8281
. (a) The Legislature hereby finds and declares that the
essence of the American economic system of private enterprise is
free, open, and transparent competition. Only through free, open, and
transparent 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 ensured. The preservation and expansion of that competition are
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, disabled veteran, and LGBT business enterprises is
encouraged and developed. Therefore, it is the declared policy of the
state to aid the interests of women, minority, disabled veteran, and
LGBT 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 public utilities, including, but not limited to, renewable
energy, wireless telecommunications, broadband, smart grid, and rail
projects, are awarded to women, minority, disabled veteran, and LGBT
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, disabled veteran, and LGBT 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 and some regulated utilities that have
established short- and long-range women, minority, disabled veteran,
and LGBT business enterprise goals are awarding 30 percent or more of
their contracts to these business enterprises.
(C) Women, minority, disabled veteran, and LGBT business
enterprises have traditionally received less than a proportionate
share of regulated public utility procurement contracts, especially
in renewable energy, wireless telecommunications, broadband, smart
grid, and rail projects.
(D) It is in the state's interest to expeditiously improve the
economically disadvantaged position of women, minority, disabled
veteran, and LGBT business enterprises.
(E) The position of these businesses can be substantially improved
by providing long-range substantial goals for procurement by
regulated public utilities of technology, equipment, supplies,
services, materials, and construction work, especially in renewable
energy, wireless telecommunications, broadband, smart grid, and rail
projects, from women, minority, disabled veteran, and LGBT
businesses.
(F) That procurement also benefits the regulated 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.
(G) That the long-term economic viability of this state depends
substantially upon the ability of renewable energy, wireless
telecommunications, broadband, smart grid, and rail projects to
incorporate women, minority, disabled veteran, and LGBT businesses
into those projects.
(2) It is the purpose of this article to do all of the following:
(A) Encourage greater economic opportunity for women, minority,
disabled veteran, and LGBT business enterprises.
(B) Promote competition among regulated public utility suppliers
in order to enhance economic efficiency in the procurement of
electrical, gas, water, wireless telecommunications service provider,
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,
disabled veteran, and LGBT business enterprises.