Governor Hochul announced that the MTA Small Business Mentoring Program surpasses more than $ 500 million in awards to minority-run and female-owned companies

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Governor Kathy Hochul announced today that the MTA’s nationally acclaimed Local Minority, Women, and Disadvantaged Business Mentoring Program (MWBE) has helped participating companies totaling US $ 500 million in MTA since the state program was launched in 2010 Contracts to win.

A $ 2 million contract with Alliance Tri-State Construction, Inc. of Staten Island was the winning bid that brought the total to over half a billion mark. It is the 485th order that has been awarded to a participating company since the program began. Michael Garner, MTA’s Chief Diversity Officer, and his team, who have worked closely with MTA Construction & Development and the MTA’s Office of Construction Oversight, have led the agency to an unprecedented pace of activity over the past few years, with hundreds of millions of dollars on awarded contracts.

“New York is a national leader when it comes to working with MWBEs to ensure talented business leaders from across the state can bring their unique and valuable perspectives to our projects.” said Governor Hochul. “Our diversity is our strength, and by using the special skills of women and people of color in our work, we are making our economy more inclusive and robust. I am more committed than ever to leveling the playing field so that women and minority-owned companies have better access to government contracts, and I commend the MTA for taking a leading role in breaking down the barriers that are facing them These contractors are faced with a better way to fully meet the needs of these drivers than to ensure that the contractors also reflect this diversity. ”

“The expansion of the company pool with which we work is not only the right thing from the point of view of social justice, but also makes economic sense because it means increased competition in our procurement process”, said the incumbent MTA chairman & CEO Janno Lieber. “The Small Business Mentoring Program is a model for state agencies and local governments across the country and I am sure it will be even more successful in the years to come as we work with new companies to modernize local transport in the region. “

“Today is an exciting day” said MTA Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer Michael Garner. “We have worked tirelessly to increase the proportion of our contracts we place and we are very proud to have now given more than half a billion dollars to hundreds of world-class companies in the region. We will be our pool of qualified companies enlarge further. ” Companies, because a fairer award of contracts is not only a gain for the MTA, but for the entire regional economy. In addition, by investing in the infrastructure of the region, we are also investing in a diverse pool of qualified companies as a strategy for creating jobs in these often excluded communities. Access to government contracts means job creation, home ownership, better education and health care. “

To celebrate the milestone, Garner was accompanied by a trio of award winners at a press conference today. Yolanda Valdes from Empower Contracting, Hely Duarte from Zion Contracting and Cleve Taylor from Malcolm Patrick Corp. talked about the impact the program has had on their businesses over the years.

To celebrate the milestone, Garner was accompanied by two award winners at a press conference today. Yolanda Valdes from Empower Contracting and Hely Duarte from Zion Contracting spoke about the impact the program has had on their businesses over the years.

“We started the program in 2011. Back then we were a small painting company with a lot of dreams of becoming a general contractor. The problem was that we didn’t have the resources. ” said Hely Duarte, owner and president of Zion Contracting. “Little did I know that we would soon find the Small Business Mentoring Program that would open the door to one of the largest agencies in New York. Three months after joining the program, we received our first MTA contract, our sales doubled and at the end of the year four times the previous year’s sales. And all of this with the help of the Small Business Mentoring Program. “

“Without the opportunities here, our company would not be able to grow and learn as we do with the backbone of the MTA and the TDX support system”, said Yolanda Valdes, owner, Empower Contracting, Inc. “We were able to compete as a small company in an otherwise unavailable market. We don’t have the ability to get the big deals specifically with the MTA, so this was a great opportunity for us.”

The MTA’s Diversity and Civil Rights Division aggressively promotes and recruits MWBE businesses and those owned by veterans with disabilities at events and forums in the area. It works with the community of vendors to ensure that potential businesses understand how to do business with the agency and are aware of all the requirements. The Garner team provides ongoing advice and support even after the order has been placed to ensure that the work is completed successfully. Success is focused on integrating the New York State certified MWBE companies into the MTA’s procurements.

In recent years, the MTA has improved its discretionary procurement program, which enables the agency to implement targeted, faster, and more flexible procurement opportunities for the MWBE community. The MTA will now accept contract bids of up to $ 1 million through this program, up from the previous limit of $ 400,000. The agency worked closely with the New York State Legislature to implement this strategy to increase the MTA’s sourcing directly to eligible state-certified companies in a range of professional services. In the area of ​​information technology alone, the MTA’s discretionary procurement program has placed 843 orders for MWBE valued at $ 136.9 million.

To be eligible for certification, a company must be a small business that is at least 51 percent owned, operated, and controlled by minority members and / or women. Corporations must be licensed to do business in New York State.

Further information on the MTA’s Small Business Mentoring Program can be found on this website:

https://new.mta.info/doing-business-with-us/small-business-programs

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