Jump to content

Minority Business Development Agency

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Minority Business Development Agency
Seal of the Minority Business Development Agency
Agency overview
Formed1969; 56 years ago (1969)
HeadquartersWashington, D.C.
Employees50-100
Annual budgetUS$30 million (2009)
US$32 million (est. 2010)
US$32 million (est. 2011)
US$34 million (est. 2017)
Agency executive
  • Eric Morrissette, Acting Under Secretary of Commerce for Minority Business Development
Parent agencyU.S. Department of Commerce
Websitewww.mbda.gov

The Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that promotes growth and competitiveness of the United States' minority-owned businesses, including Hispanic and Latino American, Asian Pacific American, African American, and Native American businesses.[1]

MBDA's stated mission is to promote the growth and competitiveness of minority-owned businesses by providing access to capital, access to contracts and access to market opportunities – both domestic and global. The main feature of the organization and its site is to provide business consulting services to minority business owners.[2]

History

[edit]

On March 5, 1969, President Richard Nixon issued Executive Order 11458, establishing the Office of Minority Business Enterprise.[1] On October 13, 1971, President Nixon issued Executive Order 11625, which clarified MBDA's authority and expanded the scope of its operations.[3] In 1979, the agency was renamed the Minority Business Development Agency.[1]

The Reagan Administration established the Minority Business Development Center program, which became MBDA's primary method for delivering technical and management services to minority businesses.[1] The George H.W. Bush Administration proposed eliminating the agency and transferring its mission to the Small Business Administration, but ultimately continued the agency as an entity within the Department of Commerce.[1]

The agency was cut in President Trump's FY18 executive budget,[4] but subsequently restored in the President's FY19 budget – the only Federal agency to be restored after its proposed elimination.[5]

On November 15, 2021, President Joe Biden signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which established the Minority Business Development Agency as a permanent agency.[6] The law authorized $73 million in appropriations for MBDA for FY2021, $55 million for FY2022, $70 million for FY2023, and $68.25 million for FY2024.[1]

In March 2024, a judge ruled that MBDA must provide support to all businesses and owners, regardless of race.[6]

In March 2025, President Trump issued an executive order that directed eliminating MBDA and several other government organizations "to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law".[7][8]

National Minority Enterprise Development Week

[edit]
President Trump with 2017 National MED Week Award Winners in the Oval Office

The Agency holds National Minority Enterprise Development Week in the month of October, observed in the United States to recognize and celebrate the achievements and contributions of the minority business enterprise community.

President Ronald Reagan first recognized National MED Week in 1983.[9] The week is formally celebrated each year by the Minority Business Development Agency, a U.S. government agency housed within the U.S. Department of Commerce.[10]

On October 20, 2017, President Donald Trump issued a proclamation which officially designated October 22 through October 28, 2017 as National Minority Enterprise Development Week.[11][12]

On October 24, 2017, President Trump recognized minority-owned businesses in the Oval Office during National MED Week, when he welcomed winners of the National MED Week Awards with Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross and MBDA Acting National Director Christopher A. Garcia.[13][12]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f Levin, Adam G. (June 6, 2024). "The Minority Business Development Agency: An Overview of Its History and Programs". Congress.gov: Congressional Research Service. Retrieved March 16, 2025.
  2. ^ "About MBDA". Minority Business Development Agency. Retrieved April 16, 2018.
  3. ^ "Executive Order 11625--Prescribing additional arrangements for developing and coordinating a national program for minority business enterprise". National Archives. October 13, 1971. Retrieved April 16, 2018.
  4. ^ Gregory Krieg; Will Mullery (May 23, 2017). "Trump's budget by the numbers: What gets cut and why". CNN. Retrieved April 16, 2018.
  5. ^ "Efficient, Effective, Accountable: An American Budget Fiscal Year 2019" (PDF). whitehouse.gov. Retrieved April 15, 2018 – via National Archives.
  6. ^ a b Walker, Adria R. (March 8, 2024). "Federal agency to develop minority businesses can't only help minority businesses, Texas judge rules". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved March 16, 2025.
  7. ^ Bianco, Ali (March 15, 2025). "Trump's next agency cuts include US-backed global media, library and museum grants". POLITICO. Retrieved March 16, 2025.
  8. ^ Pager, Tyler (March 15, 2025). "Trump Orders Gutting of 7 Agencies, Including Voice of America's Parent". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 16, 2025.
  9. ^ "Remarks at a White House Ceremony Marking the Observance of Minority Enterprise Development Week, President Reagan". Minority Business Development Agency. March 28, 2012. Retrieved April 16, 2018.
  10. ^ "2017 National Minority Enterprise Development (MED) Week". Minority Business Development Agency. October 11, 2017. Retrieved April 16, 2018.
  11. ^ "Minority Enterprise Development Week, 2017". October 26, 2017. Retrieved April 16, 2018.
  12. ^ a b "Trump promises "jobs, jobs, jobs"". CBS News. New York City: CBS. October 24, 2017. Retrieved October 27, 2017.
  13. ^ "Trump says minority-owned firms to succeed 'especially with Trump as your president'". The Washington Times. Retrieved April 16, 2018.

Public Domain This article incorporates public domain material from Adam G. Levin. The Minority Business Development Agency: An Overview of Its History and Programs. Congressional Research Service.

[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Minority_Business_Development_Agency&oldid=1280716276"