Doing Business with Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA )
About the Episode:
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) is one of the District of Columbia’s official certification agencies for the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Program and the Small Business Enterprise (SBE) Program. The new Small Business Program (SBP), Micro Business Program (MBP), and Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) Program are WMATA initiatives.
The Virginia MBDA Business Center hosted a discussion targeting our minority small business community. WMATA representatives discussed how to do business with WMATA and what businesses need to know about their new Minority Business Enterprise Program, Small Business Program, and Micro-Business Programs.
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Here’s What You’ll Get In This Episode
[00:30] Episode intro and a quick bio of today’s guests
[05:17] A bit about the Small Business Program at WMATA
[07:32] The five socio-economic programs and two certification programs
[09:35] Who’s eligible for Disadvantage Business Enterprise and Small Business Enterprise
[12:42] The Micro Business Program
[13:43] Key provisions of these programs
[16:24] Certification, re-certification, and three-year audit for these programs
[20:23] Purpose of contract compliance
[31:17] If you’re a CBE with a DBE destination, is there a streamlined application process?
[32:31] Application criteria for the SBP and MBPS
[33:22] A bit about disparity studies and how long the DEB certification takes
[34:30] More Q&A’s
[41:43] WMATAs outreach events you can check
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