OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Sacramento Children's Fund Commission Meeting - February 5, 2026

Other — Thursday, February 5, 2026
BodySacramento, California
SessionOther
DateThursday, February 5, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:54:06
Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

Good morning and welcome to the February 1st,

0:11

2026 meeting of the Sacramento Children's Fund Planning and Oversight Commission.

0:16

The time is now 10.02 a.m. and the meeting is called to order.

0:20

Will the clerk please call the roll to establish a quorum? Yes, thank you, Chair.

0:23

I have Commissioner Ghaffari.

0:25

Present.

0:29

Okay.

0:30

Commissioner Kravitz Ritz?

0:32

Here.

0:34

Vice Chair Richardson?

0:36

Here.

0:38

Commissioner Thomas?

0:40

Here.

0:41

Commissioner Volsi?

0:43

Here.

0:45

Commissioner Williams?

0:46

Here.

0:47

And Chair Ruelas Maris?

0:49

Help me out with that.

0:50

Ruelas Maris, but.

0:53

I'll record that.

0:54

Ruelas Maris.

0:55

Thank you. We have a quorum.

0:58

Okay, I would like to remind members of the public and chambers that if you would like to speak on an agenda item,

1:05

please turn in a speaker slip when the item begins.

1:08

You will have two minutes to speak once you are called on.

1:11

After the first speaker, we will no longer accept speaker slips.

1:14

We will now proceed with today's agenda.

1:16

Please rise for the opening acknowledgments in honor of Sacramento's Indigenous people and tribal lands.

1:22

To the original people of this land, the Nisanan people, the southern Maidu, Valley and Plains

1:33

Miwok, Patwin-Wintu peoples, and the people of the Wilton Rancheria, Sacramento's only

1:38

federally recognized tribe, may we acknowledge and honor the native people who came before

1:43

us and still walk beside us today on these ancestral lands by choosing to gather today

1:48

in the active practice of acknowledgement and appreciation for Sacramento's indigenous

1:52

peoples' history, contributions, and lives. Thank you.

2:00

So I'm not going to take away anybody's right from doing the Pledge of Allegiance, but I'm

2:04

personally going to sit down. So if you guys would like to continue to do that, that's

2:07

okay. And then we can continue the meeting. So, yeah.

2:11

Yeah.

2:12

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America

2:17

and to the republic for which one nation under God

2:22

and to the world with liberty and justice for that someday.

2:28

Someday.

2:30

Okay.

2:33

Our first business today is approval of the consent calendar.

2:36

Clerk, are there any members of the public

2:38

who wish to speak on the consent calendar?

2:40

Thank you, Chair.

2:41

We have no speakers for this item.

2:44

Okay.

2:45

Are there any commissioners who wish to speak on this item?

2:59

Okay.

2:59

I'm seeing none.

3:02

So I do wish we had the follow-up log in front of us,

3:05

but is that something that is posted with email to us?

3:11

It's posted with the agenda, the follow-up log, and any attachments.

3:16

But if you want to request that we print it for you in future, we may do so.

3:24

I think that would be helpful, yeah, just to have it in front.

3:28

I know folks have their laptops too, can easily access that.

3:31

But without it in front of me, I mean, and nobody having any questions, is there a motion and a second for the consent calendar?

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Budget and Finance█████████████████████████████████████████████45%
Community Engagement█████████████████████████████29%
Procedural██████████████████████████26%
Summary of Proceedings

Sacramento Children's Fund Planning and Oversight Commission Meeting - February 5, 2026

The Sacramento Children's Fund Planning and Oversight Commission met on Thursday, February 5, 2026, from 10:02 a.m. to 11:55 a.m. at City Hall. The meeting included approval of consent items, a major discussion on the third-year review of the Strategic Investment Plan (SIP), election of new officers, and establishment of an ad hoc committee. No members of the public spoke.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of November 6, 2025 Meeting Minutes (File ID: 2025-01921) – Passed unanimously.
  • Approval of Follow-Up Log (File ID: 2026-00272) – Passed unanimously. Commissioners briefly reviewed pending items, including a request for a presentation from the Office of Violence Prevention and a joint meeting with the Sacramento Youth Commission.

Chair's Remarks

  • Chair Monica Ruelas Mares delivered a personal statement expressing strong support for the city's sanctuary policy, concern over immigration enforcement actions, and the need for the commission to center youth voices and respond to current events. She stated that her views are personal and do not reflect the commission or council members. Commissioner Volma Volcy echoed support, sharing his background as a Haitian immigrant and calling for collective action.

Discussion Items

  • Sacramento Children’s Fund Implementation, Planning and Timeline Update (File ID: 2026-00475) – Julie Garen, Program Specialist, presented:

    • Grantees submitted second-quarter reports; City of Sacramento projects funded after December 2025 council approval; contract negotiations with school districts ongoing.
    • Evaluation RFP closed with 14 applications; Harder & Company Community Research selected as evaluator for up to five years at $750,000, pending City Council approval on February 24, 2026.
    • Guaranteed Basic Income (GBI) NOFO closes February 9, 2026, with funding targeted to start July 1, 2026.
    • Third-year review of the SIP is required by Measure L by June 30, 2027; editing is optional. Staff proposed high-level edits, with a timeline for completing any edits by May 2027 to inform the next RFP (approx. $13–14 million for a two-year grant period).
    • Commissioners discussed potential edits: CBO vs. city/public entity funding split, fund goal percentage allocations, target population definitions (including Prop 209 legal analysis), and refining specific strategies (e.g., mental health definition).
    • Vice Chair Eugenia Richardson proposed using meeting time to discuss each topic; Commissioner Nicole Kravitz-Wirtz suggested staggering topics across meetings and using ad hoc committees for research.
    • An ad hoc committee on target populations was established (Commissioners Ruelas Mares, Kravitz-Wirtz, and Shannon Williams).
    • Commissioners requested a deeper analysis of the CBO/city split and an overview of other California children’s funds for the May meeting. They also reiterated interest in a presentation from the Office of Violence Prevention, with questions to be submitted by email.

  • Selection of Chair and Vice Chair for Calendar Year 2026 (File ID: 2026-00281) –

    • Eugenia Richardson was nominated and unanimously elected as Chair for 2026.
    • Lilian Ghafari was nominated and unanimously elected as Vice Chair for 2026.

Key Outcomes

  • Consent Calendar – Approved unanimously (7-0).
  • Chair and Vice Chair Elections – Eugenia Richardson elected Chair (7-0); Lilian Ghafari elected Vice Chair (7-0). Both accepted their new roles, with terms beginning at the next regular meeting.
  • Ad Hoc Committee – Established on target populations (Commissioners Ruelas Mares, Kravitz-Wirtz, Williams) to research and recommend language for the SIP.
  • Follow-Up Requests – Staff will provide: 1) a deeper analysis of the CBO/city funding split at the May meeting; 2) an overview of other California cities’ children’s fund allocations; 3) an update on the Office of Violence Prevention presentation (questions due within a month); 4) continued coordination with the Sacramento Youth Commission for a joint meeting.
  • Next Meeting – Scheduled for May 2026, with presentations from the City Auditor on the business operations tax and from the evaluation consultant, Harder & Company.

Meeting Transcript

Good morning and welcome to the February 1st, 2026 meeting of the Sacramento Children's Fund Planning and Oversight Commission. The time is now 10.02 a.m. and the meeting is called to order. Will the clerk please call the roll to establish a quorum? Yes, thank you, Chair. I have Commissioner Ghaffari. Present. Okay. Commissioner Kravitz Ritz? Here. Vice Chair Richardson? Here. Commissioner Thomas? Here. Commissioner Volsi? Here. Commissioner Williams? Here. And Chair Ruelas Maris? Help me out with that. Ruelas Maris, but. I'll record that. Ruelas Maris. Thank you. We have a quorum. Okay, I would like to remind members of the public and chambers that if you would like to speak on an agenda item, please turn in a speaker slip when the item begins. You will have two minutes to speak once you are called on. After the first speaker, we will no longer accept speaker slips. We will now proceed with today's agenda. Please rise for the opening acknowledgments in honor of Sacramento's Indigenous people and tribal lands. To the original people of this land, the Nisanan people, the southern Maidu, Valley and Plains Miwok, Patwin-Wintu peoples, and the people of the Wilton Rancheria, Sacramento's only federally recognized tribe, may we acknowledge and honor the native people who came before us and still walk beside us today on these ancestral lands by choosing to gather today in the active practice of acknowledgement and appreciation for Sacramento's indigenous peoples' history, contributions, and lives. Thank you. So I'm not going to take away anybody's right from doing the Pledge of Allegiance, but I'm personally going to sit down. So if you guys would like to continue to do that, that's okay. And then we can continue the meeting. So, yeah. Yeah. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which one nation under God and to the world with liberty and justice for that someday. Someday. Okay. Our first business today is approval of the consent calendar. Clerk, are there any members of the public who wish to speak on the consent calendar? Thank you, Chair. We have no speakers for this item. Okay.

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