Equity and efficiency are among the most difficult public values to balance in the contracting environment where institutions and service markets influence how and with whom public dollars are spent. A representative bureaucracy helps reflect the interests of underrepresented, disadvantaged social groups and instill equity in government contracting. This research examines the relationship between representation at various decision‐making levels in local government agencies and supplier diversity program implementation supporting women and minority owned firms. This study employs negative binomial regression with data from a survey of local government agencies in the United States, American Community Survey, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, and Harvard Dataverse. Results indicate that minority representation at the elected official and procurement head levels relates to the amount of supplier diversity efforts taking place. Findings have implications for theory and practice demonstrating the importance of a representative bureaucracy for promoting equity in environments where efficiency is key.

中文翻译：

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代表性官僚机构和地方政府承包：审查供应商多元化计划


在契约环境中，公平和效率是最难平衡的公共价值观之一，在契约环境中，机构和服务市场影响着公共资金的使用方式和对象。代议制官僚机构有助于反映代表性不足、弱势社会群体的利益，并在政府合同中注入公平性。本研究探讨了地方政府机构各级决策层的代表性与支持女性和少数族裔企业的供应商多元化计划实施之间的关系。本研究采用负二项式回归，数据来自美国地方政府机构调查、美国社区调查、美国劳工统计局和哈佛 Dataverse。结果表明，民选官员和采购负责人中的少数群体代表性与供应商多元化努力的数量有关。研究结果对理论和实践都有影响，证明了代议制官僚机构对于在效率至关重要的环境中促进公平的重要性。