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STATE OF OKLAHOMA
1st Session of the 58th Legislature (2021)
HOUSE BILL 2365 By: Burns
AS INTRODUCED
An Act relating to state government; creating the
Oklahoma Supplier Diversity Initiative; providing for
registration for certain notificat ions; allowing for
quotes for select purchases; authorizing Oklahoma
Department of Commerce to develop a diversity
certification program; providing for qualifications;
directing Office of Management and Enterprise
Services to amend vendor registration proc ess, create
a search tool, and develop certain index; providing
for submission of report; providing for codification;
and providing an effective date .
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 85.45j.11 of Title 74, unless
there is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
A. There is hereby created the "Oklahoma Supplier Diversity
Initiative", which shall be a state-sponsored supplier diversity
program to provide a resource for state agencies and private
businesses to utilize diverse firms in pr ocurement opportunities to
encourage growth in the economy of the state. The program shall
provide convenience for qualified and certified small business
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enterprises and minority business enterprises in contracting
projects in underserved areas.
B. The program shall allow diverse business enterprises to
register with the Office of Management and Enterprise Services a nd
allow registered vendors to be automatically notified of
opportunities to do business with the state for specific
commodities. The program shall allow state agencies to obtain three
bids from qualifying small and disadvantaged businesses for select
purchases up to Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($500,000.00) . The
program shall provide for:
1. Simplified vendor registration p rocesses; and
2. Simplified bidding processes.
C. The program shall authorize the Oklahoma Department of
Commerce to develop a d iversity certification program to qualify and
certify diverse business enterprises for the State of Oklahoma. In
addition, the program shall authorize third -party diversity
certifications under the U.S. Department of Transportation , United
States Small Business Administration and other approved third -party
certifications as determined appropriate to meet qualifications.
D. To qualify for the program, businesses shall have less than
five hundred total employees, an annual revenue equal to or less
than Twenty-five Million Dollars ($25,000,000.00) and be certified
as one of the following:
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1. An Oklahoma Department of Transportation Disadvantaged
Business Enterprise;
2. Any of the following entities certified by the United States
Small Business Administratio n:
a. Woman-Owned Small Business ,
b. Minority-Business Enterprise,
c. Small Disadvantaged Business ,
d. Service-disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business ,
e. HUBZone, and
f. 8(a) Business Development Program;
3. A Native American-owned Business;
4. A Veteran-owned Business;
5. A Certified HUBZone Small Business Concern by the United
States Small Business Administration ;
6. A Business having a majority of their employees maintain a
principal residence within a HUBZone or Qualified Opportunity Zone ;
7. An Oklahoma-based business with its principal place of
business within a HUBZone or Qualified Opportunity Zone .
E. The Office of Management and Enterprise Services shall:
1. Amend the vendor registration process to require diversity
certification check of f and size standard information;
2. Create a search tool for all state agencies and public or
private entities to utilize to obtain contact information for
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diverse firms for the purpose of promoting procurement opportunities
within the State of Oklahoma; and
3. Develop a supplier-diversity-inclusion index to measure
utilization of certified firms and related economic impact to the
State of Oklahoma within one (1) year of authorization of the
program.
F. On or before July 15 of each year, the State Purchasing
Director shall submit a report to the Governor, the Speaker of the
House of Representatives and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate
on the status of the percentile of state funds expended on contracts
awarded to minority businesses in the preceding fis cal year and
provide any report, statistic s or other information concerning the
participation in the program to the Office of Management and
Enterprise Services.
SECTION 2. This act shall become effective November 1, 2021.
58-1-5996 LRB 01/14/21