Orlando adopts Small and Local Business Enterprise program after debate over preference levels

Orlando City Council voted on April 20 to adopt Ordinance No. 2025-47, creating a Small and Local Business Enterprise (SLBE) preference and suspending the former minority- and women-owned business enterprise provisions.

The ordinance establishes the program framework and city staff presented the implementing policies and procedures, eligibility thresholds, and a timeline for certification. Eric Uskowitz, the city's business development division manager, told the council the program will mirror Orange County in many respects and added that certified firms can expect an expedited certification path through reciprocity with other approved agencies. "Companies will be able to go to our website tomorrow, get logged on into the portal, and go through that certification application process," Uskowitz said during his presentation.

The policy package sets separate tracks for Local Business Enterprise (LBE) firms headquartered within Orlando and Small Business Enterprise (SBE) firms based in the metropolitan area. Staff described eligibility rules including entity type, Florida residency for owners, a cap of fewer than 100 employees, and three-year average gross receipts thresholds (listed by sector in staff materials). Uskowitz explained the difference in preference mechanics: an LBE receives a larger sealed-proposal preference than an SBE, and businesses cannot be both an LBE and SBE simultaneously.

Council debate focused on how large preference weights should be. Commissioner Bakari Burns urged higher percentages to make participation meaningful, saying the program should "start off strong" and proposing raising LBE preference from 10% to 15% and SBE from 6% to 10% to avoid repeating the limited gains of the prior MWBE approach. City staff and procurement representatives cautioned that setting very high fixed preference points at adoption could make it difficult to ensure sufficient qualified capacity and recommended keeping operational detail in policies so council could adjust them as the program produced data.

City attorney Stacy Ballen clarified procurement rules on related preferences: the veterans' preference and the small-business preference are separate code provisions and a vendor would choose which preference to claim under the current code language.

After discussion, council approved the ordinance on a voice vote and then voted to adopt the associated policies and procedures. The council accepted a friendly amendment that the administration return with a review of the program's impact in six months.

What passed: Council adopted the ordinance establishing the SLBE program, approved implementing policies and procedures, and directed a six-month program review. Staff said they plan outreach (workshops, vendor directory, FAQs) and a target for certified businesses to begin participating in city procurement by July 1, contingent on certification progress.

Votes at a glance: The ordinance and the related policies and procedures passed on council voice votes with all present indicating "aye." The meeting record shows commissioners and the mayor voted in favor; the clerk recorded the motion as carried.

The council also approved several companion items during the same meeting cycle: authorization to negotiate with the top-ranked design-build firm for the first phase of the Lake Eola master plan (Wharton Smith), a facade agreement with Orlando City Properties LLC for facade improvements at 221 South Paramore (CRA assistance up to $300,000 on an estimated $460,000 project), and Ordinance No. 2026-7 creating a downtown CRA trust fund. Those motions were carried by voice vote.