Those are old businesses. I'm talking about new businesses. 106 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860
So how many new businesses have been certified since you have been head of OEO?
Oh, wow. I know what's in the pipeline right now. It's about 129.
I know. I'm trying to remember. I don't have every single statistic for OEO.
Not every single statistic. If what you've been doing is meeting with new businesses -- Mr. Gregory? Mr. Gregory?
If what you've been doing is meeting with new businesses to increase availability and availability means certification, then you should know how many businesses have 107 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860 been certified under your watch. That's what I'm trying to tell you. If you don't know, that's a problem.
If you don't know what new contracts have been awarded to DBEs, that's a problem. If you don't know the range of the awards in terms of what the typical DBE contract is by contract type, that's a problem.
This is my last question, then I'll move to Councilwoman Brown. Can you tell me what the strategic plan calls for in terms of Economic Opportunity Plans and how that information is communicated to department heads and to the contractors?
Well, legislation requires Economic Opportunity Plans on contracts over a million dollars. As those then are developed and contracts are going up in that range, we develop EOPs in that regard. The departments 108 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860 that are responsible for those contracts are intimately involved in the creation of those EOPs, and the ongoing monitoring and compliance with all of that, reporting out of all of that, most situations of that particular size, particularly the larger ones, engage oversight committees where the departments are involved with it, a number of community partners are involved with those as a means in which we are able to monitor those particular types of contracts that have EOPs attached with them.
So for all contracts or projects where EOPs are required, department heads are fulfilling that responsibility and communicating that to the contractors?
I would 109 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860 simply like to underscore the concern raised by Councilwoman Sanchez. During budget hearings, I know for sure Councilman Goode and I, when every department head sat down, we pulled out our little grid here that lists all City departments, what the goal was and then what actually happened. And when I looked at where we were a year ago, the signals here indicate that there's a lot of work that has to be done on your part, and you've already spoken to that. And the challenge is getting department heads to recognize -- it's not going to be in what they tell us. It's going to be in what they do, and what they do is reflected on this sheet. So we are maybe 90 days away from budget hearings again, and I have for sure kept a record of department heads who came to us who used the excuse, Oh, we haven't had meetings. No. In fact, many of them punted the ball to OEO saying, We hadn't met with OEO, which may 110 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860 have been true, because it was a new Administration. So as we look to the next 90 days, you assured us that come this year, we would not hear that explanation at all. The flag for me is in Councilwoman Sanchez's acknowledgement that she has actually met with some department heads and she is not encouraged at all that they are embracing what your mission is. So know that we are paying attention, and for the department heads that don't get it, it's going to be real, real clear to them that we are not dissatisfied, we are unhappy, because it's been ten years for me and ten years for the Councilman. And this strategic plan will have been released by then, correct?
And so we can be assured that they will have read it and they get it and be prepared to report accordingly? 111 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860
Is there anyone else to testify on this resolution? (Witness approached witness table.)
My name is Jacqueline Hill, and I promise to be brief, but I'd just like to make a couple comments. I am the Director of the Pennsylvania Minority Business Development Center, a program of the Enterprise Center, and as you know, our 112 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860 focus is advocating on behalf and growing minority-owned businesses. And I've sat here this morning and I've listened, and I guess my first question is, who is on first? There seemed to be a passing of the ball between Mr. Dow and Mr. Gregory, because we don't have a permanent OEO Director. We have Acting. And so that concerns me about who do we hold accountable and who is empowered to be able to get some of the work done that is proposed in the strategic plan. So one of the requests I would make of Council is that we push for some permanency so that there is someone empowered and in place and held accountable for the outcomes and activities that are being proposed. Number two, this is a three-legged stool, in my opinion. It is not an OEO issue. It is an OEO/Procurement issue. I heard Mr. Ott (sic) say that these two had been meeting 113 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860 with DOT around the technology issue, but I think in listening, if you were listening well, that that would be in isolation. Procurement clearly has to be a part of that discussion for all of the pieces to come together to be able to track. We need that body of information from Procurement as well as the body of information from OEO for all of the pieces to ultimately come together. I think that's what we've done in the past. We have lived in isolation and none of the dots are kind of clicked together here. Therefore, it has not worked. Thirdly, I sit on the EOP Committee for SugarHouse and for Verizon. Verizon has not had a meeting since July the 7th of 2009. I have had personal interactions with Verizon, the company, just to keep the process moving in order to ensure that the qualified minority firms with which we work have been given opportunity and access for contracting. 114 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860 But in terms of a committee meeting formally to say, Hey, this is what's happening, there have been a couple of outreach events. So I'm wondering about the accountability on that. And in regard to SugarHouse, we have met consistently. There's a regular standard meeting, but we get the reports, and they remain in red in terms of what the minority participation is. They print them out in color and you see a lot of red. One of the issues that concerns me is -- Ms. Flamer is on the SugarHouse Committee, and we have discussions about locally owned businesses and we have a situation where -- and, Ms. Flamer, please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong -- where Ballard Spahr, as long there's a minority partner heading the account, is considered minority. And that becomes a concern for me, because how do I get the opportunity to engage a growing minority-owned law firm and put 115 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860 them in position, because they're continually competing against a Ballard Spahr, if that's an acceptable practice. And so I guess my question is -- I mean, I know it's a habit that somehow somewhere along time has been acquired, but I question the legitimacy of that, if I'm going to be able to engage and grow a minority law firm or an accounting firm, because all of those could go and hire someone and put them in position and get credit, but then I don't get the opportunity to engage accounting firms and law firms and other legal professions.
Yes. Michelle Flamer, City of Philadelphia Law 116 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860 Department, Senior Attorney. The process that Ms. Hill just described is correct, in that the City has a policy of counting participation of minority lead counsel at majority-owned law firms. This practice was started pretty much, I believe, really when Stephanie Franklin-Suber was the City Solicitor, and it's really an outgrowth of a need to encourage diversity at majority-owned law firms. It was never intended to supplant the actual participation of minority-owned law firms or minority accounting firms or other types of professional service providers. It's just really a way of encouraging participation of minorities and increasing diversity at those majority-owned law firms.
I guess my question is, is that how the data is compiled on an annual basis in terms of City contracting?
No. In terms of 117 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860 the raw data that we put into the participation reports, we only count certified firms. So we're not certifying Ballard Spahr. But for purposes of counting in terms of EOP reporting, there's credit given, but it's sort of --
So it's for the purpose of EOP reporting and not for the purpose of the Disparity Study and/or the annual reports from MBEC or the Office of Economic Opportunity?
I am finished. Those were all the remarks that I'd like to make.
It's afternoon officially? Good afternoon. I wanted to ask -- and you've been a part of a number of hearings that the Chairman has pulled together, and in one of the hearings there was a question of communications and dialogue between the Commerce Department and OEO, and the response was not enough communications. Has that improved since the last hearing?
I don't know that I can respond to that, that I have enough information to respond fairly.
What I would like to see -- I think we got to get away from this little numbers game, percentage game. When a majority of the population of a city is comprised of majority people 119 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860 and we can't get off of the two and three percent in ranges and that kind of stuff and reposition our sales to grow the economy of the City, then we have an overall problem. I think that in fairness to Mr. Dow and Mr. Gregory, MBEs are at the mercy of their learning curve as we go through this process. They are new to this field. They are -- this is a new administration and inherent in that are some challenges, as with any system, but if you throw that on top of it, then that creates some additional challenges and it takes us ultimately longer to get there. I think some of the questions that you asked today were very basic questions. They weren't rocket science, but it was an indication of where the learning curve is. So in terms of internal communication -- and that's why the first issue that I raised was who is on first becomes very fundamental, because then at 120 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860 that point, if I'm Director, I'm accountable. If I'm Acting, I'm kind of there, but I'm not there. I think the communication between the two of them is probably very effective, but, again, who is held accountable, who is empowered to make decisions, to have the right conversation, to gather the right information, meet with you and get your support. But if we kind of still haven't made that decision, I can only go so far. So I think that's where there may be the challenge of the communication, because we don't have a permanent appointee.
Well, I'll give you this. I was encouraged when I went out to the Enterprise Center where we pulled together a meet, greet, information session on the stimulus program. That is the type of communication that I encourage. That is the type of dialogue between people who have opportunities and those seeking 121 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860 those opportunities that I want to see continuously happen. Even if we do not always result in a total moving of the meter on percentage participation, that dialogue at least explores and exhausts some of the possibilities, and it is important to me as a Councilmember that that continue, and I think it was clear by each of the comments that I was able to hear by each of the members of this Committee that during the budget process, which is going to happen, that the -- and I can almost hear my colleague Blondell Reynolds Brown in my ear say, Where is the participation, how are you engaged, when did you get the mandate. So real simple, basic questions are simple, basic solutions - dialogue between the departments and those entities responsible for that participation, dialogue between those entities and the business community. If that happens, then at least we can earnestly say that we were attempting a good-faith effort. 122 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860 And so when I hear communication happening, I'm encouraged. At least if there's dialogue, there's an opportunity for a contract. Somebody may get some work out of this. But I want us to kind of have a sense of urgency about this, because we're halfway through the Administration. We're halfway through the Administration. This is our big year coming up and this is an example to -- and I think the economy slowly, painfully is coming around, but on that upswing, I want us to take advantage of that and have the basics done, have the communication channels established, have the challenges by way of technology solved, have the kinds of matchmaker sessions where prime contractors understand and respect the capabilities of subcontractors, and grow some subcontractors into primes, so that as the economy improves, as the economy is stimulated, that some of that stimulation trickles down to some folk who have been 123 1/20/10 - COMMERCE - RESOLUTION 090860 underutilized. That's just my hope.
Seeing none, the hearing on this resolution is recessed to the call of the Chair. (Committee on Commerce and Economic Development recessed at 12:15 p.m.) - - - 124 CERTIFICATE I HEREBY CERTIFY that the proceedings, evidence and objections are contained fully and accurately in the stenographic notes taken by me upon the foregoing matter on January 20, 2010, and that this is a true and correct transcript of same. ______________________________ MICHELE L. MURPHY RPR-Notary Public (The foregoing certification of this transcript does not apply to any reproduction of the same by any means, unless under the direct control and/or supervision of the certifying reporter.)