2.401. Goals. The University of Chicago is committed to providing enhanced opportunities for minority-owned, women-owned business enterprises, and small business enterprises to participate in the University’s procurement process. Procurement Services is responsible for establishing procurement standards and procedures to ensure that positive efforts are made to utilize minority-owned, women-owned, and small business enterprises to the fullest extent practicable.
2.402. Responsibility. The Assistant Vice President, Procurement and Payment Services and the Associate Vice President for Finance will establish and maintain procedures to provide direction and to monitor compliance with this procurement standard and shall maintain purchasing and expenditure data to record efforts made in compliance with this standard.
2.403. Definition of Ownership Status. Small businesses, minority-owned firms, and women-owned business enterprises are defined as set forth in the Amendments to the Small Business Act, Public Law 95-507, Title II, 15 U.S.C. sections 631,632,637 and Executive Orders No. 12138, 12608. Ownership status shall be registered by each such business with the University by providing the University with a completed Vendor Certification Form [PF5.3042-597]. Ownership status may, for these purposes, be changed by the University if it determines that the Certification does not in fact conform to the requirements as defined in the Amendments to the Small Business Act.
2.404. Intentionally omitted
2.405. Procedure for Competitive Purchases. The University shall include small businesses, minority-owned firms, and women-owned business enterprises (M/WBE) as sources for competitive purchases. The Buyer/Contract Specialist will consider in the process whether firms competing intend to sub-contract with small businesses, minority owned business, and women-owned business enterprises, if so, these are considered second tier, and shall be reported as such. If the Buyer/Contract Specialist is unable to find a qualified M/WBE vendor, the Buyer/Contract Specialist will forward the solicitation to the appropriate University contact, for assistance in identifying potential qualified M/WBE vendors to consider. For facilities related purchases, the contact is the Business Diversity Manager for Facilities Services; for all other purchases, the contact is the Office of Business Diversity.
2.406. Procedure for Non-Competitive Purchases. Each Buyer/Contract Specialist shall identify opportunities to current and potential new small businesses, minority-owned firms, and women-owned business enterprises and shall identify such businesses in referrals of business opportunities. Each Buyer/Contract Specialist will be responsible to solicit vendor certification forms from potential suppliers. Vendor certification forms will be forwarded to the Shared Services Vendor Management Team for entry into the University’s supplier database.
2.407. Contract Compliance Management. Pursuant to the authority detailed in Section 2.402., of this Procedure, The Assistant Vice President, Procurement and Payment Services shall appoint an individual within Procurement Services to carry out the activities necessary to ensure that this standard is pursued appropriately.
