MWDBE Certification

What is MWDBE Certification?

The Civil Rights & Equal Opportunity (CREO)’s Minority Women Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (MWDBE) program is designed to grow KCMO’s local business ecosystem by encouraging historically disadvantaged groups to participate in contracting opportunities. On all City projects above a certain dollar amount, the CREO assigns goals for the participation of certified minority and women-owned businesses. City departments and contractors work together to meet these goals.

Advantages of Certification

Besides facilitating better access to the City contracting process, MWDBE offers the following advantages:

• MWDBE Certification is accepted by the following entities: Unified Government of Wyandotte County, Mid-American Minority Business Development Council, the KCMO School District, Kansas City Area Transit Authority, Missouri Regional Certification Council (MRCC), University of Missouri Systems, National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC), Kansas Department of Transportation, and Missouri Department of Transportation.
• Certified firms are listed in the City’s MWDBE Directory. Potential clients and customers can search for certified firms by name, type of business, type of ownership or certification code, or view the full list of contractors by leaving all search fields blank.
• Certified firms receive regional electronic notification of contract opportunities, RFPs, and RFQs.

How to get Certified

Free monthly Minority Women Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (MWDBE) certification workshops are held on the last Tuesday of every month at 1:00 PM. Workshops are currently being held virtually. For more information, please call (816) 513-1836.

Requirements:

• Firms are certified for one year and must submit annual updates
• Firms must notify CREO immediately of any changes in ownership or control
• For DBE certification, the applicant must have a Personal Net Worth (PNW) of less than $1,320,000, excluding the value of the home and ownership interest in the business.  There are no local presence requirements for DBE certification
• Effective October 1, 2019, for MBE / WBE certification, the applicant must have a PNW of less than $1,320,000, the same as the DBE certifications, and excludes the value of the home and ownership interest in the MBE / WBE business.
• The Firms’ principal place of business must be within the seven-county Greater Kansas City Metropolitan Statistical Area (KCMSA) (i.e., Cass, Clay, Johnson, Jackson, Platte, Wyandotte, and Leavenworth)
• The firm has been in existence in the KCMSA at least six months before they apply for the MBE/WBE program
• The firm has transacted business more than once in the KCMSA within the last three years
• The firm maintains full-time employees in one or more of the firm’s offices within the KCMSA to conduct business or solicit business in the KCMSA the majority of the working time
• The firm must be independent and currently operating
• The firm must meet the Small Business Administration (SBA) Size Standard(s) for its industry classification(s)
• The minority or female owner must have the training/expertise to perform the work, and where required, have a license in his or her name
• The minority or female owner must possess at least 51% ownership, management, and control of the business

Personal Net Worth:

You must complete, sign, notarize and return both the M/WBE Affidavits and Personal Financial Statements attesting that your PNW exceeds or does not exceed the threshold (1.32M). Please email to hldmwbe@kcmo.org or send via US Mail to: 414 E 12th St, 4th Fl, KCMO 64106. Both forms (Affidavit and PNW Statement) must be submitted. Failure to sign and return the forms will lead to your firm’s immediate removal from the MWBE directory regardless if you qualify for the program.

Please click below for the following documents:

• FAQ
• Personal Net Worth Affidavit
• Personal Net Worth Financial Statement

Please click here to view the virtual Personal Net Worth town hall meeting.

The certification process includes the following steps:

• Preliminary screening of your application and supporting documentation
• Desk audit
• Financial audit
• Field audit
• Committee review and decision

It is very important to submit all supporting documentation promptly to ensure a quick decision.  Once you submit all required paperwork, and staff performs an onsite field audit, the committee will issue a certification decision within 90 days for new certifications and 35 days for renewals.

To apply online, please visit the MWDBE Online Certification Application Portal.