2007 California Public Utilities Code Article 5. Women And Minority Business Enterprises

CA Codes (puc:8281-8286)

8281.  (a) The Legislature hereby finds and declares that the
essence of the American economic system of private enterprise is free
competition.  Only through full and free competition can free
markets, reasonable and just prices, free entry into business, and
opportunities for the expression and growth of personal initiative
and individual judgment be assured.  The preservation and expansion
of that competition is basic to the economic well-being of this state
and that well-being cannot be realized unless the actual and
potential capacity of women, minority, and disabled veteran business
enterprises is encouraged and developed.  Therefore, it is the
declared policy of the state to aid the interests of women, minority,
and disabled veteran business enterprises in order to preserve
reasonable and just prices and a free competitive enterprise, to
ensure that a fair proportion of the total purchases and contracts or
subcontracts for commodities, supplies, technology, property, and
services for regulated utilities are awarded to women, minority, and
disabled veteran business enterprises, and to maintain and strengthen
the overall economy of the state.
   (b) (1) The Legislature finds all of the following:
   (A) The opportunity for full participation in our free enterprise
system by women, minority, and disabled veteran business enterprises
is essential if this state is to attain social and economic equality
for those businesses and improve the functioning of the state
economy.
   (B) Public agencies which have established short- and long-range
women, minority, and disabled veteran business enterprise goals are
awarding 30 percent or more of their contracts to these business
enterprises.
   (C) Women, minority, and disabled veteran business enterprises
have traditionally received less than a proportionate share of
regulated public utility procurement contracts.
   (D) It is in the state's interest to expeditiously improve the
economically disadvantaged position of women, minority, and disabled
veteran business enterprises.
   (E) The position of these businesses can be improved by providing
long-range substantial goals for procurement by regulated public
utilities of technology, equipment, supplies, services, materials,
and construction work from women, minority, and disabled veteran
businesses.
   (F) That procurement also benefits the public utilities and
consumers of the state by encouraging the expansion of the number of
suppliers for procurements, thereby encouraging competition among the
suppliers and promoting economic efficiency in the process.
   (2) It is the purpose of this article to do all of the following:

   (A) Encourage greater economic opportunity for women, minority,
and disabled veteran business enterprises.
   (B) Promote competition among regulated public utility suppliers
in order to enhance economic efficiency in the procurement of
electrical, gas, and telephone corporation contracts and contracts of
their commission-regulated subsidiaries and affiliates.
   (C) Clarify and expand the program for the procurement by
regulated public utilities of technology, equipment, supplies,
services, materials, and construction work from women, minority, and
disabled veteran business enterprises.



8282.  For the purposes of this article, the following definitions
apply:
   (a) "Women business enterprise" means a business enterprise that
is at least 51 percent owned by a woman or women; or, in the case of
any publicly owned business, at least 51 percent of the stock of
which is owned by one or more women; and whose management and daily
business operations are controlled by one or more of those
individuals.
   (b) "Minority business enterprise" means a business enterprise
that is at least 51 percent owned by a minority group or groups; or,
in the case of any publicly owned business, at least 51 percent of
the stock of which is owned by one or more minority groups, and whose
management and daily business operations are controlled by one or
more of those individuals.  The contracting utility shall presume
that minority includes Black Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native
Americans, and Asian Pacific Americans.
   (c) "Disabled veteran business enterprise" has the same meaning as
defined in subdivision (g) of Section 999 of the Military and
Veterans Code.
   (d) "Control" means exercising the power to make policy decisions.

   (e) "Operate" means being actively involved in the day-to-day
management and not merely officers or directors.



8283.  (a) The commission shall require each electrical, gas, and
telephone corporation  with gross annual revenues exceeding
twenty-five million dollars (,000,000) and their
commission-regulated subsidiaries and affiliates, to submit annually,
a detailed and verifiable plan for increasing women, minority, and
disabled veteran business enterprise procurement in all categories.
   (b) These annual plans shall include short- and long-term goals
and timetables, but not quotas, and shall include methods for
encouraging both prime contractors and grantees to engage women,
minority, and disabled veteran business enterprises in subcontracts
in all categories which provide subcontracting opportunities.
   (c) The commission shall establish guidelines for all electrical,
gas, and telephone corporations  with gross annual revenues exceeding
twenty-five million dollars (,000,000) and their
commission-regulated subsidiaries and affiliates, to be utilized in
establishing programs pursuant to this article.
   (d) Every electrical, gas, and telephone corporation  with gross
annual revenues exceeding twenty-five million dollars (,000,000)
shall furnish an annual report to the commission regarding the
implementation of programs established pursuant to this article in a
form that the commission shall require, and at the time that the
commission shall annually designate.
   (e) The commission shall provide a report to the Legislature on
September 1 of each year, on the progress of activities undertaken by
each electrical, gas, and telephone corporation  with gross annual
revenues exceeding twenty-five million dollars (,000,000) pursuant
to this article in the implementation of women, minority, and
disabled veterans business enterprise development programs.  The
commission shall recommend a program for carrying out the policy
declared in this article, together with recommendations for
legislation that it deems necessary or desirable to further that
policy.


8284.  (a) The commission shall, by rule or order, adopt criteria
for verifying and determining the eligibility of women, minority, and
disabled veteran business enterprises for procurement contracts.
   (b) The commission shall develop, and require every electrical,
gas, and telephone  corporation with gross annual revenues exceeding
twenty-five million dollars (,000,000) and their
commission-regulated subsidiaries and affiliates to implement, an
outreach program to inform and recruit women, minority, and disabled
veteran business enterprises to apply for procurement contracts under
this article.


8285.  Any person or corporation, through its directors, officers,
or agents, which falsely represents a business as a women, minority,
or disabled veteran business enterprise in the procurement of, or
attempt to procure, contracts from an electrical, gas, or telephone
corporation with gross annual revenues exceeding twenty-five million
dollars (,000,000), or a commission-regulated subsidiary or
affiliate subject to this article, shall be punished by a fine of not
more than five thousand dollars (,000), by imprisonment in a
county jail for not more than one year or in the state prison, or by
both that fine and imprisonment. In the case of a corporation, the
fine or imprisonment, or both, shall be imposed on every director,
officer, or agent responsible for the false statements.



8286.  In order to facilitate the participation of women-owned
businesses, minority-owned businesses, and small businesses in
contract procurement, any corporation subject to this article may
consider the following measures to include those businesses in all
phases of their contracting:
   (a) Timely or progressive payments to those businesses.
   (b) An amendment of the performance bond requirements when past
performance within a specified area of business justifies that
consideration.
   (c) The provision of assistance to those businesses by securing
contract payments to those businesses with letters of credit,
negotiable securities, or other financing arrangements or measures.