§ 323-19. SLBE/ELBE Sheltered Market Program.

The city shall implement and maintain a sheltered market program to identify a portion of its procurements and contracts for bidding or response exclusively by SLBEs and ELBEs. Sheltered market procurements shall be contracts that SLBEs and ELBEs are fully capable of performing at the customary and usual market rate.

(a)

The director, in consultation with the purchasing agent and the contracting agency, may select certain contracts which have a value of $250,000.00 or less for award to an SLBE, or a joint venture with SLBEs, through the sheltered market program.

(b)

The director, in consultation with the purchasing agent and the contracting agency, may select certain contracts which have a value of fifty thousand dollars $50,000.00 or less for award to an ELBE through the sheltered market program.

(c)

The director, in consultation with the purchasing agent and the contracting agency, must consider the following factors when determining whether a particular contract is eligible for the sheltered market program:

(1)

Whether there are at least three certified SLBEs or ELBEs that are available to participate in the sheltered market program for the selected contract and that have the capacity to perform the contract;

(2)

The degree of underutilization of SLBEs and ELBEs in such contracts in the specific industry category during the immediately prior twelve months; and

(3)

The extent to which the city's SLBE and ELBE prime contractor utilization goals, as set annually by the director in consultation with the purchasing agent, are being met.

(d)

If, in the case of an invitation to bid, there is no response to a bid solicitation or the apparent low bid is determined by the purchasing agent to be fiscally unacceptable, then the contract shall be removed from the sheltered market program.

(e)

If, in the case of an RFP or RFQ, there is no satisfactory responsive proposal, then the contract shall be removed from the sheltered market program.

(Ordained by Ord. No. 307-2015, § 4, eff. Jan. 1, 2016)