Skanska Exec Details LAX Small Business Outreach as DBE Rules Shift
Small business outreach on public infrastructure jobs is getting more complicated even as it gets more digitally accessible, Skanska Civil West region DBE compliance officer Teresa Maxwell told Construction Dive in a Q&A published Aug. 14. Maxwell discussed how her team hit contracting goals on a $380 million Los Angeles World Airports Roadways, Utilities and Enabling project at LAX, and what’s changing as federal disadvantaged business enterprise (DBE) certification rules shift under the current administration.
Market Impact
Maxwell says outreach tools have improved dramatically since she started as a receptionist mailing paper plans and specs to subcontractors. Digital plan rooms and better internet access now let small firms find bid opportunities faster, but that access has created a new problem: small businesses are “bombarded with invitations to bid” and must sort through them to find work that actually fits their scope, she told Construction Dive.
The bigger shift is regulatory. According to Maxwell, every state has spent this year reevaluating its pool of certified DBEs under new U.S. DOT guidance. California recently finished its reevaluation and must now submit its plan for federal approval. In the meantime, California has no projects carrying federally mandated DBE goals. Maxwell says the certified DBE pool has shrunk as a result, and Skanska, as prime contractor, has taken on an informal role encouraging firms to pursue or maintain certification even though it isn’t a certifying agency itself. “It’s been interesting, definitely nothing I have experienced before,” she said, adding that DOT guidance is being interpreted differently by different parties, creating uncertainty that didn’t exist when the rules stayed static for years.
What It Means for Subcontractors
- Small and disadvantaged firms in California should confirm current certification status now, since the state’s DBE pool has shrunk during reevaluation and federally mandated goals are currently paused on state projects.
- Subs chasing large airport or transit work should build relationships with GC outreach staff directly, not just rely on bid portals. Maxwell says Skanska matches small firms with first-tier subcontractors through channels like National Association of Minority Contractors events, not just public bid postings.
- Firms with a commercially useful function question should attend GC-run training sessions when offered. Maxwell cited a Skanska small business bootcamp where LAWA staff explained commercially useful function requirements directly to contractors.
- Expect continued ambiguity in how DOT’s revised DBE guidance gets applied project to project until California’s reevaluation plan wins federal approval. Subs bidding federally funded airport or infrastructure packages should ask the GC directly how participation goals are currently being set on a given job before pricing bid packages.
- On megaprojects like the $380 million LAX RUE job, small firms bidding modest-dollar packages (Maxwell cites examples as small as $10,000) should identify a specific project team contact early rather than navigating bid documents alone.
