Mayor Appears to Lack Authority to Halt MWBE Program
The Spencer administration’s recent announcement that the city has suspended its minority-owned and women-owned contractor business enterprise (MWBE) diversity program has caused a stir in City Hall. The program was established by city ordinance and has been in place for decades. While City Hall insiders are quick to say that the program has only been “paused”, the mayor’s office and other elected officials have made it clear that the program would not be restarted. Rather, city officials are preparing to introduce a “community-centered” replacement program in September.
The mayor’s office has repeatedly stated that the move was made reluctantly and only in the face of threats to withhold federal funding. Both the mayor and St. Louis Development Corporation (SLDC) leader Otis Williams have stated that the city received notice from the federal government that continuing the program would jeopardize funds for tornado recovery and city programs. Mound City Messenger has filed a “Sunshine request” for a copy of the notice. Due to this, Mayor Spencer took steps to suspend the program at the end of last week. These followed SLDC’s July 17th decision to stop processing certifications for the program.
Following the program’s suspension, four members of the Board of Aldermen have stepped forward with claims that they weren’t consulted on the program’s suspension. They argue that the program is legal and should be reinstated. In fact, it is unclear if Mayor Spencer has the legal authority to unilaterally suspend the MWBE program. A review of the ordinance does not reveal any verbiage that would allow the mayor’s office to partially or fully suspend the program. The ordinance appears to only allow changes to be made as a result of a court decision. This would mean that the ordinance is potentially still enforceable.
Legal challenge from the Board of Aldermen?
President of the Board of Aldermen Megan Green has been publicly critical of the Spencer administration’s decision to stop the MWBE program. She has taken to social media on multiple occasions to decry the Spencer administration’s decision and call for its reversal. She has also used her social media to praise other locales that are standing up to the Trump administration’s challenge to similar policies.
President Green’s office was contacted for comment on this story, and spokesperson Yusuf Daneshyar responded, “The Mayor’s intention is to pause decision-making on new contracts that have not yet been approved. That is to say the program itself is not being suspended, but rather decisions about new contracts will be delayed while the City works with consultants to evaluate its MWBE program in light of the memo issued by the Department of Justice.” When pushed further and presented with President Green’s own statement calling for the program’s reinstatement, her spokesperson responded, “Contractors and stakeholders, including President Green, urged the Mayor’s Office to engage with experts before taking decisive action on the City’s MWBE program—which the Mayor agreed to and announced earlier this week. With that information, both the President and the Mayor are committed to working together to establish alternative legislation that supports minority contractors, addresses disparities, and is legally defensible.”
These statements would seemingly be at odds with President Green’s public comments and social media posting in the aftermath of the suspension’s announcement, which clearly called for the city to repeal its pause on the MWBE program. It is also at odds with her social media posts that state the city’s MWBE program meets the requirements set out in the Supreme Court’s Richmond v. Croson (1989) decision. A recent post on President Green’s Facebook page explained this court case and stated the “legal precedent still stands, and our city’s disparity study meets those requirements. In the same social media post, President Green went on to note that “Places like King County, WA have already sued the federal government over this. That lawsuit won a temporary injunction in May, stopping the Trump administration from enforcing its new grant restrictions. We could join that lawsuit. A dozen other cities already have.”
In other cities, the legislative branch of government has been active in the process of repealing similar programs. One of the only other municipalities to have proactively ended its minority contracting program is Fort Worth, TX, whose city council voted to overturn the ordinance earlier this week. This is over a month after the city council began considering the measure.
Rumors of a Backroom Deal
Some political observers have noted that all of these actions happened after the Board of Aldermen recessed for the summer. SLDC’s decision to halt certifications happened six days after the Board of Aldermen recessed for summer break after their July 11th meeting. Mayor Spencer’s announcement came around two weeks later. In the weeks since the announcement of the program’s suspension, most members of the Board of Aldermen have yet to raise public objections to the move. This includes numerous non-white and women aldermen. It is notable that most of the Board of Aldermen’s members are either women or identify as racial minorities. If the program could only be suspended by legislative action, then it potentially raises questions as to why the aldermen have allowed the city’s executive branch to usurp its authority by allowing the mayor to overturn ordinances at her discretion.
Some have suggested this series of events was timed to allow the Board of Aldermen the opportunity to avoid a vote on ending the MWBE program. Taking such a public vote would be difficult for many members to swallow. The strategic timing of the change potentially provides legislators with political cover to make politically unpopular alterations to the program. It is a given that passage of even a weakened version would appear more politically tenable, compared to the current state of a complete suspension. In many ways, the way things have played out allows all of the local elected officials involved in the matter to assign responsibility for the decision to the Trump administration. Given that even outspoken opponents of the change, such as President Green, are unwilling to take action, it is likely that speculation of such a “deal” will continue.
Note: The Spencer administration was contacted for comment on this story. They have not responded. Mound City Messenger also reached out to the four aldermen who have stated they want the program to be reinstated. They were asked if they wished to comment on the ordinance’s potential continued enforceability and whether they would consider legal action to overturn the Spencer administration’s decision. As of publication, none have responded.
