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City Presents FY24 Business Diversity Report; Staff Outlines New Citywide SLBE Goals
Summary
City staff presented the FY24 Business Diversity Annual Report documenting small/local business participation in city contracts, proposed a citywide SLBE aspirational goal of 15% for FY25, and described compliance and outreach steps to grow participation.
City staff from the Equal Opportunity Contracting Program (EOCP) presented the city’s FY24 Business Diversity Annual Report on March 24, 2025, detailing participation by small/local business enterprise (SLBE) and other certified firms and describing programmatic enhancements for FY25.
Program Manager Christian Silva and Supervising Compliance Officer Alejandro Navarro said the SLBE program counted 378 certified firms in FY24 and reported awards across construction, A&E and goods and services categories. Staff noted a decrease in total award value compared with FY23 but said the SLBE aspirational goal has been expanded citywide and set at 15% for FY25. They described outreach efforts, a recent RFP outreach boot camp, and a proposed adjustment to income caps used for SLBE certification.
Navarro presented FY24 figures and program metrics, including the number of mayoral and council actions reviewed (584) and staff time dedicated to managing SLBE applications (777 staff hours). EOCP staff also highlighted additional costs sometimes incurred when the lowest bidder fails to meet mandatory subcontracting goals and must be replaced; the presentation cited $13.1 million in additional costs for FY24 in such cases.
Councilmembers asked operational questions about tracking tools and accountability. Councilmember Bonnie Wolpert and others praised the department’s outreach and the new Ariba tracking reports; staff said an associate analyst and targeted administrative changes were in place to manage IT and other complex contracts. The city engineer described a target to unbundle 10% of the CIP as smaller contracts (generally under $1,000,000) to encourage small firms to prime projects.
Public commenters urged more intentionality and staffing for compliance and outreach. Joyce Eneta, Francine Maxwell and others highlighted concerns about declining participation by women in construction and A&E and recommended closer collaboration with Human Resources and the Race & Equity Department.
This item was informational; no vote was required. EOCP staff said they will continue outreach and monitor FY25 results under the new citywide aspirational goal.
