Vice Mayor Michael Johnson's
Arizona Informant Column
March 9, 2005

Minority business owners offered one-stop certification statewide

If you're an African-American business owner, there's some good news that you should take advantage of now.

An Intergovernmental Agreement for Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) certification between the cities of Phoenix and Tucson , and the Arizona Department of Transportation has been signed.

The agreement enables all certifying agencies in Arizona to offer a one-stop program for firms applying for DBE certification through the Arizona Unified Certification Program.

So who qualifies?

DBE certification is open to qualifying business owners who own at least 51 percent of the firm and belong to one of the following minority groups: African-American, Hispanic, Asian-American, Native-American and Caucasian females.

To become a certified DBE, businesses must be operational, owned by a citizen or legal resident of the United States, and be a small business as defined by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

If you qualify as a DBE business but are not certified as such, it is recommended that you obtain this certification because it opens many business opportunities.

The DBE program is intended to remedy past and current discrimination against socially and economically disadvantaged business owners, and it fosters equal opportunity in all Department of Transportation-assisted contracts that include highway, transit and airport programs.

There are more than 600 businesses currently certified by the city and approximately 1,000 statewide.

For information about the Arizona Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Program, visit www.azdbe.org . The site also includes an online disadvantaged business enterprise directory and certification application.

Securing DBE certification could be the most business move you could ever make!

Michael Johnson is Phoenix Vice Mayor and represents District 8. His office can be reached at 602-262-7493 or at michael.johnson@phoenix.gov via e-mail.