Missouri Governor Mike Parson has rescinded an executive order that set benchmarks for state agencies to procure goods and services from businesses owned by minorities and women, citing “legal concerns.”
Parson, a Republican nearing the end of his term, on October 23 canceled 177 executive orders, some of which dated to the 1980s. The governor’s office said the orders were no longer “necessary or applicable,” according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Among the rescinded orders was one issued by former Democratic Governor Jay Nixon in 2015 that set a target for state agencies to allocate 10 percent of their purchasing to businesses owned by minorities and another 10 percent to those owned by women.
Missouri Governor Mike Parson speaks during a press conference at Woodland High School on April 5, 2023, in Marble Hill, Missouri. Last week, Parson rescinded an executive order that set goals for state agencies to make purchases from businesses owned by minorities and women.
Michael B. Thomas/Getty Images
Concern Among Advocates and Business Leaders
The move has sparked concern among advocates and business leaders, who worry it could dismantle gains made in state contracting for minority and women-owned businesses.
“What Missouri is doing is sending out a clear signal to anyone who has faced a barrier to participating in procurement,” Nimrod Chapel Jr., president of the Missouri NAACP, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “And that signal is: no need to apply.”
The governor’s office pointed to recent court decisions as the basis for withdrawing Nixon’s order.
The statement did not go into detail on what the legal concerns were.
Parson’s spokesperson, Johnathan Shiflett, said the state is still obligated to develop a workforce that “reflects the diversity of Missouri citizens.”
Shiflett said rescinding the executive orders grants the state “necessary flexibility.”
Affirmative Action Legal Cases
Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down affirmative action in college admissions, barring institutions from considering race in admissions decisions.
More recently, a federal judge in Texas ordered a U.S. agency serving minority-owned businesses to extend its services regardless of race, siding with white business owners who argued that the program was discriminatory.
In a related case in September, the Atlanta-based Fearless Fund, a venture capital firm supporting Black women-owned startups, dropped one of its programs following a lawsuit that contested its legality.
David Jackson, spokesman for the St. Louis-based African American Business and Contractors Association, warned that Parson’s move could lead other local governments to abandon their own goals for minority hiring and contracting.
“This is very, very serious when it comes to the livelihood of small Black- and women-owned businesses,” Jackson said. “This is going to be very relevant with the next administration. If they see the same thing that Parson sees, these companies are in trouble.”
Missouri’s Record on Minority Businesses
Missouri’s record on meeting the 10 percent goals for minority- and women-owned business contracts was mixed even when the policy was in place.
A 2022 state report cited by the Post-Dispatch revealed that just 5 percent of contract spending for services went to minority-owned firms, while only 4 percent went to businesses owned by women.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.