UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

              "    w A 5'''• ' N G "''°•'' • ° •c'  2° f> !i °
                                                   OFT-'IC E OF W <\ TE S
                                                AND WASTE .'/ A N A G i: M r; N T
                                                .Construction  Grar.t.i
                                                Program Require;ne:iI
                                                Memorandum
                                                PRM No. 30-7
                                                Effective Date  -
                                                October i,  1930
SUBJECT:   Grant  Eligibility of Minority Business Enterprise
           and  Women's  Business Entfero/ise Liaison Services

                               (s\\   '/ '
FROM:      Henry -Longest ,  Deputy A/ss.Ca'i'ant Administrator
           for J'/ater>^rt)gi>am Ope^yiA^  (WH-546)
                1 x^J"/ K rj'wrT' Acting D i r e c t o r
          Of fie/ of  Civil Rights  (A- 105)

TO:       Regional Administrators,  Regions I - X
            ATTN:  Water  Division Directors
                   Office of Civii  Rights Directors

I.  PURPOSE

The purpose of  this  ineraorandu-i - is to define and set forth
guide 1 ines. for  determining the  grant eligibility of Minority
Businoc-s Enterprise  (M3E)  and  Women's Business Enterprise
(VvBE)  Liaison 'services  performed during the process of
planning, designing  and constructing a wastewater treatment
facility with Environmental  Protection . Agency (EPA) construc-
tion grant funds.

II.  DISCUSSION

The Agiiticy recognizes  the  need  to immediately remedy the
under-u tilization of MBEs  and  WBEs  in the Construction
Grants Program.   In  order  to provide the opportunity for
increased MBE and WBE  participation,  EPA has determined that
a goal oriented system of  MBH'  and WBE participation must be a
clear-cut factor  in  the evaluation  of procurements, bids or
proposals, as well as  a condition for a grant award.  One
method of affording  the opportunity for increased MDE and WBE
participation is  for grantee.?  to establish or utilize M3E and
WBE liaison services.  The costs to the grantees for such
services are eligible  for1  EPA  grant funding.

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Such services will assist applicants/grantees to effectively
implement the goal-oriented EPA "Policy  for Increased Use of
Minority .Consultants and Construction Contractors",  43 Federal
Register 60221 (December '25, 1978), and  the "Women's Business
Enterprise Policy for the Construction Grants Program," 45 Federal
Register 51490 (August 1, 1980).  See also, 40 C.F.R. 35.936-7,
-40 C.F.K.§35.937-12 (b)(2), Appendix C-l (para. 14), and
Appendix C-2 (para. 9). These policies require grantees,
consultants and contractors to take affirmative steps to
utilize rainority-and women-owned businesses in providing
engineering and construction services and supplies.

     Grantees may formally provide for such services by
selecting:

     1.  An MBE/WBE liaison officer from internal staff
         (Additional staff may supplement internal staff
         only if required by project size), or

     2.  A contractor to perform such services (Contract
         services may be provided by either an MBE or WBE
         specialist or by a capable consulting firm).

The MBE/WBE liaison officer/service would be responsible for
developing, implementing and managing the grantees MBE and WBE
programs as they relate to the specific EPA funded project.
Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:  keeping
records, providing technical assistance to MBEs,'disseminating
information on available business opportunities related to EPA
grant projects to ensure that MBEs are provided an equal oppor-
tunity to participate in EPA's Construction Grants Program.

     In order to effectively carry out t.he aforementioned
responsibilities, the MBE/WBE. liaison officer/service selected
should be:

     a.  Familiar with and capable of interpreting and
         communicating the grantee's procurement  procedures
         and requirements as well as EPA's MBE/WBE policies,

     b.  Understanding of small,  minority-,  and women's
         business problems,

     c.  Capable of communicating effectively  with women-
         minority-and majority-owned businesses and manage-
         ment ,

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     d.   Able  to maintain  a  good  rapport  with  the  minority
          community,

     f.   Familiar with  Federal, State  and  local  resources
          'available  to aid'MBSs, WBEs and  small  business, and

     e.  'Able  to maintain  a  good  rapport  with  the  women's
          business and community organizations.

III.   POLICY

This PRM  confirms EPA's  policy that costs  incurred  by  the
performance of appropriate and necessary  MBE/WBE liaison
services, either by grantee  staff  or by contractor,  which
are directly related  to  a  particular EPA  funded  construction
project,  are eligible for  EPA grant participation.

IV,  IMPLEMENTATION                                     :

Only necessary liaison  services rendered  in direct  connection
with an EPA Construction Grants Project by the MBE/WBE
liaison officer/ service are grant eligible costs.   While
•the provision of MBE and WBE liaison services  is an  eligible
cost,  it  must be borne  in  mind that EP'A will participate in
the costs for hiring additional staff  only in  municipalities
having ongoing and continuous EPA  construction grants
projects, large enough  to  support  the  need for such  staff.
Contracts for MBE/WBE liaison services which depart  from
conventional industry practices and which constitute a
commercially unnecessary intermediate  step- between  a grantee,
liaison officer, consultant  or contractor  shall  be  considered
ineligible.

Measures  to achieve. MBE  and  WBE program requirements should
be submitted as part of  the  Step 1, Step  2, Step 3,  and Step
2+3 grant applications.  State agencies and potential
grantees  should be encouraged during the  pre-plan-of-study
conferences' to integrate planning  for  use of MBEs and WBEs
into each phase of the construction grant process and to
achieve designated goals.  This enables the Agency  to judge
before awarding financial  assistance whether EPA funds are
likely to be used to achieve the objective of  increasing MBE
and WBE participation.

The grantee must maintain  complete records of MBE/WBE liaison
services.  Such records must include:

    a,   A brief narrative  summary  of activities conducted.

    b.   Certified time and attendance  records clearly
        establishing relationship  to EPA's MBE and WBE
        programs.

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c.  Bills/.vouchers covering travel and other expenditures
    incurred in fulfilling the grantee's responsibilities
    under the HBE and WBE policies.

d.  Documentation sufficient to constitute an 'audit trail
    of all costs charged to a specific project.

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