ATLANTA (April 16, 2015) | Today, the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) passed a resolution establishing guidelines when selecting contractors for projects funded under House Bill 170, also known as the Transportation Funding Act of 2015. Sen. Vincent Fort (D- Atlanta), along with Sens. Steve Henson (D-Tucker), Horacena Tate (D- Atlanta) and David Lucas (D- Macon), commend GDOT for their unprecedented resolution, a positive first step towards an inclusive and fair selection process when awarding contracts to minorities with the additional revenues created by HB 170.
“This is an important first step towards fairness for minority contractors through the passage of this crucial resolution,” said Sen. Fort. “It is appropriate that GDOT take these common sense steps to ensure all Georgians have a chance to take part in the large undertaking of projects created under HB 170.”
“With approximately 900 million new dollars being spent on transportation, our caucus stood together to make sure qualified disadvantaged businesses have a fair opportunity in the bidding and selection process,” said Sen. Henson.
The resolution outlines GDOT’s goal for “consistency and inclusion in the delivery and management of projects” funded from the revenue generated by HB 170. Most importantly, it commits to establish a state Disadvantaged Business Enterprises program (DBE). This program will be used for the allocation of the additional revenues generated by the Transportation funding Act of 2015 to minority contractors. GDOT, which last completed a disparity study of minority business and contractors in 2012 for federal projects, will conduct a new study this year to assist with the implementation of the goals set forth in previous studies. These steps stem from the Senate Democrats involvement in crafting HB 170.
“Georgia is a melting pot I’m proud of the work the Senate Democratic Caucus has done with HB 170 to make sure the contracts awarded truly represent our state,” said Sen. Tate.
“GDOT took a great stride towards fairness with the passage of today’s resolution,” said Sen. Lucas. “Our state is set to make a significant investment in our transportation infrastructure and we have a moral obligation to see that minority businesses receive their fair share of state contracts.”
# # # #
For Immediate Release:
April 16, 2015
For Information Contact:
Jennifer Yarber, Director
Adam Sweat, Sr. Communications Specialist
Adam.sweat@senate.ga.gov
404.656.0028