-
tation sector. 
(5) Congress has received and reviewed compel-
ling evidence of discrimination from many different 
sources, including congressional hearings and round-
tables, studies, scientific reports, reports issued by 
public and private agencies, news stories, reports of 
discrimination by organizations and individuals, and 
discrimination lawsuits. 
(6) All of this evidence applies not only to high-
way and mass transportation programs, but also to 
rail programs, providing a compelling need for the 
establishment of the disadvantaged business enter-
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prise program under this section to address race and 
gender discrimination in intercity rail passenger 
transportation. 
(b) PROGRAM.—There is established a disadvantaged 
business enterprise program for the Federal Railroad Ad-
ministration to ensure that disadvantaged business enter-
prises have a full and fair opportunity to compete in cov-
ered rail projects and to ensure that the Federal Govern-
ment does not subsidize discrimination in covered rail 
projects. 
(c) AMOUNTS FOR DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS EN-
TERPRISES.—Except to the extent that the Secretary of 
Transportation determines otherwise, not less than 10 
percent of the amounts made available through a grant, 
contract, loan, or other financing instrument for any cov-
ered rail project shall be expended through disadvantaged 
business enterprises. 
(d) ANNUAL LISTING OF DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS 
ENTERPRISES.—The unified certification program estab-
lished under subsection (e) shall annually survey and com-
pile a list of disadvantaged business enterprises and their 
location, and shall include an indication of the percentage 
of such enterprises which are controlled by women, by so-
cially and economically disadvantaged individuals (other 
than women), and by individuals who are women and are 
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otherwise socially and economically disadvantaged individ-
uals. 
(e) UNIFORM CERTIFICATION.—For purposes of car-
rying out this section, the Secretary of Transportation 
shall establish minimum uniform criteria to use in certi-
fying whether a concern qualifies as a small business con-
cern. The minimum uniform criteria shall include on-site 
visits, personal interviews with personnel, issuance or in-
spection of licenses, analyses of stock ownership, listing 
of equipment, analyses of bonding capacity, listing of work 
completed, examination of the resume of principal owners, 
analyses of financial capacity, and analyses of the type of 
work preferred. Federal Railroad Administration recipi-
ents of funds subject to this section must participate in 
unified certification program approved by the Secretary. 
(f) REPORTING.—The Secretary of Transportation 
shall establish minimum requirements for covered rail 
project Federal funding recipients to report to the Sec-
retary— 
(1) information concerning minority-owned and 
women-owned business awards, commitments, and 
achievements; and 
(2) such other information as the Secretary de-
termines to be appropriate for the proper monitoring 
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of the disadvantaged business enterprise program 
under this section. 
(g) COMPLIANCE WITH COURT ORDERS.—Nothing 
in this section limits the eligibility of an entity or person 
to receive funds if the entity or person is prevented, in 
whole or in part, from complying with subsection (c) be-
cause a Federal court issues a final order in which the 
court finds that a requirement or the implementation of 
subsection (c) is unconstitutional. 
(h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following defi-
nitions apply: 
(1) COMMUTER
RAIL
PASSENGER
TRANSPOR-
TATION
AND
INTERCITY
RAIL
PASSENGER
TRANS-
PORTATION.—The terms ‘‘commuter rail passenger 
transportation’’ and ‘‘intercity rail passenger trans-
portation’’ have the meaning given those terms in 
section 24102 of title 49, United States Code. 
(2) COVERED RAIL PROJECT.—The term ‘‘cov-
ered rail project’’ means any railroad project that is 
carried out or is planned to be carried out with the 
use of Federal funds administered by the Federal 
Railroad Administration through a grant, contract, 
loan, or other financing instrument. 
(3) DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS ENTERPRISE.— 
The term ‘‘disadvantaged business enterprise’’ 
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means a small business concern owned by socially 
and economically disadvantaged individuals. 
(4) SMALL
BUSINESS
CONCERN.—The term 
‘‘small business concern’’ has the meaning given 
that term under section 3 of the Small Business Act 
(15 U.S.C. 632), except that the term shall not in-
clude any concern or group of concerns controlled by 
the same socially and economically disadvantaged in-
dividual or individuals that have average annual 
gross receipts over the preceding 3 fiscal years in ex-
cess of $22,410,000, as adjusted annually by the 
Secretary of Transportation for inflation. 
(5) SOCIALLY AND ECONOMICALLY DISADVAN-
TAGED INDIVIDUALS.—The term ‘‘socially and eco-
nomically disadvantaged individuals’’ has the mean-
ing given that term under section 8(d) of the Small 
Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637(d)) and relevant sub-
contracting regulations issued pursuant to that Act, 
except that women shall be presumed to be socially 
and economically disadvantaged individuals for pur-
poses of this section. 
Æ 
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