Treasury Department Amends the DTAR Adding Contract Clause on Minority and Women Inclusion | Practical Law

Treasury Department Amends the DTAR Adding Contract Clause on Minority and Women Inclusion | Practical Law

The Department of the Treasury (Treasury) has amended the Department of the Treasury Acquisition Regulation (DTAR) to include a contract clause on minority and women inclusion, implementing a requirement of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010. 

Treasury Department Amends the DTAR Adding Contract Clause on Minority and Women Inclusion

by Practical Law Commercial
Published on 21 Mar 2014 • USA (National/Federal)
The Department of the Treasury (Treasury) has amended the Department of the Treasury Acquisition Regulation (DTAR) to include a contract clause on minority and women inclusion, implementing a requirement of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010.
On March 20, 2014, the Department of the Treasury (Treasury) amended the Treasury Acquisition Regulation (DTAR) to include a mandatory contract clause to ensure the inclusion of minorities and women in the workforce of its contractors, in accordance with the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (Dodd-Frank Act). (79 Fed. Reg. 15551-4 (Mar. 20, 2014).)
Section 342 of the Dodd-Frank Act established an Office of Minority and Women Inclusion (OMWI) within certain agencies, including the Departmental Offices of the Treasury. Subsection 342(c) mandates all covered agencies (those in which an OMWI was established) to require their contractors to provide a written statement that the contractor shall ensure, to the maximum extent possible, the fair inclusion of minorities and women in its workforce and, as applicable, the workforce of its subcontractors. (12 U.S.C. §5452.)
Starting April 21, 2014, Treasury will implement subsection 342(c)'s contractor-statement requirement by requiring the inclusion of a clause in every service contract with Treasury's Departmental Offices above the simplified acquisition threshold of $150,000 (48 C.F.R. § 2.101).
The clause requires contractors to:
  • Make good faith efforts to include minorities and women in its workforce. Treasury interprets good faith efforts to:
    • mean efforts consistent with the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Executive Order 11246 of 1965; and
    • include actions by the contractor intended to identify and remove barriers to, and expand opportunities for, minorities and women within its workforce (for example, by recruiting and providing on the job training for minorities and women).
  • Provide the contracting officer with documentation of actions taken to comply with the clause, within ten days of a written request. This documentation can include:
    • a report of the total number of the contractor's employees, and the number of minority and women employees, by race, ethnicity and gender;
    • a list of subcontract awards under the contract that indicates dollar amount, date of award and subcontractor's race, ethnicity and gender;
    • information about each subcontractor's workforce similar to that reported by the contractor about its own workforce; and
    • the contractor's plan to ensure that minorities and women have appropriate opportunities to enter and advance within its workforce.
  • Include the substance of the clause in all of its subcontracts above the simplified acquisition threshold.
Potential penalties for contractors failing to make the good faith efforts required by the clause include:
The text of the clause will be entered in the Code of Federal Regulations at 48 C.F.R. pt. 1052.222-70.
For more information on Section 342 of the Dodd-Frank Act, see Legal Update, Proposed Joint Diversity Standards under Dodd-Frank Act Section 342.
For information on government contracts, see Country Q & A, Public procurement in the United States: overview.