By: Derek Hawkins//November 7, 2016//
7th Circuit Court of Appeals
Case Name: Midwest Fence Corporation v. United States Department of Transportation, et al
Case No.: 15-1827
Officials: BAUER and HAMILTON, Circuit Judges, and PETERSON, District Judge.
Focus: Constitutionality – DBE Certification
“Plaintiff Midwest Fence Corporation challenges federal and state programs that offer advantages in highway construction contracting to disadvantaged business enterprises, known as DBEs. For purposes of federally funded highway construction, DBEs are small businesses that are owned and managed by “individuals who are both socially and economically disadvantaged,” 49 C.F.R. § 26.5, primarily racial minorities and women, who have historically faced significant obstacles in the construction industry due to discrimination, § 26.67(a). Pursuant to the federal DBE program, states that accept federal highway funding must establish DBE participation goals for federally funded highway projects and must attempt to reach those goals through processes tailored to actual market conditions. . . The district court granted the defendants’ motions for summary judgment. Midwest Fence Corp. v. U.S. Dep’t of Transportation, 84 F. Supp. 3d 705 (N.D. Ill. 2015). We affirm. We join other circuits in holding that the federal DBE program is facially constitutional. The program serves a compelling government interest in remedying a history of discrimination in highway construction contracting. The program provides states with ample discretion to tailor their DBE programs to the realities of their own markets and requires the use of raceand gender-neutral measures before turning to race- and gender-conscious ones. The IDOT and Tollway programs also survive strict scrutiny. These state defendants have established a substantial basis in evidence to support the need to remedy the effects of past discrimination in their markets, and the programs are narrowly tailored to serve that remedial purpose.”
Affirmed