The Nation : Lawsuit Tests Affirmative Action Ruling

A requirement that construction firms working for the city of Boston give some of their business to minority subcontractors was challenged in court, in what may be the first test of a recent Supreme Court ruling on affirmative action. Fairview Construction, which lost a contract to build a police station due to the requirement, has challenged the constitutionality of the plan based on the Supreme Court’s ruling last month that struck down a similar “set aside” program in Richmond, Va. Suffolk Superior Court Judge Albert Tuttle allowed lawyers for Fairview to amend their lawsuit to include the constitutional question on the minority issue. City attorneys said they will try to get the affirmative action issue dismissed. Tuttle set another pretrial hearing for March 7. In Richmond, minority firms were guaranteed 30% of city contracts. In Boston, the requirement is 15%, except in areas determined to have a high percentage of minorities, where the requirement is 30%.