Cambridge Outlines Three-Track Plan to Fix Minority Business Contracting Gaps

CAMBRIDGE -- May 29, 2024, Cambridge moves toward closing minority business contracting gaps after disparity study. City staff presented the Economic Development Committee with findings from a completed goods-and-services disparity study conducted under Massachusetts General Law Chapter 30B, identifying statistically significant gaps between the availability and city utilization of certified minority-owned, women-owned, and veteran-owned businesses across most procurement categories. Staff organized eight study recommendations into three work streams, data and transparency, education and training, and promoting vendor participation, coordinated through an interdepartmental working group. Director of Equity and Inclusion Deidre Travis-Brown confirmed a separate construction MBE program already holds prime contractors to minimum thresholds of 10 percent for minority-owned businesses and 8.8 percent for women-owned businesses. Presenters Pardis and Liz cautioned that because the study covered only certified vendors, the full scope of the disparity is likely wider than the data shows, and that there is "no silver bullet" to closing the gaps.