Members of the Women First National Legislative Committee and DBEs of America traveled to Washington, D.C. in early March for a two-day Capitol Hill fly-in to urge Congress to prioritize reauthorization of the federal Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Program in the upcoming Surface Transportation bill. Representing more than 50,000 DBE-certified small businesses nationwide, participants met with bipartisan Senate offices and joined a policy roundtable with members and staff associated with the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.
During meetings with the offices of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senators Alex Padilla, Raphael Warnock, and Angela Alsobrooks, fly-in participants emphasized the critical role DBE-certified firms play in delivering transportation projects while supporting more than 500,000 jobs in communities across the country. These locally rooted specialty contractors help ensure federal infrastructure dollars flow back into the communities where projects take place, supporting small businesses, strengthening local economies, and creating good-paying jobs.
Advocates also underscored the urgency of reauthorizing the DBE Program, warning that failure to act could disrupt thousands of small businesses and put billions of dollars in economic activity at risk. With more qualified small businesses stepping up to meet the nation’s growing infrastructure needs, participants delivered a clear message to lawmakers: protecting the DBE Program means protecting American small businesses, local jobs, and fair competition in federally funded contracting.