A recent study finds the City of San Antonio spent 53% of its contracting dollars with minority- and woman-owned businesses from 2014 through 2020.The City of San Antonio’s program to contract with minority- and woman-owned businesses is working well,but not all groups have felt the benefits evenly, according to a recent city study.Success! You're on the list.
The city spent 53% of its contracting dollars with minority- and woman-owned businesses from 2014 through 2020, compared to 23% during the previous study period. San Antonio’s last study of the programThe formulas for determining ongoing disparities are complicated, but in general terms Hispanic- and white woman-owned businesses were overrepresented in contracts compared to their percentages in San Antonio.
The full council will be briefed on Aug. 9, and is expected to vote to begin a process to amend the SBEDA program at the end of August, with a goal of adopting amendments by the end of 2023. Implementing the changes is estimated to take place in March 2024. The city is seeking a consultant to help streamline its procurement process, said Michael Sindon, an administrator with the economic development department, and it started a bonding assistance pilot program last year.