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Contracts to minority, women-owned and small businesses represented 22 percent of all Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) contract awards in 2010, according to the authority.

The 22 percent rate was above the agency’s annual goal of 17 percent and represented a 30 percent year-over-year increase compared with 2009, PANYNJ officials said in a prepared statement.

The contracts totaled nearly $470 million, second to the record of $575 million awarded in 2008.

“This significant increase in contracts awarded … to minority-owned, women-owned and small businesses has had a positive impact where it truly counts, by supporting jobs and generating economic growth in partnership with local businesses,” PANYNJ Chairman David Samson said.

Sixteen of the minority- and women-owned businesses participated in the 2010 mentor/protégé program, which matched the firms with leading construction companies to increase their capacity and ability to bid successfully on larger contracts.