,,iii #aaeth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 ,,res4 #aa ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,january #aj1 #bjag,mr4 ,scott 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,portman1 ,mr4 ,rubio1 ,mr4 ,booker1 ,mr4 ,paul1 and ,mr4 ,brown7 submitted the following resolution2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions ,,resolution ,encouraging the development of best business practices to fully utilize the potential of the ,united ,states4 ,whereas the ,rooney ,rule1 formulated by ,daniel ,rooney1 chairman of the ,pittsburgh ,steelers football team in the ,national ,football ,league 7referred to in this preamble as the ,,nfl71 requires each ,,nfl team with a job opening for a coach or general manager position to interview at least #a minority candidate for that position2 ,whereas the ,rooney ,rule has been successful in increasing minority representation in higher leadership positions in professional football1 as shown by the fact that1 in the #hj years between the hiring of ,fritz ,pollard as coach of the ,akron ,pros and the implementation of the ,rooney ,rule in #bjjc1 only #g minority head coaches were hired but1 since #bjjc1 #ae minority head coaches have been hired2 ,whereas the ,rooney ,rule has demonstrated that once highly qualified and highly skilled diversity candidates are given exposure during the hiring process1 the abilities of those diversity candidates can be better utilized2 ,whereas the ,,rlj ,rule1 formulated by ,robert ,l4 ,johnson1 founder of ,black ,entertainment ,television 7commonly known as ,,bet7 and ,the ,,rlj ,companies1 and based on the ,rooney ,rule from the ,,nfl1 similarly encourages companies to voluntarily establish a best practices policy to identify minority candidates and minority vendors by implementing a plan to interview-- 7#a7 not fewer than #b qualified minority candidates for each managerial opening at the director level and above2 and 7#b7 not fewer than #b qualified minority-owned businesses before approving a vendor contract2 ,whereas1 according to ,crist-,kolder ,associates1 as cited in the ,wall ,street ,journal1 at the top #ffh companies in the ,united ,states1 less than #aj percent of ,chief ,financial ,officers are ,african-,american1 ,hispanic1 or of ,asian descent2 ,whereas underrepresented groups contain members with the necessary abilities1 experience1 and qualifications for any position available2 ,whereas business practices such as the ,rooney ,rule or the ,,rlj ,rule are neither employment quotas nor ,federal law but rather voluntary initiatives instituted by willing entities to provide the human resources necessary to ensure success2 ,whereas experience has shown that people of all genders1 colors1 and physical abilities can achieve excellence2 ,whereas the increased involvement of underrepresented workers would improve the economy of the ,united ,states and the experience of the people of the ,united ,states2 and ,whereas ensuring the increased exposure1 and resulting increased advancement1 of diverse and qualified candidates would result in gains by all people of the ,united ,states through stronger economic opportunities3 ,now1 therefore1 be it ,that the ,senate encourages each corporate1 academic1 and social entity1 regardless of size or field of operation1 to-- 7#a7 develop an internal rule modeled after a successful business practice1 such as the ,rooney ,rule or ,,rlj ,rule1 and1 in accordance with title ,,vii of the ,civil ,rights ,act of #aifd 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #bjjj;e et seq471 adapt that rule to specifications that will best fit the procedures of the individual entity2 and 7#b7 institute the individualized rule described in paragraph 7#a7 to ensure that the entity will always consider candidates from underrepresented populations before making a final decision with respect to selecting a business vendor or filling a leadership position4