Legal Corner

Many UCON members are asking the question: Do recent actions by the new administration in Washington regarding the revocation of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programs include the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program? Simply put, DEI revocation by federal Executive Order has no direct impact on DBE programs managed by the state or local entities or agencies.

Nevertheless, other factors are at play that could significantly influence the future of DBE programs. Recently, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky granted an injunction against USDOT’s DBE program in the case Mid-America Milling Co., LLC v. U.S. Department of Transportation, et al. The court found that the race and gender-based factors used in the DBE program violate the U.S. Constitution’s guarantee of equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment.

While this decision is currently limited to the contracts the plaintiffs bid on in Kentucky and Indiana, it is expected that this case, along with several others, will make their way up to the Supreme Court at some point in the future. This means that the future of DBE programs may be at stake depending on how the Supreme Court rules in those future cases. Naturally, UCON will keep our members informed of any changes or updates related to DBE programs.