Comptroller Brooke E. Lierman joined Governor Wes Moore and Treasurer Dereck E. Davis in approving $262 million in state spending and contracts during a Board of Public Works meeting on Wednesday.
During the meeting, the Board considered a request from the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) to approve an expedited procurement for United States Department of Transportation Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) and Airport Concession Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (ACDBE) reevaluation review services. This request was put forward in order to comply with recent updates to Federal regulations[MR1] , which remove race- and sex-based presumptions of social and economic disadvantage and requires all firms to be reevaluated for program eligibility. Comptroller Lierman conveyed her concerns regarding the recent regulatory changes enacted by the Trump Administration, emphasizing that these and other efforts stand to undermine decades of progress in advancing opportunities for small and minority-owned businesses.
“I do want to emphasize how irresponsible this interim rule is, which has totally upended the DBE and ACDBE programs and is really burdening every state. Every state now has to go through and recertify, re-evaluate all the firms on a case-by-case basis,” Comptroller Lierman said. “The DBE program has successfully provided small businesses owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals with significant opportunities to compete for federally-funded transportation contracts, in turn, generating trillions of dollars in economic activity while enabling more than 53,000 DBE and ACDBE firms to employ more than half a million Americans,” she added.
Comptroller Lierman indicated that her agency will work with MDOT to ensure the recertifications occur as quickly as possible, to remain in compliance with federal law and uphold the state’s commitments to minority-owned firms.
In all, the Board of Public Works approved 99 items, representing a total State expenditure of $262,550,822.04, including:
- Grant agreements for 21 recipients for 28 projects located in nine counties and Baltimore City with a total value of $25,206,785.00.
- Six items awarding $6,151,917.21 to prime certified small business primes.
- One item awarding $4,393,900 to a certified minority business enterprise prime.
- 15 items awarded with established participation goals for minority business enterprises.
- One item awarded with an established participation goal for veteran-owned small business enterprises.
The next meeting of the Board of Public Works is scheduled for November 19, 2025.
###
