AFTER ADARAND: RE-PRIORITIZING RACE-CONSCIOUS PROGRAMS IN FEDERAL PROCUREMENT.

This Note seeks to understand whether, nearly thirty years after the Supreme Court’s decision in Adarand Constructors v. Pena (1995), there exists a path forward for the reprioritization of racial diversity in federal procurement. First, this Note traces the history of race-conscious procurement programs. It begins with the 1953 passage of the Small Business Act and concludes with discussion of the paradigm shift away from pre-Adarand race-conscious procurement programs and recent federal court guidance on post-Adarand inheritor programs like the 8(a) Program. Second, this Note analyzes two different lines of cases concerning Equal Protection, including the landmark cases that form the basis of modern Equal Protection doctrine and the line of cases implicating affirmative action policies in education. Finally, this Note presents three novel constitutional arguments positing that race-conscious procurement programs may yet be constitutional under the Equal Protection Clause and provides substantive recommendations as to how such programs could be utilized constitutionally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]