An Examination of Federal Highway Administration Awards to Disadvantaged Business Enterprises in California from Fiscal Years 1985 to 2007: The Impact of Implementing and Removing Race- and Gender-Conscious Remedies

Abstract

For over a decade, California applied race- and gender-conscious remedies for state and federal transportation construction awards. Passed in 1996, Proposition 209 â014 entitled the California Civil Rights Initiative - ended these remedies for all but federal awards. We examined the longitudinal trends for Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) awards from Fiscal Year 1985 through Fiscal Year 2007 to certified Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBEs). Regression analyses examined the influence of time on the percentage of awards to DBEs owned by people of color and women of all racial groups. Results indicated increased awards to businesses owned by men of color and white women during the time when race- and gender-conscious remedies were in effect and a reduction when these remedies were removed. After a period of receiving no awards, certified DBEs owned by women of color evidenced a slight increase unaffected by the removal of remedies. Our results suggest that race- and gender-conscious remedies were effective and that their removal reduced the relative level of awards to DBEs.