A federal report describes a list of deficiencies in the Charlotte Area Transit System's program for doing business with women and minority suppliers.

"Seriously outdated" documents were among the shortcomings included in the Federal Transit Administration's compliance report on CATS' Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Program after a site visit in March.

Among the findings in the report:

CATS did not consistently provide a directory of women and minority suppliers to prospective bidders/contractors.

Companies that won contracts from CATS did not always meet requirements for good-faith efforts in hiring minority firms.

There were problems with calculations used for setting goals for minority participation in contracts.

The documents CATS staff provided for the review team did not list the correct names for the officer responsible for implementing the program.

Despite the deficiencies, CATS often exceeded its goals for including minority firms in contracting. But last year participation fell short.

The goal for minority participation in 2010 was 12.9 percent of contract money. Minorities, however, got only 5.4 percent of the money that year.

Officials at CATS said they expect to meet a Nov. 25 deadline for outlining how and when deficiencies will be addressed, if they haven't been already, said Olaf Kinard, a spokesman for CATS.

The deficiencies noted by the review panel did not compromise the minority program or access to contracts, Kinard said.

CATS receives federal grants for buses, Park and Ride facilities, as well as capital programs for and transit centers.

As a result of receiving federal money, CATS must show equity in awarding contracts. That includes doing business with firms owned by women and minorities.

Business owners must apply and qualify to compete for contracts as Disadvantaged Business Enterprises.

The Federal Transportation Administration's Office of Civil Rights periodically conducts reviews and measures performance at meeting DBE program goals, spelled out in the grant recipient's plan.

Among a list of requirements, CATS must:

Identify the person in charge of implementing the minority program, and show where that officer fits in CATS' organizational chart.

Modify the plan to ensure more consistency in contractors demonstrating good faith in hiring minority firms.

Show it has implemented procedures to include a nondiscrimination clause for primary contractors and subcontractors. (Contractors did not consistently include the clause in contracts with subcontractors.)

Submit procedures for improving monitoring of work awarded to minority firms.

Kinard said some of the deficiencies cited in the report have been addressed. He described the deficiencies as mostly administrative.

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