NY Governor Andrew Cuomo
ALBANY – Governor Andrew Cuomo Wednesday signed legislation designed to increase the number of certified Minority- and Women-Owned Enterprises (MWBEs) in New York State.
The bill authorizes the state to grant a one year provisional MWBE certification status to firms that have historically been excluded from participating in state contracts.
In 2010, a study commissioned by the State found that there was a significant disparity in State contract participation by MWBEs relative to their overall state-wide availability. As a result of this finding, a new law was implemented that provides for increased opportunities for doing business with the State for MWBEs that satisfy certain certification criteria, which include the requirements that MWBEs be small businesses and that the owners not have a personal net worth that exceeds $3.5 million.
On Wednesday the Governor also announced that the state will increase its goal for MWBEs state contracting utilization to 30 percent – as new data released showed that New York State has far exceeded the original 20 percent goal that he set in his first State of the State address. That 30 percent goal represents the highest such target in the nation for any state government.
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