OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Cleveland City Council Health Committee Meeting - March 9, 2026: Ordinance 229-2026 and Lead Safe Law Amendments

City Council Meetings — Monday, March 9, 2026
BodyCleveland, Ohio
SessionCity Council Meetings
DateMonday, March 9, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:43:41

Transcript — Verbatim
7:49

To discuss ordinance number two nine two zero two six.

7:57

Oh, yes, yes.

8:01

Right from the parking lot right now.

8:02

Yeah.

8:03

All right.

8:16

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

8:16

Let's just do time management.

8:18

Um this right here.

8:20

We do time management on it.

8:21

Let me process it and then we'll um move forward real quick.

8:37

Let's start discussing it now.

8:40

This is good.

8:41

This is great.

8:42

This is very, very good.

8:45

Ummissioner, when you were here, um didn't you come to was it in January?

8:56

I was here in January.

8:58

Right.

8:58

I was here in February.

9:00

Right.

9:00

I'm January.

9:02

You did a great job.

9:04

I can't say you're doing a great job today because we haven't you haven't presented a great job.

9:09

And it looks like your passion is there to um to help people and to get this done.

9:15

And I know other barriers have been put in our places, but you when I actually questioned you like, no, councilman, I went here, I went there.

9:23

I said, How do you get that done?

9:25

And you're telling me, so I like it.

9:27

Cause you know what?

9:28

When I leave any table or any um I always do reflection.

9:36

And the reflection which you said with David Marcola say even my colleagues say I um when I'm finished talking with you, I'll go back and I think about several things and different points.

9:47

That was made.

9:53

So whatever someone say at the table.

10:00

So that means a lot to me.

10:03

And uh can you resend me the email also that you sent me?

10:08

Yes.

10:09

Yeah, you you know what you know what I'm talking about.

10:11

Because we went in a budget hearings, and when we go into budget hearings, everything else out there really stopped in our focus on the health department budget and other budgets throughout the city because the budget is first in first uh for me.

10:27

So you sent that to me, so I was not ignoring you.

10:30

I would just focus on that.

10:32

Okay.

10:33

So with um ordinance number 229, 2026 by Council members Camwell and Griffin by departmental request.

10:44

It's an emergency ordinance authorizing the director of public health to enter into one or more contracts with the Urban League of Greater Cleveland for the purpose of providing facilitation coordination and implementation support for the racism as a public health crisis coalition, in order for the city to develop innovative solutions to address racial inequities and disparities that negatively impact public health systems, community outcomes, and overall quality of life for Department of Public Health for a period of one year with a one-year option to renew exercisable by the director of public health.

11:34

This ordinance number 2292026 have been approved by the health director, finance department, as well as law director.

11:46

Commissioner Thank you, Chair.

11:49

Uh, good morning, everyone.

11:51

Uh thank you for having me.

11:52

Uh we hopefully will be joined by uh uh Mrs.

11:56

Marsha Mockabee, uh executive director of the Urban League and uh Gabrielle Folks here shortly who are key players on this project.

12:06

Many of you will remember, well, some of you might not, because this is a fairly new panel.

12:10

Uh we'll remember in 2020 when the city uh declared racism a public health crisis, what that initial organ um ordinance allowed uh to happen was the construction of a working group.

12:24

Uh many uh components were already in place to begin that work.

12:28

Uh the working group was uh designed to bring together community members, um, experts in different uh uh areas, uh really focusing on how to understand and recognize where racism shows up in our systems and to help root that out.

12:46

Um the coalition that formed was set up around uh using social determinants of health as a framework, so basically understanding how uh systems impact our lives every day, from our physical health to our education to our economic stability and mobility.

13:05

Hello, good morning.

13:06

Um, and also uh our neighborhood and built environment, our housing infrastructure, our transportation infrastructure, uh jobs, those types of things, uh, and then begin to understand where we're finding racism show up by using data and then understanding what are the ways that we can help dismantle those uh those those constructs.

13:26

And so that coalition came into being shortly after the initial uh RAFC legislation was passed.

13:34

Uh the council also decided, along with former mayor Frank Jackson that beyond creating that coalition, we needed to have some internal um uh dogs in the fight, so to speak, and so that's where you created the division of health equity and social justice, which I uh currently head up, and so I've been working and my team has been working very closely with the Urban League uh as the um the fiscal agent of this particular contract.

14:02

The contract is basically for uh bringing together that coalition and um uh executing their goals and objectives.

14:11

And so basically they spent about two years really digging into the data.

14:16

Uh you were a part of some of those meetings, as was Council President Griffin, as was Stephanie House Jones, Councilwoman House Jones, as well as uh Councilman Slife.

14:25

I slip and say that sometime when I say Stephanie, I do.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Health Awareness█████████████████████████████████████████████58%
Racial Equity███████████████████24%
Environmental Protection███4%
Economic Development██3%
Community Engagement██2%
Public Engagement██2%
Housing██2%
Procedural█1%
Education█1%
Summary of Proceedings

Cleveland City Council Health Committee Meeting - March 9, 2026

The Cleveland City Council Health Committee met on March 9, 2026, to discuss two major agenda items: Ordinance 229-2026, authorizing a contract with the Urban League of Greater Cleveland for the Racism as a Public Health Crisis Coalition, and proposed amendments to the city's Lead Safe Law. The committee heard presentations from the Department of Public Health and the Urban League, engaged in extensive discussion, and approved the ordinance for referral to the Finance Committee. No vote was taken on the lead amendments, which were presented for discussion only.

Discussion Items

Ordinance 229-2026: Racism as a Public Health Crisis Coalition Contract

  • Commissioner Wills presented the ordinance, which authorizes a one-year contract with the Urban League of Greater Cleveland to provide facilitation, coordination, and implementation support for the Racism as a Public Health Crisis (RAFC) Coalition, with a one-year renewal option. The contract continues the public-private partnership established in 2020.
  • Marsha Mockabee, President and CEO of the Urban League, described the coalition's work using five social determinants of health pillars: health, education, economic mobility, social/community context (including criminal justice), and neighborhood/built environment. She noted that the coalition is moving into Phase 2, which will revisit the recommendations with community input and address systems change.
  • Council members expressed support for the work and stressed the need for measurable outcomes, quarterly reports, and clear milestones. Councilman Joe Jones emphasized the importance of connecting the work to economic empowerment, such as increasing city contracts for African American businesses and hiring. Councilwoman Stephanie Howse-Jones highlighted the long-term nature of systemic change and the need for implementation across city departments.
  • The committee requested quarterly progress reports from the Commissioner and the Urban League, including outcome measures, barriers, and lessons learned. The ordinance was approved by the committee and will proceed to the Finance Committee.

Lead Safe Law Amendments

  • Director of Public Health presented data showing that Cleveland's lead poisoning rate has declined to 14.4% in 2025 (preliminary) from 16.8% in 2024, the lowest rate ever recorded, but still high. The number of children tested and homes improved has increased, but two-thirds of rental units remain uncertified.
  • The director proposed six conceptual amendments to the 2019 Lead Safe Law, aimed at increasing inspections of high-risk properties, incentivizing property improvements, and reducing unnecessary inspections for low-risk properties. Key proposals included:
    1. Requiring standardized inspection report forms.
    2. Granting lifetime certificates for properties with no lead found via a full lead inspection risk assessment.
    3. Granting lifetime certificates for commercial conversions that have been gutted.
    4. Granting five-year certificates for properties that have passed three consecutive two-year inspections.
    5. Granting seven-year certificates for properties built between 1960-1978 in good condition.
    6. Granting seven-year certificates for pre-1960 properties that have replaced all windows, doors, and porches.
  • Council members engaged in detailed discussion, particularly regarding the difference between clearance exams and lead risk assessments, the cost and availability of inspectors, and the need to balance requirements with incentives to encourage compliance. Councilman Harsh raised concerns about setting the bar too high and reducing participation, while Councilman Jones emphasized the need for a permanent funding source and better data on the number of homes tested.
  • The director also discussed efforts to increase childhood blood lead testing, including partnerships with healthcare systems, and noted that water lead is not a significant source of poisoning in Cleveland. Councilman Shaw inquired about testing at daycare centers, and the director explained that the department focuses on homes and has not seen recent daycare-related poisonings.
  • No vote was taken on the amendments; they will be further discussed by the Lead Safe Coalition Policy Committee and the Lead Safe Advisory Board before being brought back for legislation.

Key Outcomes

  • Ordinance 229-2026: Approved by the Health Committee and referred to the Finance Committee. The committee requested quarterly reports on outcomes, including metrics on racial equity, contracts, and employment.
  • Lead Safe Law Amendments: No action taken; the proposals are under consideration and will be refined through stakeholder input before formal legislation.
  • Future Actions: The committee will receive information on lead abatement programs, testing data, and funding sources. Councilman Conwell expressed interest in obtaining lead risk assessor certification.
  • Next Steps: The Finance Committee will consider the Urban League contract. The Lead Safe Coalition Policy Committee will vote on the proposed amendments on March 12, 2026, with a presentation to the Lead Safe Advisory Board on March 13, 2026.

Meeting Transcript

To discuss ordinance number two nine two zero two six. Oh, yes, yes. Right from the parking lot right now. Yeah. All right. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Let's just do time management. Um this right here. We do time management on it. Let me process it and then we'll um move forward real quick. Let's start discussing it now. This is good. This is great. This is very, very good. Ummissioner, when you were here, um didn't you come to was it in January? I was here in January. Right. I was here in February. Right. I'm January. You did a great job. I can't say you're doing a great job today because we haven't you haven't presented a great job. And it looks like your passion is there to um to help people and to get this done. And I know other barriers have been put in our places, but you when I actually questioned you like, no, councilman, I went here, I went there. I said, How do you get that done? And you're telling me, so I like it. Cause you know what? When I leave any table or any um I always do reflection. And the reflection which you said with David Marcola say even my colleagues say I um when I'm finished talking with you, I'll go back and I think about several things and different points. That was made. So whatever someone say at the table. So that means a lot to me. And uh can you resend me the email also that you sent me? Yes. Yeah, you you know what you know what I'm talking about. Because we went in a budget hearings, and when we go into budget hearings, everything else out there really stopped in our focus on the health department budget and other budgets throughout the city because the budget is first in first uh for me. So you sent that to me, so I was not ignoring you. I would just focus on that. Okay. So with um ordinance number 229, 2026 by Council members Camwell and Griffin by departmental request. It's an emergency ordinance authorizing the director of public health to enter into one or more contracts with the Urban League of Greater Cleveland for the purpose of providing facilitation coordination and implementation support for the racism as a public health crisis coalition, in order for the city to develop innovative solutions to address racial inequities and disparities that negatively impact public health systems, community outcomes, and overall quality of life for Department of Public Health for a period of one year with a one-year option to renew exercisable by the director of public health. This ordinance number 2292026 have been approved by the health director, finance department, as well as law director. Commissioner Thank you, Chair. Uh, good morning, everyone. Uh thank you for having me. Uh we hopefully will be joined by uh uh Mrs. Marsha Mockabee, uh executive director of the Urban League and uh Gabrielle Folks here shortly who are key players on this project. Many of you will remember, well, some of you might not, because this is a fairly new panel. Uh we'll remember in 2020 when the city uh declared racism a public health crisis, what that initial organ um ordinance allowed uh to happen was the construction of a working group. Uh many uh components were already in place to begin that work.

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