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| To amend sections 123.152 and 3358.10 and to enact | 1 |
| sections 3354.161, 3355.121, and 3357.161 of the | 2 |
| Revised Code to require community colleges, state | 3 |
| community colleges, technical colleges, and | 4 |
| university branches to comply with minority | 5 |
| business enterprise set-aside requirements, and to | 6 |
| require the Director of Administrative Services to | 7 |
| establish guidelines for these entities and the | 8 |
| Northeast Ohio Medical University to establish | 9 |
| procurement goals for contracting with EDGE | 10 |
| business enterprises. | 11 |
| Section 1. That sections 123.152 and 3358.10 be amended and | 12 |
| sections 3354.161, 3355.121, and 3357.161 of the Revised Code be | 13 |
| enacted to read as follows: | 14 |
| Sec. 123.152. (A) As used in this section | 15 |
| (1) "EDGE business enterprise" means a sole proprietorship, | 16 |
| association, partnership, corporation, limited liability | 17 |
| corporation, or joint venture certified as a participant in the | 18 |
| encouraging diversity, growth, and equity program by the director | 19 |
| of administrative services under this section of the Revised Code. | 20 |
| (2) "State institution of higher education" means any state | 21 |
| university or college as defined in division (A)(1) of section | 22 |
| 3345.12 of the Revised Code, community college established under | 23 |
| Chapter 3354. of the Revised Code, state community college | 24 |
| established under Chapter 3358. of the Revised Code, university | 25 |
| branch established under Chapter 3355. of the Revised Code, or | 26 |
| technical college established under Chapter 3357. of the Revised | 27 |
| Code, and includes the applicable boards of trustees or, in the | 28 |
| case of a university branch district, any other managing | 29 |
| authority. | 30 |
| (B) The director of administrative services shall establish a | 31 |
| business assistance program known as the encouraging diversity, | 32 |
| growth, and equity program and shall adopt rules in accordance | 33 |
| with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code to administer the program | 34 |
| that do all of the following: | 35 |
| (1) Establish procedures by which a sole proprietorship, | 36 |
| association, partnership, corporation, limited liability | 37 |
| corporation, or joint venture may apply for certification as an | 38 |
| EDGE business enterprise; | 39 |
| (2) Except as provided in division (B)(14) of this section, | 40 |
| establish agency procurement goals for contracting with EDGE | 41 |
| business enterprises in the award of contracts under Chapters | 42 |
| 123., 125., and 153. of the Revised Code based on the availability | 43 |
| of eligible program participants by region or geographic area, as | 44 |
| determined by the director, and by standard industrial code or | 45 |
| equivalent code classification. | 46 |
| (a) Goals established under division (B)(2) of this section | 47 |
| shall be based on a percentage level of participation and a | 48 |
| percentage of contractor availability. | 49 |
| (b) Goals established under division (B)(2) of this section | 50 |
| shall be applied at the contract level, relative to an overall | 51 |
| dollar goal for each state agency, in accordance with the | 52 |
| following certification categories: construction, architecture, | 53 |
| and engineering; professional services; goods and services; and | 54 |
| information technology services. | 55 |
| (3) Establish a system of certifying EDGE business | 56 |
| enterprises based on a requirement that the business owner or | 57 |
| owners show both social and economic disadvantage based on the | 58 |
| following, as determined to be sufficient by the director: | 59 |
| (a) Relative wealth of the business seeking certification as | 60 |
| well as the personal wealth of the owner or owners of the | 61 |
| business; | 62 |
| (b) Social disadvantage based on any of the following: | 63 |
| (i) A rebuttable presumption when the business owner or | 64 |
| owners demonstrate membership in a racial minority group or show | 65 |
| personal disadvantage due to color, ethnic origin, gender, | 66 |
| physical disability, long-term residence in an environment | 67 |
| isolated from the mainstream of American society, location in an | 68 |
| area of high unemployment; | 69 |
| (ii) Some other demonstration of personal disadvantage not | 70 |
| common to other small businesses; | 71 |
| (iii) By business location in a qualified census tract. | 72 |
| (c) Economic disadvantage based on economic and business size | 73 |
| thresholds and eligibility criteria designed to stimulate economic | 74 |
| development through contract awards to businesses located in | 75 |
| qualified census tracts. | 76 |
| (4) Establish standards to determine when an EDGE business | 77 |
| enterprise no longer qualifies for EDGE business enterprise | 78 |
| certification; | 79 |
| (5) Develop a process for evaluating and adjusting goals | 80 |
| established by this section to determine what adjustments are | 81 |
| necessary to achieve participation goals established by the | 82 |
| director; | 83 |
| (6) Establish a point system or comparable system to evaluate | 84 |
| bid proposals to encourage EDGE business enterprises to | 85 |
| participate in the procurement of professional design and | 86 |
| information technology services; | 87 |
| (7) Establish a system to track data and analyze each | 88 |
| certification category established under division (B)(2)(b) of | 89 |
| this section; | 90 |
| (8) Establish a process to mediate complaints and to review | 91 |
| EDGE business enterprise certification appeals; | 92 |
| (9) Implement an outreach program to educate potential | 93 |
| participants about the encouraging diversity, growth, and equity | 94 |
| program; | 95 |
| (10) Establish a system to assist state agencies in | 96 |
| identifying and utilizing EDGE business enterprises in their | 97 |
| contracting processes; | 98 |
| (11) Implement a system of self-reporting by EDGE business | 99 |
| enterprises as well as an on-site inspection process to validate | 100 |
| the qualifications of an EDGE business enterprise; | 101 |
| (12) Establish a waiver mechanism to waive program goals or | 102 |
| participation requirements for those companies that, despite their | 103 |
| best-documented efforts, are unable to contract with certified | 104 |
| EDGE business enterprises; | 105 |
| (13) Establish a process for monitoring overall program | 106 |
| compliance in which equal employment opportunity officers | 107 |
| primarily are responsible for monitoring their respective | 108 |
| agencies; | 109 |
| (14) Establish guidelines for state | 110 |
| 111 | |
| education and the Ohio facilities construction commission created | 112 |
| in section 123.20 of the Revised Code for awarding contracts | 113 |
| pursuant to Chapters 153., 3318., and 3345. of the Revised Code to | 114 |
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allow the | 115 |
| commission to establish agency procurement goals for contracting | 116 |
| with EDGE business enterprises. | 117 |
| (C) Business and personal financial information and trade | 118 |
| secrets submitted by encouraging diversity, growth, and equity | 119 |
| program applicants to the director pursuant to this section are | 120 |
| not public records for purposes of section 149.43 of the Revised | 121 |
| Code, unless the director presents the financial information or | 122 |
| trade secrets at a public hearing or public proceeding regarding | 123 |
| the applicant's eligibility to participate in the program. | 124 |
| Sec. 3354.161. In awarding contracts, the board of trustees | 125 |
| of a community college district shall set aside a percentage of | 126 |
| the contracts for competition by minority business enterprises | 127 |
| only as specified in division (B) of section 125.081 of the | 128 |
| Revised Code. | 129 |
| Sec. 3355.121. In awarding contracts, the managing authority | 130 |
| of the university branch district shall set aside a percentage of | 131 |
| the contracts for competition by minority business enterprises | 132 |
| only as specified in division (B) of section 125.081 of the | 133 |
| Revised Code. | 134 |
| Sec. 3357.161. In awarding contracts, the board of trustees | 135 |
| of a technical college district shall set aside a percentage of | 136 |
| the contracts for competition by minority business enterprises | 137 |
| only as specified in division (B) of section 125.081 of the | 138 |
| Revised Code. | 139 |
| Sec. 3358.10. Sections 3354.10, 3354.121, 3354.15, | 140 |
| 3354.16, and 3354.161 of the Revised Code apply to state community | 141 |
| college districts and their boards of trustees. | 142 |
| Section 2. That existing sections 123.152 and 3358.10 of the | 143 |
| Revised Code are hereby repealed. | 144 |