[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 54 (Monday, March 28, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E305]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       INTRODUCTION OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ADVERTISING EQUITY 
                           ACCOUNTABILITY ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 28, 2022

  Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, today, I introduce the Federal Government 
Advertising Equity Accountability Act, which would require all federal 
agencies to include in their annual budget requests to Congress the 
amount they spend on advertising contracts with small disadvantaged 
businesses (SDBs) and businesses owned by minorities and women. Federal 
agencies would be required to provide prior and projected total 
expenditures for such contracts. The Committee on Appropriations, at my 
and Representative Barbara Lee's request, has been requiring such 
information from many agencies for the last several years, but my bill 
would codify this requirement and apply it to all federal agencies.
  In 2007, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) examined spending 
on advertising contracts with minority-owned businesses by five 
agencies--the Department of Defense, the Department of the Treasury, 
the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of the 
Interior and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration--and 
found that only five percent of the $4.3 billion available for 
advertising contracts went to minority businesses. In light of these 
concerning findings, several Members of Congress and I sent a letter to 
GAO in April 2016 requesting updated information on the amount of 
federal advertising dollars spent with SDBs and businesses owned by 
minorities and women. That GAO report, released in July 2018, showed 
that in fiscal year 2017, only 16 percent of the federal government's 
advertising contract obligations went to SDBs and businesses owned by 
minorities and women.
  The federal government is the largest advertiser in the United 
States, and it has an obligation to ensure equitable access to its 
contracts for SDBs and businesses owned by minorities and women. The 
GAO's findings demonstrate that there is still much progress to be 
made.
  The regular collection of information on federal advertising 
contracts with SDBs and businesses owned by women and minorities, along 
with the provision of this information to legislators and stakeholders, 
is essential to bridging the gap between what current statistics show 
and a more inclusive advertising landscape. This bill would achieve 
these goals while also promoting transparency and encouraging federal 
agencies to strive to reach minorities, who often receive the news from 
smaller media outlets that serve communities of color. The requirement 
that agencies submit prior and projected information regarding the 
amount of advertising dollars spent with SDBs and businesses owned by 
minorities and women would allow federal agencies to evaluate their 
progress over time. The regular collection of this information would 
also demonstrate that the promotion of equity in advertising, and in 
all areas of government, should be a continuous effort that is 
important to the mission of every agency.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

                          ____________________