Division of Minority and Women-owned Business Enterprise, Arkansas Economic Development Commission (AEDC)
Minority Business Enterprise (service-disabled veteran category) (MBE). That line is AEDC Small Business and Entrepreneurship Development, which houses the MWBE division. AEDC is at 1 Commerce Way, Suite 601, Little Rock, AR 72202. Division of Minority and Women-owned Business Enterprise, Arkansas Economic Development Commission (AEDC) →
2 percent carve-out
Of the 10 percent MBE goal, Ark. Code Ann. 15-4-302(c)(1)(B)(i) allocates 2 percent for service-disabled veteran-owned minority business enterprises.
Service-disabled veterans are minorities by statute
The definition of minority in Ark. Code Ann. 15-4-303 includes a service-disabled veteran as designated by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
Arkansas residency required
The statutory definition of minority requires a lawful permanent resident of Arkansas.
The preference
A 2 percent share of the 10 percent MBE goal
All state agencies must attempt to ensure that set percentages of total spending on state-funded and state-directed public construction and on purchases of goods and services each fiscal year go to minority business enterprises and women-owned business enterprises. The minority figure is 10 percent, and that 10 percent is split: 2 percent for service-disabled veteran-owned minority business enterprises and 8 percent for all other MBEs.
- The women-owned business enterprise goal is a separate 5 percent.
- The repeal of certain earlier contracting goals and this reallocation both came in Act 1080 of 2017.
- The provision is a goal that agencies must attempt to meet, not a set-aside, a price preference or a tie-breaker.
- Act 1080 also required agencies to publish all state contract solicitations on the website of the Office of State Procurement of the Department of Finance and Administration, to help potential respondents find them.
Source: Arkansas Act 1080 of 2017, amending Ark. Code Ann. 15-4-302
Eligibility
Minority includes service-disabled veteran
For the Minority and Women-Owned Business Economic Development Act, minority means a lawful permanent resident of Arkansas who is African American, Hispanic American, American Indian, Asian American, Pacific Islander American, or a service-disabled veteran as designated by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
- A minority business enterprise is a business at least 51 percent owned by one or more minority persons as defined in the section.
- The statute sets no minimum disability rating — it turns on VA designation as service-disabled.
- Veterans without a service-connected disability are not covered.
- Arkansas residency is part of the definition of minority, so the owner must be a lawful permanent resident of the state.
Source: Arkansas Act 1080 of 2017, amending Ark. Code Ann. 15-4-303
Revenue ceiling and basic requirements
AEDC describes the program’s practical requirements alongside the statutory definitions: the business must be legal to operate in the United States and in Arkansas, owned by a permanent Arkansas resident, and earn revenue of no more than $10 million.
- The 51 percent ownership threshold applies.
- AEDC states the expansion that brought in service-disabled veterans and additional minority groups took effect with Act 1080 in 2017.
Source: AEDC — Expansion of the Minority Business Enterprise Certification Program
Certification
Certified by the AEDC MWBE division
The Division of Minority and Women-owned Business Enterprise of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission is established by statute to run the program, provide technical, managerial and counseling services, develop program goals, monitor performance and help firms obtain financing.
- The division is headed by an Administrator appointed by the Governor.
- An official certified minority business enterprise certificate is issued to each certified establishment.
- AEDC lists the certification benefits as notifications about doing business with state agencies and access to training, networking and educational events.
- The division is also authorized to apply for and administer federal grants from the SBA, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the Minority Business Development Agency.
Source: Arkansas Act 1080 of 2017, Ark. Code Ann. 15-4-304 to 15-4-306
Finding opportunities
Solicitations on the Office of State Procurement site
Act 1080 requires state agencies to publish all state contract solicitations on the Office of State Procurement website, specifically so that potential respondents to procurement solicitations are notified. That is the first place to look.
- Each state agency has a minority and women-owned business officer responsible for carrying out the Act’s purposes, which gives a named point of contact inside each agency.
- The AEDC division maintains a center for the development, collection and dissemination of information useful to minority and women-owned business enterprises.
Source: Arkansas Act 1080 of 2017, amending Ark. Code Ann. 15-4-302(d)
What gets reported wrongly about Arkansas
- Arkansas has no veteran-specific certification. A service-disabled veteran firm certifies as a Minority Business Enterprise, because the statute classifies a service-disabled veteran as a minority person.
- The 2 percent is not an additional goal on top of the 10 percent. It is a carve-out from within the 10 percent MBE goal, leaving 8 percent for other minority categories.
- The 2 percent is a goal agencies must attempt to meet, not a bid preference, set-aside or tie-breaker. There is no percentage price advantage in Arkansas.
- Veteran-owned alone is not enough. Only service-disabled veterans designated by the VA fall inside the statutory definition of minority.
- The statutory definition requires the owner to be a lawful permanent resident of Arkansas, so an out-of-state veteran firm cannot certify.
- Act 1080 repealed certain earlier contracting goals while adding the veteran carve-out, so pre-2017 descriptions of Arkansas goals are unreliable.
Every figure on this page links to the source it came from. Verified October 24, 2026. Procurement rules change — check the source before you rely on a number.
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