May 1, 2017

For Immediate Release

Prince George’s County Councilman Mel Franklin Criticizes County’s Poor Enforcement of Small and Minority Business and Local Hiring Laws at Start of National Small Business Week

Contact: Mel@melfranklin.net

Upper Marlboro, MD – On Thursday, April 27 during its budget review, the Prince George’s County Office of Central Services (OCS), the agency that has authority over more than $400 million in annual county government contracts for county agencies, reported to the County Council’s Public Safety & Fiscal Management (PSFM) Committee that the agency has missed required April 15th deadlines for making millions available in county contracting opportunities for small and minority businesses and not held vendors accountable for failing to report spending with local businesses and local hiring required by Council Bill 74 2016 (CB-74-2016 aka the “Jobs & Opportunity Act”), a sweeping local business and hiring law adopted by the Council and signed by County Executive Rushern Baker last fall, and previous legislation dating back to 2011.  Councilman Mel Franklin (D-District 9), who criticized the poor agency performance at last Thursday’s committee meeting, issued the following statement at the beginning of National Small Business Week (Apr. 30 – May 6):

“Last fall, our small and minority business community was thrilled when we passed CB-74-2016, the Jobs and Opportunity Act, which creates unprecedented opportunities for small and minority businesses and stiffer enforcement of the County’s 51% local hiring requirement on county contracts.  Unfortunately, once again, we discover this spring that our great intentions are undermined by poor agency execution and enforcement.  For many years, our local business community and local residents have reported being shut out of government contracting opportunities in their own county.  A big reason is that we as a county government have failed to take our commitments in law seriously and hold agencies and vendors accountable for complying with the laws we pass.  Here, at the outset of National Small Business Week, I urge our Office of Central Services and all of our county agencies to make good on our commitments to keep our tax dollars local and circulating in our own community, creating jobs, opportunity, and legacy wealth right here in Prince George’s County.”

The Jobs & Opportunity Act requires the Office of Central Services by April 15 of each year to reserve contracts in industry areas where the County has a substantial local business presence only for bidding by local small businesses.  The law also requires the Office of Central Services by April 15 to make at least $5,000,000 in annual contracting opportunities available for bid only to local small businesses enrolled in its Business Development Reserve Program, a capacity building program patterned after the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 8A program.  Local businesses that are certified with state or federal minority or small business programs are automatically considered to be local small businesses in Prince George’s County.  County law also mandates that county agencies and nonlocal vendors report quarterly on their local business and local hiring performance on county contracts, a requirement that many vendors ignore without penalty.

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Video for the April 27, 2017 PSFM Meeting can be viewed here once made publicly available later this week (Office of Central Services budget review): https://princegeorgescountymd.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=539334&GUID=F2317AD2-A14B-4C05-87BA-2977241258FD&Options=info&Search=

Copy of Jobs and Opportunity Act (CB-74-2016) Committee Presentation (October 3, 2016):https://princegeorgescountymd.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=F&ID=4822851&GUID=6A156D4C-3A58-4344-9E39-DF32DCB73F34

Copy of the adopted Jobs and Opportunity Act (CB-74-2016):https://princegeorgescountymd.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=F&ID=4729849&GUID=B49FC5E9-0022-47F1-896C-29A885FF335A