Establishes the La. State Contract Minority Business Opportunity Act to increase minority-owned and disadvantaged business participation in state contracting (OR INCREASE GF EX See Note)

House Bill 764 establishes the Louisiana State Contract Minority Business Opportunity Act as a new chapter in the Louisiana Revised Statutes, creating a comprehensive procurement framework designed to increase minority-owned and disadvantaged business enterprise participation in state contracting. The legislation creates specific participation goals ranging from fifteen percent in Fiscal Year 2028-2029 to thirty percent by Fiscal Year 2031-2032, with category-specific targets including twenty-five percent for construction contracts exceeding fifty thousand dollars, thirty percent for professional services contracts exceeding twenty-five thousand dollars, and twenty percent for goods and supplies procurement. The statute establishes binding definitions for certified MBE/DBEs sourced from the Department of Transportation and Development, the Small Business Administration's 8(a) and HUBZone programs, or division-approved certification programs, and requires prime contractors to submit utilization plans as part of bids, with such plans weighted as an evaluation criterion.

The practical effect of this legislation impacts multiple groups significantly. State agencies must designate MBE/DBE compliance officers, maintain databases of certified vendors, conduct outreach at least sixty days before soliciting bids for contracts exceeding fifty thousand dollars, and report quarterly on participation rates. Prime contractors face substantive obligations to make good faith efforts toward participation goals, negotiate in good faith with certified MBE/DBE quotes, obtain written agency approval before terminating certified subcontractors, and submit monthly utilization reports. Noncompliant agencies face corrective action plans, mandatory compliance training, and enhanced division oversight after two consecutive years of missing goals. Prime contractors failing to meet utilization plans without documented good faith efforts face payment withholding equal to the shortfall amount, potential disqualification from state contracting for one to three years, and possible attorney general civil enforcement action. Certified MBE/DBEs gain enhanced access through required outreach, consideration as weighted evaluation criteria, and protections against arbitrary termination.

This legislation operates within Louisiana's existing procurement framework under Title 39 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes and the Administrative Procedure Act, which authorizes the commissioner of administration to promulgate necessary implementing rules. The statute grounds itself in legislative findings regarding historical and ongoing discrimination in state contracting and the failure of passive equal opportunity measures, establishing a compelling state interest in remedying discrimination in its own contracting marketplace. The disparity study requirement, mandated no later than July 1, 2027, and every five years thereafter, creates an empirical basis for potential future goal adjustments. The legislation incorporates existing certification mechanisms already used in federal transportation procurement and Small Business Administration programs, ensuring integration with established MBE/DBE identification systems and avoiding creation of parallel certification structures.