QUESTION
Council Member Narcisse Addresses MWBE Fraud and Enforcement Measures
1:00:27
·
118 sec
Council Member Mercedes Narcisse inquires about combating fraud within the Minority and Women-owned Business Enterprises (MWBE) certification process. Michael Garner outlines the measures taken to identify and penalize fraudulent practices, drawing on his experience at the MTA including working with the inspector general's office on MWBE fraud indictments and fines. The conversation emphasizes ongoing efforts to maintain the integrity of the MWBE certification program by eliminating deceitful participants.
Speaker 11
1:00:27
1st, this process is very complex to get MWA process.
1:00:31
Right?
1:00:32
And usually, our folks plateau, like, I'm talking about small businesses, MWBs, providers, a plateau by 1,000,000.
1:00:42
I can talk about it because I've been there.
1:00:45
One of the thing that we find out in the process that there's folks, there's bad players, that not really minority, you know, business owners that able to get themselves in the process.
1:01:03
I hope you know what I'm talking about.
1:01:05
So what are you doing to eliminate those bad players in the process?
Speaker 5
1:01:14
So you're you're talking about MWE Fraud, where
Speaker 11
1:01:19
There's some fraudulent folks in the process pretending to be I know it's a business on.
1:01:24
If you want me to be for real, I was trying to play around it.
1:01:26
So what are you doing?
Speaker 5
1:01:28
I'm I'm I'm fine with that.
Speaker 11
1:01:29
Okay.
Speaker 5
1:01:29
I I can show you what what we did at the MTA.
1:01:33
When we when there was a red flag with Affirm where their operations and their ownership they control, seemed to be someone other than the principal who became certified.
1:01:45
We worked with our inspector general's office.
1:01:48
And so there has been a lot of MWBE fraud indictments
Speaker 2
1:01:54
Mhmm.
Speaker 5
1:01:55
And also fines.
1:01:58
And so we're we're we're very focused on rooting out bad players or individuals who take advantage of the MWD certification.
1:02:08
Programs.
1:02:09
And so certainly, that that will continue here at at the city of New York.
1:02:14
If any of my staff come across someone who we think is upfront, we we will for that that firm over and sued the inspector general's office.
Speaker 11
1:02:24
Thank you.