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Department of Social and Economic Mobility

Decoupling MBE & SBE applications from your Uniform Certification Application

Program Update |
Updated:

If you submitted a Uniform Certification Application, your MBE and/or SBE portions may be delayed. DoSEM recommends you decouple your applications now.

Governor Wes Moore

Lt. Governor Aruna Miller

Secretary Walter L. Simmons

Dear Maryland Business,

Many firms utilize the Uniform Certification Application (UCA), which allows applicants to seek multiple certifications simultaneously through a single application. The Office of Minority Business Enterprise (OMBE) uses the UCA to evaluate firms for four certifications at once: Minority Business Enterprise (MBE), Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE), Airport Concession Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (ACDBE), and Small Business Enterprise (SBE). When firms apply through a UCA, these certification applications are linked and processed together.

Due to a recent federal rule change, processing of new DBE and ACDBE certifications is currently paused. The MBE and SBE program are not affected. However, if your MBE and/or SBE applications are linked to your DBE/ACDBE applications through a UCA, they may experience delays. To prevent this, OMBE is offering firms the option to decouple their UCA – allowing the MBE and SBE portions of your application to move forward independently.

Decoupling only applies to UCA applications that have not yet received a final decision from OMBE. If your application has already been approved or denied, no further action is required at this time.

WHY THIS MATTERS

On October 3, 2025, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) issued an Interim Final Rule (IFR) eliminating the race- and gender-based presumptions of social and economic disadvantage that previously underpinned DBE and ACDBE certification. Under the IFR, every currently certified DBE and ACDBE firm – and every new applicant – must now be evaluated under new eligibility standards which require them to demonstrate disadvantage on a case-by-case basis.

Maryland MBE and SBE certifications are not governed by the IFR and are unaffected by the new federal eligibility criteria. Because Maryland has historically processed MBE, DBE, ACDBE, and SBE certifications together through the UCA, firms with pending MBE and SBE applications that are linked to their DBE/ACDBE applications may experience delays. Decoupling your UCA allows OMBE to advance your MBE and SBE review independently, so you can pursue contracting opportunities while the federally-mandated DBE/ACDBE reevaluation process is completed.

YOUR TWO OPTIONS

  1. Decouple Your UCA Application – Allow the MBE and SBE certification portions to proceed independently, while the DBE/ACDBE reevaluation process continues separately.

TO REQUEST DECOUPLING — CONTACT OMBE NOW:

[email protected] (subject: "Decouple Application")

  1. Keep Your Applications Linked – Maintain the existing UCA structure. All four certification decisions will move forward together once the DBE/ACDBE reevaluation process is complete.

For more information, including a full FAQ on the DBE/ACDBE reevaluation process, visit economicmobility.maryland.gov.

Sincerely,

Maryland Department of Social and Economic Mobility

100 Community Place, 4th Floor

Crownsville, MD 21032