The provision in the 1998 federal Transportation Equity Act establishing the use of disadvantaged business enterprise goals was constitutional, but Washington state’s application of the goals program violated the constitution, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled.

After having two low bids in two months for federally funded paving jobs in Washington state rejected in favor of minority-owned firms, Western States Paving Co. sued the Washington State Dept. of Transportation, claiming that TEA-21’s minority preference program violated its rights to equal protection under the constitution. A federal district court in Washington ruled that the preference program was constitutional both on its face and as applied by WSDOT, and it dismissed the claim.