Equal Business Opportunity (“EBO”) Program
Since its inception, the Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation has been committed to providing equal opportunities in contracting and procuring goods and services. As part of this commitment, the Lottery strives to maximize participation of minority-owned businesses to achieve a minimum participation goal of fifteen percent (15%) through both prime and second-tier business contracting opportunities.
The Tennessee Education Lottery Implementation Law authorized the Tennessee Education Lottery to undertake training programs and other educational activities to enable second-tier businesses to compete for contracts on an equal basis. To that end, the Tennessee Education Lottery created an Advisory Council on Minority Business Participation (“Advisory Council”). The Advisory Council serves as an educational, research and technical resource for the Tennessee Education Lottery’s Board of Directors. The Advisory Council solicits, analyzes and presents the views and concerns of minority business owners throughout the State. The Advisory Council is comprised of up to nine (9) citizens, three (3) of whom are appointed from and represent East, Middle and West Tennessee. The Advisory Council’s membership reflects a richness of diversity in professional and business experience, educational attainment, ethnicity, race, gender, heritage, and socio-economic perspective.
In an effort to increase the pool of diverse businesses who submit bids on procurement opportunities offered by the Tennessee Education Lottery and its major vendors, the TEL hosts its own Equal Business Opportunity Procurement Workshop for women, minority, disadvantaged, and service-disabled veteran-owned businesses. Additionally, the Tennessee Education Lottery sponsors and participates in various programs and educational activities that promote Tennessee’s minority business community, including Tennessee’s Diversity Business Marketplace, MEDWeek, and the MMBC Economic Development Forum.