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MBE and WBE certification

Also called: MBE, WBE, minority business enterprise, women business enterprise, M/WBE, state minority certification

MBE and WBE are state, city and agency certifications for minority-owned and women-owned businesses, used in state and local procurement to meet participation goals or to award preference points.

There is no single rule: each state, large city, transit agency, school district and public university sets its own criteria, usually majority ownership and control by the qualifying owners plus a size cap. Some states certify once for every agency in the state, others require separate certifications, and many accept a private certification body's review. Goals and preferences are set in the state procurement code or the agency's own policy and appear in the solicitation as a participation goal or a scoring factor.

What to check: which certification the solicitation names (a county may not accept the state's), what documents the application needs, how long the review takes, and whether the goal is a requirement or a good-faith effort. Primes on goal contracts actively look for certified subs, which makes the certification useful even before you prime.

What it is not: recognized by federal buyers. SAM.gov set-asides use SBA programs, not MBE or WBE.

See also: Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE), Woman-Owned Small Business (WOSB), State procurement portal, Subcontractor

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