Austin Judge Temporarily Reinstates Texas HUB Program for Women and Minority-Owned Businesses
Case Summary
An Austin district judge temporarily reinstated the Texas Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) Program rules, allowing women- and minority-owned businesses to once again qualify for the program. This decision came after four business owners and a trade association filed a lawsuit against the state of Texas and acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock, challenging emergency rules that removed women and minorities from the HUB program and revoked their certifications. The court ordered the reinstatement of six businesses that participated in the lawsuit and directed state agencies to notify all businesses decertified since December about the ruling.
Key Issues
- • Validity of emergency rules removing women and minority-owned businesses from the HUB program
- • Legal standing of business owners and trade associations to challenge state administrative actions
- • Procedural requirements for decertification and reinstatement under the HUB program
- • State agencies' obligations to communicate court rulings to affected businesses
- • Impact of administrative decisions on minority and women-owned business certifications
Case Timeline
1 eventJudge temporarily allows women , minority - owned businesses to qualify for Texas HUB program again
An Austin district judge on Monday ordered the state’s Historically Underutilized Business Program rules be temporarily reinstated, meaning women- and minority-owned business owners can qualify for the state’s HUB program again for now. Four business owners and a trade association sued the state of Texas and acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock on March 2 over the agency’s emergency rules that removed women and minorities from the HUB program and stripped their businesses of their HUB certifications. The judge ordered the reinstatement of six businesses that sued the Comptroller’s office over the emergency rules — two joined after the lawsuit was first filed — and further directs state agencies to inform HUB businesses that have been decertified since December of the court ruling. × Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content.