{"id":2525853,"date":"2025-12-28T16:10:01","date_gmt":"2025-12-28T21:10:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/white-business-owners-biggest-share-of-illinois-contract-group\/"},"modified":"2025-12-28T16:13:27","modified_gmt":"2025-12-28T21:13:27","slug":"white-business-owners-biggest-share-of-illinois-contract-group","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/white-business-owners-biggest-share-of-illinois-contract-group\/","title":{"rendered":"White business owners biggest share of Illinois contract group"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fwhite-business-owners-biggest-share-of-illinois-contract-group%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2525853&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Illinois&#8217; effort to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/illinois-diversity-commissions-budget-ballooning-but-results-lag\/\" title=\"Illinois diversity ...&#039;s budget ballooning but results lag\">increase state contracts<\/a> for minority- and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/bidens-choice-to-lead-dojs-civil-rights-division-melanin-endows-blacks-with-greater-mental-physical-and-spiritual-abilities-video\/\" title=\"Biden\u2019s Choice to Lead DOJ\u2019s Civil Rights Division: \u201cMelanin Endows Blacks with Greater Mental, Physical and Spiritual Abilities\u201d (VIDEO)\">women-owned businesses<\/a> has faltered after a switch to new certification software last year. Certified businesses fell from about 5,050 to roughly 2,800 over 17 months, in part because the new system cannot import certification data from other government entities (like Chicago, the state DOT and Cook County), which previously provided many direct certifications.<\/p>\n<p>The composition of the certified pool has shifted: white women-owned firms are now the largest share, displacing Black-owned businesses.The state&#8217;s Commission on Equity and Inclusion, created in 2022 with an annual budget near $7 million and seven paid commissioners, has struggled to reverse the decline. Staff are attempting outreach and <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >plan direct phone contact<\/a> next year; critics allege the software choice-made from a local minority-owned vendor-may have undermined the programme, a claim the commission has not publicly answered. Illinois aims to award at least 30% of contract dollars to certified firms, a target that is harder to meet as certifications drop.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">White business owners are biggest share of Illinois&rsquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/filings-delayed-in-convicted-ex-illinois-house-speakers-appeal\/\" title=\"Filings delayed in convicted ex-Illinois House speaker\u2019s appeal\">diversity-preferred contract group<\/a><\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<p>(The Center Square) &ndash; <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/illinois\/\">Illinois<\/a>&lsquo; initiative to boost the amount of state contract money it awards to <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/business\/\">businesses<\/a> owned by <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/racial-discrimination\/\">racial<\/a> minorities and women continues to struggle despite the tens of millions of dollars the state has spent.<\/p>\n<p>This month, the number of those businesses that are certified for preference in state contracting dropped again, extending a 17-month downward trend.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/business\/4363139\/sba-kelly-loeffler-small-business-excited-pay-taxes\/\">SBA head Loeffler says small business owners have never been &#8216;so excited&#8217; to pay taxes<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/house\/4363106\/pelosi-democrats-house-majority-2026\/\">Pelosi says GOP has &#8216;abolished&#8217; Congress, vows Democrats will retake House in 2026<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/state\/4363059\/mamdani-musk-fdny-chief-bonsignore\/\">Mamdani hits back at Musk after claim &#8216;people will die&#8217; over mayor-elect&#8217;s FDNY pick<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>The state&rsquo;s Commission on Equity and Inclusion has been unable thus far to reverse the trend that began&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thecentersquare.com\/illinois\/article_1d388202-7dda-4687-a573-d94e12f1554c.html\">when it switched<\/a>&nbsp;to a new computer software last year. It was meant to streamline the state&rsquo;s certification process but instead led to a precipitous decline in certifications.<\/p>\n<div class=\"tpd-featured-video featured-post-video in-content bridtv\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2456039\" class=\"brid\" style=\"width:1280;height:720;\"> <\/div>\n<div class=\"tpd-featured-video-placeholder\" style=\"position:relative;overflow:hidden;width:100%;padding-top:56.25%;background-color:#000;\">\n<div style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;bottom:0;right:0;width:100%;height:100%\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>At the time of the switch, there were about 5,050 certified businesses. That number has dropped to about 2,800, according to a staff report at the commission&rsquo;s meeting this month.<\/p>\n<p>Moreover, the racial makeup of the certified group has shifted. According to previous annual reports, Black-owned businesses had long been the largest share of the group. Now, businesses owned by white women are.<\/p>\n<p>Increasing the size of the certified group is a primary charge of the commission, which was formed by state lawmakers in 2022 and given annual budgets of about $7 million.<\/p>\n<p>Illinois seeks to award at least 30% of its state contract money to certified businesses, which get selection preference and help to navigate the contracting process. Critics call the program discriminatory.<\/p>\n<p>Each of the seven, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/illinois-diversity-computer-snafu-so-bad-it-has-to-be-intentional\/\" title=\"Illinois: Diversity computer snafu so bad it &#039;has to be intentional&#039;\">governor-appointed commissioners<\/a> who oversee the efforts are paid&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thecentersquare.com\/illinois\/article_05a70ee4-5c31-4ac2-a881-96f4f779be65.html\">about $150,000 annually<\/a>, and they are allowed to work other paid jobs. They also have a staff of more than 30 people.<\/p>\n<p>None of the commissioners has responded to requests from The Center Square for comment about the situation in recent weeks.<\/p>\n<p>Larry Ivory, the president of the Illinois State Black Chamber of Commerce, implored the commissioners in November to review their selection process for the software vendor.<\/p>\n<p>He&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thecentersquare.com\/illinois\/article_fd335160-e58b-4897-a20d-ddb30c7b7a3e.html\">had previously told<\/a>&nbsp;The Center Square that the computer problem is so egregious that someone must have chosen the software to deliberately kneecap the state&rsquo;s diversity efforts.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I want to make sure that, from a transparency point of view, that we address those issues in terms of who made the decision, if this&hellip;&rdquo; he said during a November commission meeting before someone muted his microphone.<\/p>\n<p>Ivory attended the meeting remotely via videoconferencing software, and his remarks during a public comment portion of the meeting were cut short when he exceeded a three-minute limit, even though no one else from the public was waiting to speak and the meeting was well short of its two-hour allotment. The meeting adjourned after about 40 minutes.<\/p>\n<p>Commission chairperson Nina Harris did not address Ivory&rsquo;s remarks about the computer system but admonished him for an unrelated comment about the state&rsquo;s potential lack of oversight of discrimination in certain business markets.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Larry Ivory, you are incorrect,&rdquo; Harris said.<\/p>\n<p>The problem with the new computer software is its inability to download certification data from the systems of other government entities, unlike the previous software the commission had used.<\/p>\n<p>It has greatly hampered the commission&rsquo;s certification efforts because, historically, most of the businesses were directly certified by another entity, such as the city of Chicago, the state Department of Transportation and Cook County.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/opinion\/editorials\/4362312\/dangerous-supreme-court-decision-national-guard\/\">A DANGEROUS SUPREME COURT DECISION<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The commission&rsquo;s staff has been scrambling to inform businesses that they need to seek certification directly with the state, but it&rsquo;s unclear how successful those efforts have been. The staff intends to contact businesses directly by telephone next year.<\/p>\n<p>The computer vendor selected was a local minor-owned business.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>White-owned firms largest in Illinois diversity list<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2869,"featured_media":2525854,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AP24129746902261.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[69616,69618,69617],"class_list":["post-2525853","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-illinois-government-contracts","tag-procurement-disparities","tag-white-business-owners"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AP24129746902261.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2525853","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2869"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2525853"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2525853\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2525857,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2525853\/revisions\/2525857"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2525854"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2525853"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2525853"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2525853"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}