[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 45 (Wednesday, March 6, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8919-8920]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-5260]



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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Minority Business Development Agency
[Docket No. 960214029-6029-01]
RIN 0640-XX01


Implementation of Pilot Community-Based Enhanced Services (CBES) 
Initiative in Baltimore, Maryland, and the Identification of Other 
Markets To Be Considered as Alternatives to the Minority Business 
Development Center Program for the Delivery of Management and Technical 
Assistance to Minority Firms and Entrepreneurs

AGENCY: Minority Business Development Agency, Commerce.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) will begin to 
implement, on a pilot basis, its Community-Based Enhanced Services 
(CBES) Initiative in the Baltimore, Maryland Metropolitan Statistical 
Area (MSA) as an alternative to the Minority Business Development 
Center (BDC) Program. Under the CBES Initiative, the Department of 
Commerce has made a financial assistance award to the Empower Baltimore 
Management Corporation (Empower Baltimore), a Maryland non-profit 
corporation, to assist Empower Baltimore in establishing a 
comprehensive minority business assistance program. Through the efforts 
of Empower Baltimore, the services provided under this award shall be 
coordinated with the activities of Baltimore's Federal Empowerment 
Zone. Should the Baltimore pilot prove successful, MBDA has also 
identified other markets which will be assessed to determine the 
feasibility of providing services under a fully developed and 
implemented CBES Initiative.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Paul R. Webber, IV, Assistant 
Director for Operations, Minority Business Development Agency, U.S. 
Department of Commerce, Washington, D.C. 20230. (202) 482-3237.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The CBES Initiative is a community-based 
strategy that seeks to identify joint venture partners with whom MBDA 
can collaborate in order to provide an enhanced level of services to 
minority firms. The purpose of the CBES program is to enable MBDA to 
enter into strategic alliances, coordinating the delivery of its 
services with those of other entities capable of assisting in minority 
and/or small and disadvantaged business development in a particular 
market. The collaborative approach of CBES is intended to maximize 
opportunities for MBDA to leverage its funding with state, local, 
public, non-profit and private funding in order to produce the most 
effective coordinated services available to the local service area.
    Under this pilot CBES Initiative, Empower Baltimore has been 
selected as the recipient of federal funding. Empower Baltimore is the 
non-profit corporation established by the City of Baltimore to 
coordinate all activities arising from Baltimore's designation as a 
Federal Empowerment Zone, and to administer all funds earmarked for the 
Zone. Services to the minority business community under this award will 
be provided by the Council for Economic and Business Opportunity, Inc. 
(CEBO), a Maryland-based non-profit organization with over twenty-seven 
(27) years of experience in minority business development. The total 
annual cost of this project will be $575,000. The federal share will be 
$250,000 per year. The recipient's non-federal share, in the amount of 
$325,000, will be derived from client fees, in-kind contributions, and 
substantial additional funding awarded to CEBO by the City of 
Baltimore, Baltimore County and other non-federal sources.
    The terms of this award require CEBO to continue to provide general 
management and technical assistance and other business assistance to 
minority firms and entrepreneurs in the Baltimore MSA, using its 
existing non-federal funding. The proceeds from the federal financial 
assistance will be used to provide specialized and enhanced management 
and technical assistance in the areas of 1) finance and capital 
development, and 2) marketing and procurement. As the singular 
organization charged with managing Baltimore's Empowerment Zone, 
Empower Baltimore brings a unique capability to coordinate all of the 
economic development activity within the Zone, and to insure that 
MBDA's goals for minority business development are achieved.
    The selection of CEBO as subcontractor was based on a comprehensive 
market assessment prepared by the research firm of D.J. Miller & 
Associates, Inc., an independent consultant under contract with MBDA. 
The purpose of the assessment was to examine the business environment 
for minority firms in the Baltimore, MSA, identifying the particular 
needs of local minority firms, and to identify resource providers and 
service organizations providing assistance to the minority business 
community. Since the Baltimore pilot is being used to test the CBES 
Initiative, MBDA proceeded to conduct an internal review of the 
organizations listed in the report to determine which one would be best 
able to accomplish the program goals of the award, based on existing 
capabilities and funding levels. CEBO was identified from this review 
as the most suitable provider. Should the Baltimore pilot prove to be 
successful and the CBES Initiative expanded to other markets, the 
Department of Commerce will make future awards on a competitive basis.

Statement of Policy:

    The CBES Initiative is considered to be an alternative service 
delivery program which could replace the BDC Program in certain 
selected markets. The Empower Baltimore Award will be 

[[Page 8920]]
used to test the feasibility of the Initiative. One of the key benefits 
of the CBES approach is that it enables MBDA, with the participation of 
joint venture partners, to deliver management and technical assistance 
services that are specifically tailored for a given minority business 
community.
    In its initial stage, markets targeted for CBES will undergo a 
comprehensive community assessment, which will be used to determine the 
feasibility of providing service to those markets under the CBES 
Initiative and, if appropriate, to design a coordinated funding and 
service delivery strategy for its subject market, including the 
identification of community-based organizations and service providers 
who, by virtue of their resources and expertise, would constitute 
potential joint venture partners. Subject to funding availability, and 
shifts in the Agency's program goals with respect to specific markets, 
MBDA expects to assess the following locations to determine the 
feasibility of providing service to these markets under the CBES 
Initiative: Anaheim/Santa Ana, California; Los Angeles, California; 
Oxnard, California; San Francisco, California; Jacksonville, Florida; 
Orlando, Florida; Tampa/St. Petersburg, Florida; Atlanta, Georgia; 
Chicago, Illinois; Shreveport, Louisiana; Boston, Massachusetts; Las 
Vegas, Nevada; Newark/Jersey City, New Jersey; Bronx, New York; 
Charlotte, North Carolina; Cincinnati, Ohio; Brownsville, Texas; Corpus 
Christi, Texas; El Paso, Texas; Houston, Texas; Laredo, Texas; McAllen, 
Texas; San Antonio, Texas; and Washington, D.C.
    The comprehensive market assessments of these locations will also 
be prepared by the research firm of D.J. Miller & Associates, Inc. 
These assessments will result in written final reports which will then 
be used to determine the optimum service delivery strategy for each 
market. Organizations interested in being included in the market 
assessments should contact the further information contact listed at 
the beginning of this notice.
    MBDA will contribute federal funding to selected joint ventures, 
and its best practices experience and technical support from its 
headquarters and regional offices. Recipients of direct federal funding 
will be limited to non-profit organizations, state, local or Indian 
tribal entities. State and local governments, as well as private 
funding sources, will be attracted to the joint venture because the 
pooling effect of funds for a common mission will allow all partners to 
realize a greater return on investment. Furthermore, the delivery of 
enhanced services through community-based partners decreases the 
dependency of the project on any single funding source, and facilitates 
the development of the project as a long-term resource in its local 
market.
    Individual notices, which will solicit applications for Federal 
funding on a competitive basis, will be published in the Federal 
Register as new markets are identified for inclusion in the CBES 
Initiative.

    Authority:
    15 U.S.C. Sec. 1512 and Executive Order 11625.

    Dated: February 28, 1996.
Joan Parrott-Fonseca,
Director, Minority Business Development Agency.
[FR Doc. 96-5260 Filed 3-5-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-21-P