Racial Equity Committee Meeting – October 24, 2023

The Sacramento Racial Equity Committee met on October 24, 2023, at the City Hall Council Chamber. The agenda listed the open session at 10:00 a.m. and the chair called the meeting to order at 10:05 a.m.; the supplied timestamp (2023-10-24 18:15:00+00:00) conflicts with those local times. Present were Councilmember Jennings, Councilmember Maple, Mayor/Co-Chair Steinberg, and Mayor Pro Tem/Vice Chair Vang. The committee approved its August 22, 2023 minutes, heard a SCORE initiative update, reviewed baseline results from the mandatory DEIB/RE training assessment, and received staff reports. Vice Chair Vang opened by acknowledging recent violence in the Middle East, saying there is never a justification for violence or terror and standing with innocent families in Gaza and Israel.

Consent Calendar

• Item 1: The Racial Equity Committee meeting minutes from August 22, 2023, were approved by a motion from Councilmember Maple, seconded by Councilmember Jennings, with all four members voting yes.

Public Comments & Testimony

• No public comments were submitted for the consent calendar or the SCORE update.
• Alberto Mercado, an Oak Park resident and Equity Council representative, described the council’s work as community-centered and called for empathy, respect, and listening to communities in overcoming historical and systemic barriers.
• Malachi Amen, Director of the Institute for Marijuana Opportunities and Reinvestment and Equity and the California Urban Partnership, expressed strong support for the process, warned against “rushing to get it wrong,” and urged honesty and dashboards on police brutality, housing, cannabis equity (noting the goal of 50% of licensees), and the 228-year racial wealth gap.
• A speaker (Herman) from the Sacramento Environmental Justice Coalition said Black and brown families face the worst housing, employment, and discrimination outcomes; noted that 69% of Sacramento’s population is people of color and the city’s $1.5 billion annual budget should reflect that; and asked the committee to engage grassroots communities and outside partners.
• Ryan McClinton, with the Racial Equity Alliance, called for department-level audits to identify racial disparities and for a deeper look at how city systems and investments create unequal outcomes such as differences in street maintenance and parks.
• Jasmine Flores, an Equity Council member, said the council is ready for the 120-day plan but first needs foundational work so community members can respond from a shared understanding.
• Lambert Davis, speaking on the training item, said “mandatory” should mean 100% participation and argued that nonparticipants should face consequences including termination or loss of pay. Councilmember Maple responded that 100% of elected officials and appointed officers participated and cautioned against interpreting the small number of nonresponses as lack of care.
• During matters not on the agenda, Sharish Aswarn asked Mayor Steinberg to sign a universal human rights/anti-racism framework he had previously provided. Lambert Davis also spoke about a family cheesecake business, alleging that a councilmember improperly received a grant and that his family’s application was late, raising concerns about how equity programs are administered.

Discussion Items

• SCORE Initiative Update: Brian Oaks of Race Forward presented the update, joined by Jesse of Race Forward and community representatives from the Racial Equity Alliance and Racial Equity Council. Oaks emphasized that the alliance and council have built a multiracial, anti-racist coalition and adopted governance structures such as a consensus-building model (FISTA Five) to avoid traditional majority-rule power hoarding. He reported that the Racial Equity Council recently adopted its first 120-day plan for 2024, focused on community participation to inform a draft racial equity resolution, with pre-work planned for November and December. He requested time on the January agenda to formally present the plan and discuss partnership opportunities with the city.
• Committee discussion: Mayor/Co-Chair Steinberg acknowledged the value of organizing and empowerment but pressed for an end date and concrete products, such as a quality-of-life dashboard, a racial equity scorecard, or a racial impact report, that the City Council could vote on by summer. Kelly Rivas, Senior Advisor to the Mayor, and community members said the process and community input are necessary to inform those tools, and that it can be “both/and.” Councilmember Jennings questioned whether January was realistic given the holidays and suggested February or March might be better; Oaks and Jasmine Flores explained that the first months of the plan are designed for foundational work before community listening sessions. Councilmember Maple raised language access and funding, asking that translation access be built into the plan. Assistant City Manager Laney Millstein noted the city’s community engagement team and a GIS-based American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) equity tool that could be shared with the alliance and council. Vice Chair Vang asked how council members could support the 120-day plan; Oaks identified help with community listening sessions, district selection, language access, and data analysis.
• Baseline Learning Assessment Update: Diversity and Equity Manager Aimée Zenzele Barnes and Strategic Workforce Equity Analyst Larissa Wohl presented results from the baseline learning assessment administered to 64 elected officials, council staff (including interns), and appointed officers. Response rates were 100% for mayor/council and appointed officers and 94% for council staff. The assessment included a DEIB competency self-assessment and a racial equity learning assessment adapted from Seattle’s LEAP tool, plus optional reflective questions. Reported strengths included resilience, authenticity, and respectful communication; opportunities for growth included self-awareness, facilitating bold/difficult conversations about race, explaining DEI in the context of city government, using data for decisions, and applying a racial equity lens locally. Reflective questions were answered by 39–55% of respondents; the average completion time was 17 minutes, while some respondents took as little as 4–5 minutes. Staff proposed preparing an executive summary and report with recommendations, resources, and potential training modules, consulting with Race Forward and GARE.
• Staff and Committee Reports: Robert Bell, equity analyst, reported that the Sacramento Community Vulnerability Index is being rebranded as the Sacramento Equity Explorer (asset-based), will be beta-tested with city departments and community, and is scheduled for formal demonstration at the March 2024 committee meeting. He also described work on a racial equity study RFP and a citywide racial equity repository. Workforce equity updates included a May 19 in-person convening with almost 80 participants from 16 department equity teams, public Race and Gender Equity Action Plan progress reports expected by the end of 2023, and the fourth annual 21-day racial equity habit building challenge with over 150 participants.

Key Outcomes

• The August 22, 2023 meeting minutes were approved unanimously.
• The committee received the SCORE update and directed staff to add the formal 120-day plan presentation to the January 2024 agenda, with council members to assist on community listening sessions, language access, and data analysis; the city agreed to share its ARPA GIS equity tool with the Racial Equity Council and Alliance.
• For the DEIB/RE training assessment, the committee directed staff to prepare an executive summary and recommendations, bring that report back to the Racial Equity Committee, and then forward it to the full City Council for discussion. Staff will continue follow-up with the small number of council staff/interns who did not complete the mandatory assessment.
• Next steps identified include the Sacramento Equity Explorer demonstration in March 2024, public posting of RGAP progress reports, release of a racial equity repository form citywide, and continued racial equity study RFP development.