City may restore Asians' favored status

April 9, 2007
BY FRAN SPIELMAN

Three years ago, the Daley administration was accused of throwing Asian Americans "to the wolves" by excluding them from a revamped construction set-aside ordinance tailor-made to satisfy a federal judge.

No more were they included in a "presumptively socially disadvantaged" group that gives African Americans, Hispanics and women a leg up on city contracts.

Asian Americans were forced to apply individually and sign affidavits documenting past discrimination. Anecdotal evidence was not enough. They had to cite specific incidents of discrimination: names, dates, places and amounts of money denied.

On Monday, the bar will be lowered considerably. A Dartmouth College economics professor will unveil results of a three-year study that proves such discrimination.

Series of legal deficiencies

The study will show Asian American firms were denied loans at a rate 50 percent higher than companies owned by white males and paid interest rates one-half of one percentage point higher under similar circumstances. Professor David Blanchflower is also expected to provide at least some idea of how much construction business Asian Americans have lost since they were kicked out of the protected group.

"Now, we have evidence that there has been past discrimination. We should be able to withstand any legal challenge," said Chief Procurement Officer Barbara Lumpkin.

Emboldened by the study, the City Council's Economic Development Committee is expected to restore Asian Americans to favored status.

The ordinance was tentatively approved Jan. 31, but held in committee until the city Law Department could deliver the goods. It will be moved to the floor for a final vote at Wednesday's City Council meeting.

In 2003, U.S. District Judge James Moran, in response to a lawsuit filed by the Builders Association of Greater Chicago, outlined a series of legal deficiencies in the existing set-aside law and gave the city six months to correct the problems.

The City Council followed Moran's legal roadmap to the letter. The revamped ordinance not only included revised set-aside levels of 24 percent for minority contractors and 4 percent for women, it stripped Asian-Americans of their protected status.

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BY FRAN SPIELMAN fspielman@suntimes.com
http://www.suntimes.com/news/politics/333178,CST-NWS-asian09.article)
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