Beliveau, Y J; Snyder, D A and Vorster, M C (1991) Dbe programs-new model. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 117(1), pp. 176-192. ISSN 0733-9364
Abstract
The Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program is a federally funded program designed to provide opportunities for minority contractors to perform highway construction projects. The DBE program is six years old. A survey of DBE and prime contractors was conducted to determine the status of the program. The results of the survey are used to identify several serious fundamental problems with the current DBE program. The primary problem is in the nature of set-aside programs, which does not contribute toward the development of independent minority contractors. Set-aside programs feed money into a system without really considering if the desired product will be achieved. Financial and bonding assistance are required to augment the DBE system, and DBEs need to perform mainstream highway work. These problems provide a framework from which a model DBE program is developed. The model DBE program is based on an input of education and assistance, as opposed to set-asides, to provide for the development of inexperienced minority contractors into independent qualified firms. The objective of the model DBE program is to provide a look at an alternative to the current way of providing DBE assistance.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Index terms: | highway construction, survey, minority, program |
| Subjects: | sociology, data collection methods, software systems, civil engineering |
| Topics: | Ethics, Engineering Principles, Digital Applications, Research Practice |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCE |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here