March 4, 2026

DBE Program Announcement - Reevaluation of DBE Firms

The San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) announces that it is reevaluating Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) and Airport Concessions DBE (ACDBE) firms as part of a statewide effort in accordance with the Interim Final Rule (IFR), which took effect on October 3, 2025. This action, taken with other public agencies across the state, ensures continued compliance with federal law while maintaining fair and transparent access to contracting opportunities for small and disadvantaged businesses.

Under the new federal DBE IFR, DBE certification is now based on individualized demonstrations of social and economic disadvantage, without reliance on race- or sex-based presumptions. All certified DBE/ACDBE firms (prior to the IFR issuance) in California and across the country are being reevaluated under these standards. Those who do not meet the new IFR certification criteria may not be recertified. If your firm was previously denied a DBE certification, you may reapply for DBE certification under the new guidelines after this reevaluation period (after April 16). During the reevaluation period, recipients such as BART will not set DBE contract goals nor count DBE participation toward their overall goal.

Please refer to the email and postal letter dated March 2, 2026, for instructions on how to respond to the re-evaluation through B2GNow.

The deadline to submit recertification materials is April 16, 2026.

Please note: If BART is not your DBE/ACDBE certifying agency, you will need to contact your designated DBE/ACDBE certifying agency in the jurisdiction of original certification (JOC) for instructions on how to submit the personal narrative.

If you have any questions regarding the DBE/ACDBE program updates, please contact BART's Office of Civil Rights, Certification Unit at OCRCertifications@bart.gov