[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 181 (Wednesday, September 22, 2021)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 52587-52588]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-20625]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 181 / Wednesday, September 22, 2021 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

[[Page 52587]]

                Proclamation 10260 of September 17, 2021

                
Minority Enterprise Development Week, 2021

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                For many families, a business is more than a job--it is 
                the fulfillment of a dream: a better life, a family 
                legacy, a place in the community. Minority businesses 
                in particular are the heart and soul of so many 
                communities across our Nation. From Wall Street to Main 
                Street, over 9.2 million minority business enterprises 
                (MBEs) support jobs and generate more than $1.8 
                trillion for our economy every year. During Minority 
                Enterprise Development Week, our Nation recognizes the 
                importance of minority-owned businesses and the impact 
                they have on every community.

                Even as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to test 
                America's businesses like few events in our Nation's 
                history, MBEs and minority business owners have shown 
                remarkable resilience, working around the clock and 
                adapting to changes to keep their businesses running 
                and their employees safely working. Despite these 
                efforts, minority-owned businesses have been 
                disproportionately hard-hit, with many forced to shut 
                down because of revenue losses and many more hanging on 
                by a thread.

                My Administration is committed to supporting minority 
                entrepreneurs and minority-owned businesses. On my 
                first day in office, I signed an Executive Order 
                directing the entire Federal Government to advance 
                equity for underserved communities across our Nation, 
                specifically with respect to Federal procurement. In 
                order to help our struggling businesses during the 
                darkest moments of the pandemic, my Administration 
                revamped the Paycheck Protection Program to provide 
                greater access to small businesses, including minority-
                owned businesses.

                Because the Federal Government is the Nation's largest 
                buyer, purchasing $600 billion of goods and services 
                each year, and because these purchases not only meet 
                our Nation's needs but also supply economic 
                opportunity, I recently announced a new goal to 
                increase the share of contracts awarded to small 
                disadvantaged businesses by 50 percent over the next 5 
                years. Additionally, my Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal 
                will expand the authority and stature of the Minority 
                Business Development Agency within the Department of 
                Commerce so that it can continue to break barriers, 
                blaze new trails, and eliminate the unique challenges 
                minority-owned businesses face in accessing capital, 
                contracts, and market avenues to success.

                During Minority Enterprise Development Week, we 
                recognize that our Nation and our economy are stronger 
                because of the hardworking men and women who comprise 
                America's minority business community. They 
                consistently demonstrate the courage it takes to 
                overcome adversity, seize opportunity, and contribute 
                to our shared prosperity.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of 
                the United States of America, by virtue of the 
                authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws 
                of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 19, 
                2021, through September 25, 2021, as Minority 
                Enterprise Development Week. I call upon the people of 
                the United States to acknowledge and celebrate the 
                achievements and contributions of minority business 
                entrepreneurs and enterprises and commit together to 
                promote systemic economic equality.

[[Page 52588]]

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                seventeenth day of September, in the year of our Lord 
                two thousand twenty-one, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and forty-
                sixth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2021-20625
Filed 9-21-21; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3295-F1-P