§ 18-253. Race- and gender-neutral remedies.

(a)

The county administrator shall implement race- and gender-neutral remedies to facilitate participation by minority and woman business enterprises as prime contractors, joint venturers, subcontractors, and suppliers on unified government contracts. Race- and gender-neutral remedies may include, but are not limited to, the following:

(1)

Unbundling large procurements into small contracts;

(2)

Establishing a small contracts rotation program for small businesses;

(3)

Using direct contracting to award small prime contracts;

(4)

Establishing a direct purchase program for supplies and materials utilized by prime contractors;

(5)

Lowering insurance requirements, consistent with the interests of the unified government;

(6)

Eliminating or reducing retainage for small contracts and releasing the subcontractor's portion of the retainage once its work has been completed and accepted;

(7)

When mobilization is paid to the prime contractor, requiring the prime contractor to pay subcontractors mobilization in an amount equal to their participation level on the prime contract at the time they are directed to mobilize and before commencing their work;

(8)

Developing an expedited payment program for small businesses;

(9)

Providing prompt payment of undisputed invoice amounts and implementing procedures to resolve disputed items in a timely manner;

(10)

Requiring prime contractors to validate that subcontractors have been paid before final payment;

(11)

Developing formal subcontractor substitution standards;

(12)

Requiring prime contractors to list all subcontractors included in their bids or proposals and all subcontractors who submitted bids or proposals but were not hired;

(13)

Conducting routine post-award contract compliance monitoring;

(14)

Establishing a complaint procedure for minority and woman business enterprises who believe they have been discriminatorily denied award of a prime contract or the opportunity to participate as a subcontractor or supplier on a contract;

(15)

Using the unified government's website to give notice of forecasted projects and upcoming solicitations;

(16)

Developing an internet registry of minority and woman business enterprises interested in participating on unified government contracts; and

(17)

Establishing programs to educate small business enterprises, including minority and woman business enterprises, about contracting opportunities with the unified government.

(b)

The county administrator may decline to implement or apply any race- and gender-neutral remedy if, in the county administrator's judgment, the annual goals set by the board of commissioners can be met in a more effective or cost-efficient manner through the implementation of other race- and gender-neutral remedies; implementing or applying the remedy would create an unreasonable risk of legal liability; or implementing or applying the remedy would be likely to have a substantial adverse impact on the operations or interests of the unified government.

(Ord. No. O-17-09, § 1(18-153), 2-19-2009)