Minority and Women Contracting Falls to $558 million in 2012

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, D.C. - July 20, 2013 - PRLog -- Section 342 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act contains a “provision creating an Office of Minority and Women Inclusion at various agencies to monitor the diversity efforts of the agencies, the regulated entities and agency contractors.” The Section requires the Department of the Treasury, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, each of the Federal Reserve Banks, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the National Credit Union Administration, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Securities and Exchange Commission and Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection to create “an Office of Minority and Women Inclusion (‘OMWI’) to be responsible for all agency matters relating to diversity in management, employment and business activities.” As one analyst noted, “In addition to developing standards for and monitoring the employment diversity of the respective agency, the OMWI will have authority over the entities regulated by the agency and contractors providing services to the agencies.” Service providers covered by the Section include “financial institutions, investment banking firms, mortgage banking firms, asset management firms, brokers, dealers, financial services entities, underwriters, accountants, investment consultants, and providers of legal services.”

Creative Investment Research, Inc. compiled data on minority and women business contracting trends at OMWI Office Agencies between 2012 and 2011. Covered OMWI agencies reported $564 million in minority and women contracting in 2011. This number fell to $558 million in 2012. These agencies reported $3.2 billion in total contracting in 2011. This number fell to $3.0 billion in 2012, placing the minority and women contracting decline in context.

Contracts to minority firms fell from 14.251% of total contracts in 2011 at OMWI offices to 12.291% in 2012. Contracts to women firms declined slightly, from 7.369% in 2011 to 7.190% in 2012.

We will host a webinar on July 26, 2013 at 2pm EST to review the OMWI contracting information. The cost is $100.00. Please register at http://omwirpt.eventbrite.com/