steps provided in 26.107 (e.g., referral to the Department of Justice for criminal prosecution, referral to the DOT Inspector General, action under suspension and debarment or Program Fraud and Civil Penalties rules)
We also will consider action under our own legal authorities. Such action may include, but not be limited to: (a) disqualification from participation in future contracts; and (b) breach of contract action, pursuant to the terms of the contract.
We will ensure through site visits and interviews that work committed to DBEs at contract award or subsequently (i.e., as the result of modification to the contract) is actually performed by the DBEs to which the work was committed.
We will implement a monitoring and enforcement mechanism that will include written certifications that we have reviewed contracting records and monitored work sites for this purpose. This will be accomplished as follows:
DBE prime contractors and DBE subcontractors designated by prime contractors will be confirmed by reference to the Florida UCP DBE Directory at the time of bid submittal.
Contracts between prime contractors and their DBE subcontractors will be reviewed to confirm the existence of a contractual relationship.
SMAA employees in the Engineering & Environmental Affairs Department who oversee construction work for SMAA will become familiar with each bid-designated DBE firm performing work on DOT-assisted contracts at SRQ. During routine site visits, SMAA employees will determine that bid-designated DBE firms appear to be performing tasks appropriate for their respective contracts. Certified payrolls for each DBE subcontractor will be required in connection with each draw request and these payrolls will be reviewed for reasonableness relative to the DBE work observed during site inspections.
We will implement a mechanism that will provide for a running tally of actual DBE attainments (e.g., payments actually made to DBE firms), including a means of comparing these attainments to commitments. In our reports of DBE participation to FAA, we will show both commitments and attainments, as required by the DOT uniform reporting form.
SMAA encourages participation by small businesses in its construction activities at SRQ, regardless of whether those businesses are certified DBE firms. As a practical matter, due to the nature of the facilities overseen by SMAA, the construction contracts typically undertaken at SRQ are relatively modest in size and scale. Consequently, these contracts normally offer ample opportunities for participation by small businesses. However, in accordance with 49 CFR Part 26.39, in an effort to expand opportunities for small businesses at SRQ and to facilitate the attainment of the maximum feasible portion of its overall DBE goal through race-neutral means,