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Guidelines for Conducting a Disparity and Availability Study for the Federal DBE Program (2010) / Chapter Skim
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Pages 54-59

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From page 54...
... While studies were expensive, as a percentage of total state DOT contract awards over 5 or 6 years, the cost of a disparity or availability study is still very small.178 In many ways, a disparity study is like an insurance policy for the DBE Program: the cost is a small fraction of the value of what is being insured. We interviewed several state DOTs to obtain information about the price of their studies, the internal resources necessary to manage the process, and advice for other agencies considering studies.
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From page 55...
... One state DOT outside the Ninth Circuit has successfully relied solely upon an availability study.180 For these reasons, we found that availability studies generally cost under $400,000, and potentially less if complete subcontract data are available. According to our interviews, costs for disparity studies ranged from a low of approximately $405,000 for a smaller DOT to $1,500,000 for a large state DOT.
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From page 56...
... State DOTs should consult with their regional modal administrations to confirm which of their subrecipients, if any, are responsible for reporting DBE activity; this will ensure that those subrecipients will be included in the scope of any availability or disparity study. Further, the subrecipients' contracting and subcontracting data should conform to the same requirements presented above for the state DOT's direct contracting and subcontracting data.
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From page 57...
... For example, one Ninth Circuit state DOT with an existing availability study conducted extensive outreach to the state's largest city, county, and airport and transit agencies to help pay for additional elements of disparity analyses, but was unable to reach an agreement.189 Multi-Agency State Studies Some state DOTs have participated in statewide studies that included all or most other state agencies. This has the advantage of sharing costs among numerous state departments.
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From page 58...
... Include as much information as possible regarding the number, dollar amounts, and types of contracts, as well as the availability (hard copy, electronic, etc.) of the contract data for prime contractors and subcontractors.
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From page 59...
... This will also reduce the state DOT's burden of responding to questions and evaluating proposals. Conducting the RFP Process • Directly notify the relatively small pool of consultants that performs disparity studies of the issuance of the RFP.
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Key Terms

  • project database
  • prime contract
  • strict scrutiny
  • dbe program
  • state dot

  • dbe availability
  • availability studies
  • disparity study
  • geographic market
  • study approach

  • contract data
  • period length
  • narrowly tailored
  • prime contractors
  • dollar amount

  • prime contractor
  • availability study
  • subcontract data
  • state dots
  • anecdotal evidence

  • disparity ratios
  • statistical evidence
  • dbe goals
  • due date
  • scott construction

  • disparity studies
  • ninth circuit


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