The Collin County Observer

DMN - Transportation blog: Report slams NTTA's minority contracting practices

08/04/09

04:48:06 pm, by bill

, 297 words,

Categories: News Clippings, Mobility, Discrimination - equality

DMN - Transportation blog: Report slams NTTA's minority contracting practices

Transportation blog: Report slams NTTA's minority contracting practices

...the report represents something of a black eye for NTTA, which has long dealt with an image that it is run for and by upper income elites in Collin County, where its headquarters are.

Tuesday, August 4, 2009
By MICHAEL LINDENBERGER and KEVIN KRAUSE / The Dallas Morning News

The North Texas Tollway Authority has done a poor job in awarding contracts to minority or women-owned businesses, a report by a consultant examining the firms paid between 2002 and 2007 reveals.

The report, presented to an NTTA committee Monday morning, shows that in those five years 97 percent of all contracts awarded went to firms owned by white males. Those 22,347 contracts totaled just under $1 billion.

A lot of NTTA's work goes to giant firms, where the available pool of minority contractors are limited. But the report shows that NTTA's work went to non-minority firms, even when the jobs were smaller.

Of the $20.2 million worth of construction contracts that were worth $500,000 or less each, only 1.9 percent of that money went to African-American firms. About 5.6 percent of the funds went to firms owned by Hispanics...

All public agencies are under pressure to be inclusive in the way they spend tax money -- or in NTTA's case, toll money. We'll be checking with DART and TxDOT to see how they fare...

Meanwhile, the report represents something of a black eye for NTTA, which has long dealt with an image that it is run for and by upper income elites in Collin County, where its headquarters are. But the agency has changed significantly in the past two years -- spending much more money, for instance, and expanding its board to include nine members, rather than five. NTTA's board has one African American member, Alan Sims.

read more....

Notes:

The Consultant's report

Permalink 3 comments

Comments, Pingbacks:

Comment from: Mark [Visitor]

· http://www.markgreer.net

This is interesting. Obviously, I can see both sides of the story. I think the company with the best record of quality work and appropriate price point (no matter the ethnic background of the owner) should get the contract.

Bill, what board receives the bids and makes the decision?

mg

Permalink 08/05/09 @ 10:12

Comment from: Janie [Visitor]

Do you know how many minority-owned companies bid on these jobs?
It would be interesting to know that percentage.

Permalink 08/05/09 @ 11:08

Comment from: bill [Member]

The NTTA Board of Directors.

They are appointed. Two by each county and one by the Governor.

Bill

Permalink 08/05/09 @ 13:14

It is my hope that this forum will serve as an acute observer of Collin County government, leading to the return of the county to those it is supposed to serve.

I will post my opinions, fair analysis, news clippings that are relevant to local issues, and your comments.

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Bill Baumbach

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The Collin County Observer

DMN - Transportation blog: Report slams NTTA's minority contracting practices

08/04/09

DMN - Transportation blog: Report slams NTTA's minority contracting practices

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