Minority Business Development Agency

Minority Business Development Agency Type: Executive Departments (Sub-organization) Parent organization: U.S. Department of Commerce Employees: 100 Executive: Under Secretary of Commerce for Minority Business Development Budget: $67 million (Fiscal Year 2024) Address: 1401 Constitution Ave NW, Washington, DC 20230, United States Website: https://www.mbda.gov Creation Legislation: Executive Order 11458 by President Richard Nixon in 1969 Wikipedia: Minority Business Development Agency

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Mission MBDA promotes the growth and global competitiveness of Minority Business Enterprises (MBEs) through access to capital, contracts, and markets. It works to foster the economic development of minority-owned businesses by providing business consulting, technical assistance, and promoting opportunities for MBEs.

Services Business consulting; Access to capital; Contracting assistance; Market research; International trade assistance

Regulations

Minority Business Development Agency
File:MBDAlogo.jpg
Seal of the Minority Business Development Agency
Agency Overview
Formed	1969 (1969)
Headquarters	Washington, D.C.
Employees	50-100
Annual budget	US$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 agency	U.S. Department of Commerce
Website
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. The current Under Secretary is Eric Morrissette, who is serving in an acting capacity, and the current Deputy Under Secretary is Jessica Cavazos.

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.

History

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

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

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. Prior to this, the agency was operating solely under Executive Order 11458.

National Minority Enterprise Development Week

File:Donald Trump 2017 National Minority Enterprise Development Week Business Award Winners.jpg

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. 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.

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.

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.

See also

• Title 15 of the Code of Federal Regulations
• Small Business Administration
• U.S. Department of Commerce

Further reading

• The Minority Business Development Agency: An Overview of Its History and Programs (Jan 11, 2023) Congressional Research Service report.

External links

• Minority Business Development Agency in the Federal Register