Sacramento Budget and Audit Committee Meeting – December 1, 2020
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Sacramento Budget and Audit Committee Meeting – December 1, 2020
The Budget and Audit Committee met via teleconference on Tuesday, December 1, 2020, at 3:09 PM, with Vice Chair Guerra presiding, joined by Councilmembers Jennings, Schenirer, and Mayor Steinberg (who arrived later). The meeting covered the consent calendar, two audit reports on diversity/equity, and a presentation on participatory budgeting. The committee voted unanimously to forward the consent items and the two diversity reports to the full City Council. Item 5 (participatory budgeting) was received and filed, with a full council workshop planned for January 2021. Two members of the public gave comments on matters not on the agenda.
Consent Calendar
- Item 1 – City Auditor’s Activity Report for Q1 FY2020/21: Accepted and forwarded to City Council.
- Item 2 – Whistleblower Hotline Activity Report (April–September 2020): Accepted and forwarded to City Council.
- Both items were approved by a unanimous roll call vote (three ayes; Mayor absent).
Discussion Items
- Item 3 – 2020 Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Survey Results: City Auditor Jorge Oseguera presented the survey, conducted February 25–March 24, 2020, with 787 responses. Key findings: 70% of employees feel treated fairly in their department; 92% are proud to work for the city; 55% feel they have equal opportunity for growth; 37% believe promotions are fair; 23% witnessed discriminatory behavior in the past 12 months; 12% felt excluded due to ethnicity/race; 7% witnessed unequal treatment due to sexual orientation. Cross-tabulations showed 66% of LGBTQ employees feel they belong vs. 75% of heterosexual employees; 71% of white employees see ethnic diversity as a priority vs. 53% of employees of color. Over 400 written comments were received.
- Item 4 – 2020 Audit of City Employees’ Workforce Diversity and Salary Trends: Oseguera presented the audit, which assessed workforce diversity compared to Sacramento residents (513,000 residents; 32% white, 31% Hispanic, 16% Asian; 50.4% female). The audit included trend analysis from 2016–2020. Highlights: female employees account for 34% of full-time/part-time workforce and 39% of management; male employees have average salaries $23,000 higher than females; when excluding part-time and sworn police/fire, the gap narrows to $3,500. White employees are overrepresented in higher salary brackets. New hires (post-July 2019) are more diverse than legacy employees. The audit included 130 figures and a dashboard. Diversity and Equity Manager Ami Barnes presented the city’s Race, Gender, and Equity Action Plan, which includes a 43-point division equity assessment, capacity building, and 14 outcome strategies. Councilmembers expressed support for the work, with Councilmember Guerra noting the need to address promotional opportunities for women of color. Councilmember Jennings requested better metrics and timelines. The committee voted to forward both items to the full City Council (motion by Guerra, second by Jennings; unanimous).
- Item 5 – Measure U Community Advisory Committee Proposed Participatory Budgeting Pilot Timeline and Activities: The Measure U Committee (Kathy Crestwell, Deborah Oda Kent, Dana Cadill, Kim Williams, Flo Kaufer) and Christiana de Leon from the Participatory Budgeting Project presented a request for a $5 million allocation from the mid-year budget to start a participatory budgeting (PB) pilot. The proposed five-step process (planning, brainstorming, proposal development, voting, funding/evaluation) would take 10–12 months. The committee recommended a community-led implementation with a PB planning committee. They noted that Seattle recently increased its PB allocation to $30 million. Councilmembers discussed the need for metrics, equity in voting, and budget constraints. Councilmember Schenirer expressed hesitation about new spending given uncertain COVID-19 impacts. Councilmember Jennings wanted to see examples of cities that started small and grew. Councilmember Guerra raised concerns about ensuring equitable participation of underserved communities. Mayor Steinberg supported the concept but emphasized partnership and cultural change, suggesting the entire budget could be subject to PB principles. The item was received and filed; a full council workshop is scheduled for January 2021.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Stan Johnson (District 2): Expressed concern about homelessness, youth violence, and that community groups receiving city funds are not delivering services to all parts of District 2. He urged the committee to investigate and ensure programs reach broader areas. Mayor Steinberg responded that the PB process aims to deepen community engagement and suggested reaching out to incoming Councilmember Sean Lomeli.
- Second caller (name not given): Called in but did not speak; the meeting proceeded to adjournment.
Key Outcomes
- Consent Calendar (Items 1 & 2): Approved unanimously and forwarded to City Council.
- Items 3 & 4 (DEI Survey and Workforce Diversity Audit): Approved unanimously for forwarding to City Council for final approval. The committee emphasized the importance of continued work on diversity, equity, and inclusion, including promotional opportunities and metrics.
- Item 5 (Participatory Budgeting Pilot): Received and filed. The committee will hold a full council workshop in January 2021 to refine the plan, discuss funding (including potential sources from mid-year and next budget year), and address equity in voting and community engagement.
- Closed Session: Scheduled for 4:45 PM, but non-essential items were postponed; only essential items were heard.
- Meeting adjourned at approximately 4:45 PM.
Meeting Transcript
Are we ready to go? Almost. Vice Chair Garrett, staff's ready when you are. Thank you very much, Madam Clerk. I'm going to call this meeting to order of the City of Sacramento Budget and Audit Committee on Tuesday, December 1st at 3 09 p.m. If please call the role. Councilmember Jennings. Councilmember Schneer. Here. Councilmember Jennings. Here. And Vice Chair Gata. Here. Thank you, Madam Clerk. We're going to go ahead and begin with the consent calendar. Does any member wish to move the consent calendar? This is the city auditor's first quarterly fiscal report and the whistle whistleblower hotline activity report. I'll move it. I will second it. Madam Clerk, are there any comments from the public on this item? There are no public comments on this item. Thank you, Madam Clerk. Any further discussion? Seeing none. If the clerk, if you could please call the roll. Thank you, Councilmember Jennings. All right. Councilmember Shaneer. All right. Vice Chair Gatta. Aye. And the mayor's absent. That measure passes. Thank you, Madam Clerk. We'll go ahead and go move on to our discussion calendar. Item number three. We have our uh 2020 diversity equity and inclusion survey results. Um and uh also um item four. Uh I'm wondering if we can do both of these together, if uh if the members are okay doing both of these reports together, then we can mass pass a motion. Perfect, good. All right. Uh uh City Auditor Osaguera, welcome. Are you okay doing both of these reports together? And then we'll do uh two motions and two votes uh right after. Yes, that's fine. Great. Thank you very much. And Vice Chair Garrett, for the record, I have no calls for public comment on items three or four. Great. Thank you very much, uh Madam Clerk.
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