county of santa clara
Disparity Study

MGT Consulting has prepared the Santa Clara County draft disparity study report.  The Executive Summary Final Draft, Disparity Study Final Draft, and Appendices Final Draft are available for public review.  The County will invite businesses to a presentation of the disparity study findings on Monday, April 8th at 1:00 pm PDT.  Register to attend here.

Welcome

The County of Santa Clara (“County”) has embarked upon its first comprehensive Disparity Study, led by MGT Consulting Group. The disparity study will evaluate procurement and contracting by the County and will be conducted within California’s legal framework as established by court rulings. It is the County’s intent to collect baseline data identifying any disparities between the availability of diverse business enterprises and the utilization of diverse business enterprises as contractors and subcontractors on County contracts. The County endeavors to determine the factors that lead to any identified disparities including, but not limited to, existing policies, processes, technologies, and programs. The Study will further serve to augment the County’s outreach efforts with strategic approaches to remedy any identified disparities.

In 1989, the Supreme Court ruled in City of Richmond v. J.A. Croson Co that the City’s Minority Business Utilization Plan was unconstitutional under the Equal Protection Clause. This landmark case established that state and local race-based programs must uphold “strict scrutiny,” which recognized the following:

  • The governmental entity must show that racial classification is narrowly tailored to achieve a compelling governmental interest.
  • A race-based remedial program may be created to rectify the effects of identified, systemic, past racial discrimination within its jurisdiction. 

 

 

Further, in 1996 the voters of the State of California approved Proposition 209, which amended the California Constitution to prohibit discrimination against, as well as preferential treatment to, on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in the operation of public employment, public education, and public contracting.

The County’s study will include the analysis of contract and purchasing data to determine if disparities exist between the availability of diverse business enterprises and the utilization of such businesses as contractors or subcontractors on County contracts for goods, services, and construction. The Study will include quantitative data collected from the County expenditures and qualitative data provided by business owners and area trade associations and business organizations.

We encourage ALL business owners to provide information about their experiences doing business, or attempting to do business, with the County of Santa Clara.

Minority-, women-, disabled veteran-, and LGBT-owned businesses are strongly encouraged to participate, collectively, diverse business enterprises (DIV-BE).

To learn more about doing business with the County of Santa Clara, visit the Procurement Department.  https://procurement.sccgov.org/doing-business-county/vendor-registration

Business Owner Engagement

24/7 Email, Voicemail, and Website
Comment Form

At any point during the Study, business owners, both diverse business enterprises (DIV-BE) and non-DIV-BE, may submit their comments, in English, Chinese (Mandarin), Filipino, Korean, Spanish, and Vietnamese regarding their experiences doing business, or attempting to do business, with the County by:

Community Engagement Meetings

MGT Consulting Group hosted five virtual public engagement meetings that presented the Study’s objectives and gathered feedback from business owners on their experiences doing business or attempting to do business, with the County of Santa Clara or their prime vendors. These meetings were open to the public. Input gathered during the public engagement meetings and any written comments will be analyzed as the basis for recommendations to provide potential modifications to the procurement processes.

Interviews, Surveys, and Direct Input

Businesses in all procurement categories and business owner classifications are invited to participate in in-depth interviews and business surveys. The interviews are opportunities for businesses to have one-on-one discussions with the MGT team regarding their experiences doing business or attempting to do business, with the County of Santa Clara or prime vendors contracted by the County. The business surveys gather information on business demographics, capacity, and experiences doing business with the County. Donaldson Enterprises and SkyBase 7 are currently contacting businesses to participate in the anecdotal research for the study. 

Businesses are invited to contribute their experiences doing business or attempting to do business on County contracts/projects.  Sign up for an in-depth interview to speak one-on-one with our team.  Your feedback will assist MGT in potential recommendations for the County’s procurement process that could help your business.

Input submitted via email, voicemail, or the website is confidential and directed to the MGT consultant team only.

Contact Us

Disparity Study Contact Form – ALL SUBMISSIONS ARE DIRECTED TO MGT CONSULTING AND NOT MAINTAINED BY THE COUNTY OF SANTA CLARA

You may use this form to submit written comments in English, Chinese (Mandarin), Filipino, Korean, Spanish, and Vietnamese, about your experiences with the County of Santa Clara. Please provide details of your experiences, doing business, or attempting to do business, with the County and the County’s prime contractors/vendors. Please be specific in your comments regarding entities involved, as well as time and location for the experiences that you share.

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Is the Company Owner of Hispanic, Latino/a, or of Spanish origin?
Company Owner’s Race:
Company Owner’s Race: Pacific Islander
Company Owner’s Race: not listed
Company Owner's Gender
Sexual Orientation
Do you have a disability – a physical and/or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities?
Certifications (if applicable)
English