City of Sacramento
Racial Equity Committee Report
915 I Street Sacramento, CA 95814
www.cityofsacramento.org
File ID: 2025-00380 1/21/2025 Discussion Item 2.
Overview and Updates of Citywide Racial Equity Efforts
File ID: 2025-00380
Location: Citywide
Recommendation: Receive and provide direction.
Contact: Aimée Zenzele Barnes, Diversity and Equity Manager, (916) 808-1174, [email protected]; Larissa Wohl, Strategic Workforce Equity Analyst, (916) 808-5839, [email protected]; Department of Human Resources Presenter: Aimée Zenzele Barnes, Diversity and Equity Manager, (916) 808-1174, [email protected]; Larissa Wohl, Strategic Workforce Equity Analyst, (916) 808-5839, [email protected]; Department of Human Resources Attachments:
1-Description/Analysis
Description/Analysis
Issue Detail:
This report is intended to provide a background on the development and work to date of the Racial Equity Committee (REC). Information is organized in the following four sections:
1. History and Purpose of the REC
2. Overview of Internal Efforts to Advance Racial Equity
3. Overview of External Efforts to Advance Racial Equity
4. Mandatory Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) and Racial Equity (RE) Training of City Elected Officials, Council Staff, and Appointed Officers History and Purpose REC
The REC provides a space for Council to coordinate Council requests regarding racial equity training, tools, and capacity building to support the City in developing and implementing racial equity initiatives. The REC mission and stated purpose are a compilation of Council and Committee comments and requests that were approved by the Ad Hoc version of this Committee on October 6, 2021:
File ID: 2025-00380 1/21/2025 Discussion Item 2.
Mission
1. Help the Council align its advancement of racial equity in decision-making with the impacts resulting from City policy, budget, and service-delivery decisions.
2. Provide a space to help coordinate the various City racial equity initiatives, efforts, metrics, and best practices into a holistic Citywide informed approach (rather than a case-by-case approach).
3. Increase community engagement, transparency, and accountability for the City’s ongoing racial equity work.
Purpose
1. Short-Term: Provide direction for the development and use of an American Rescue Plan Act (ARP) racial equity rapid response tool to guide the federal ARP pandemic recovery expenditures (Completed October 2021 - April 2022).
2. Mid-Term: Coordinate a racial equity workshop or series of racial equity workshops for the full Council (Part I of Mandatory DEIB training completed in 2024. Part II Mandatory Racial Equity training to be completed in 2025).
3. Long-Term: Serve as the public reporting body for the multi-year long Sacramento Centered on Racial Equity (SCORE) initiative and workplan Sin partnership with community represented by the Racial Equity Alliance and Racial Equity Council.
Overview of Internal Efforts to Advance Racial Equity
1. The City has been a member of the Government Alliance on Race and Equity (GARE) since 2019. GARE is a national initiative of Race Forward which aims to eliminate racial inequities in government and to identify and eliminate barriers to an inclusive, just, and sustainable society to create transformative change.
2. The Office of Diversity & Equity (ODE) has advanced workforce equity internally in the following ways:
a. Developed the City's Race and Gender Equity Action Plan 2020-2025 (RGEAP). b. Established Department Equity Teams to support the implementation of the RGEAP. c. Facilitated year-round capacity building efforts through equity convenings, trainings, roundtables, and workshops including the 21-Day Racial Equity Habit Building Challenge.
d. Initiated a Sacramento Area GARE practitioners network. e. Supported Council adoption of a Resolution for Mandatory DEIB/RE Training for City Elected Officials, Council Staff, and Appointed Officers. i. Coordinated Part 1 of the Mandatory DEIB/RE Training for City Elected Officials, Council Staff, and Appointed Officers.
3. As part of the City's continued efforts to create a workforce that reflects the diversity of the
File ID: 2025-00380 1/21/2025 Discussion Item 2.
community we serve, the Human Resources Department has:
a. Developed a Citywide Hiring Manual.
b. Implemented a blind hiring application review process. c. Required mandatory implicit bias training for all City staff who participate in hiring interview panels.
d. Expanded gender identity options in the City’s human resources/payroll system to include a non-binary option.
e. Coordinated with the Office of the Auditor on a bi-annual audit and Workforce Diversity & Salary Trend Reports.
f. Worked with executive recruitment firms who support City diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives to reach underrepresented individuals and women to fill executive-level positions.
g. Created a General Intern classification intended to provide a pathway to help develop our local workforce and build a pipeline of workers for City employment. This is an entry level classification designed to provide access to workforce services and employment opportunities and requires no experience or education to qualify. h. Ramped up recruitment efforts by attending and recruiting at both public and private career fairs, with an emphasis on recruiting in community spaces reflective of the community we serve.
i. Advertised through industry-related organizations, government job boards, social media sites, and state networks such as GARE, the Urban League’s job fair, Sacramento’s Pride event, resource events organized by Councilmembers, and the California Black Chamber of Commerce, the Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the California Asian Chamber of Commerce, and the Sacramento Promise Zone.
Overview of External Efforts to Advance Racial Equity
1. Developed and adapted an Interim Rapid Response Tool (IRRT) to apply a racial equity lens on outcomes of the American Rescue Plan Act program and project design and funding processes; and to review parts of the budget to understand and minimize harm resulting from budget decisions.
2. Researched and drafted a Citywide Racial Equity Study scope of work for a future Request for Proposals to develop and include indicators and benchmark metrics that will be used for annual assessment of Citywide impact.
3. Developed the Sacramento Equity Explore Design (SEED) GIS Tool. The SEED GIS Tool is an internal and external tool to help decision makers apply a racial equity lens and other equity considerations that informs allocation of resources, services, programs, and funding to promote opportunity and growth and identify methods that address undesired and unintended impacts, harm, or burdens.
4. Developed a Budget Equity Tool (BET) and guide for application of budget reductions for Fiscal Year (FY) 2024/25 and FY2025/26 with an expanded application over the next three
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to five years.
5. Adopted by Council a Citywide Resolution (2024-0354) to Operationalize Racial Equity in the City of Sacramento Government by Beginning an Institutional Transformation Process That Will Aim to Produce Material Outcomes for all Residents to Thrive and Will Foster a Culture of Shared Partnership and Accountability Between Community and Government.
6. Adopted by Council a Citywide Resolution (2024-0355) Adopting the Mayoral Reparations Initiative as a City-wide Initiative (the “REPAIR” Resolution) Transitioning the Mayoral Reparations Initiative to a City Reparations Initiative.
7. Implementing the planning dollars and technical assistance received from the Cities for Financial Empowerment CityStart Initiative to help cities identify strategies that will financially empower residents, with a focus on the Black community. The Blueprint document is to be completed by February 2025.
Mandatory DEIB/RE Training of City Elected Officials, Council Staff, and Appointed Officers In May 2023, the Council passed a Resolution for Mandatory DEIB/RE Training for City Elected Officials, Council Staff, and Appointed Officers, which included an updated memo from the Co-Chairs of this Committee.
To begin implementation of DEIB/RE trainings as per Section 2 of the Resolution, in August 2023, the REC affirmed the direction for City Elected Officials, Council Staff, and Appointed Officers to complete the DEIB/RE a baseline learning assessment to inform and prioritize which type of training, training content, and learning objectives were needed and prioritized for 2024. The DEIB/RE learning baseline assessment was administered and completed by 62 respondents in September and October 2023. In October 2023, ODE presented the overall trends of the results to the REC with recommendations to continue development content and method of DEIB/RE training implementation.
CPS HR Consulting was selected to provide Cultural Competency training geared toward Elected Officials, Council staff, and Appointed Officers. CPS HR Consulting has previous experience leading these trainings for jurisdictions throughout the State of California and were well positioned to meet the needs of the growth areas identified in the learning baseline assessment. CPS HR Consulting trainers facilitated 14 sessions from July through October 2024 covering a variety of topics. The sessions included:
· Council Triad A: two sessions (Sessions 2 and 3 were completed back-to-back) for a total of
4.5 hours
· Council Triad B: three sessions for a total of 4.5 hours · Council Triad C: three sessions for a total of 4.5 hours · Council Staff Cohort 1 (Supervisors): one session for a total of 6 hours · Council Staff Cohort 2 (Non-Supervisors): one session for a total of 6 hours · Appointed Officers: three sessions for a total of 4.5 hours
File ID: 2025-00380 1/21/2025 Discussion Item 2.
In October 2024, the REC affirmed the following direction:
· Establish new contract with the balance of existing funds with CPS HR Consulting to provide Part I DEIB Training for New/Council Staff/Makeup Session in late December/January 2025.
District 8 Councilmember to work with Clerk’s Office to execute. · Explore alternative training approaches and programs by issuing a request for information (RFI) for Part II Racial Equity Training.
· Coordinate with City Attorney’s Office for relevant lived experiences to be included in curriculum development.
· Identify resources and infrastructure for Part 2 Racial Equity & Ongoing Training for FY2025/26.
· Work with Office of the Clerk on developing automated reminders for Council, Council Staff, and Appointed Offices using Acumen Learning Management Software.
The Clerk’s Office has developed a contract with CPS HR Consulting to complete Part I of the training for the new Mayor, Councilmembers, and Council Staff and will be working with CPS HR Consulting to schedule the sessions for each group.
On November 14, 2024, the RFI was issued for Part II Mandatory Racial Equity Training. As of January 3, 2025, 30 submissions were received. Next steps will be for staff to move forward with issuing a Request for Proposal (RFP) for this training. The projected timeline to issue an RFP for Part II Mandatory Racial Equity Training Council, Council Staff, and Appointed Offices is as follows:
· Date of Request for RFP: March 14, 2025
· Please direct all questions by April 11, 2025
· Proposal Deadline: April 25, 2025
· Interviews with select applicants: May 12-16, 2025
· Scope of work and contract: June 13, 2025
· Tentative Training Months: August through October 2025 · Deliverables Complete: December 19, 2025
Policy Considerations: Not applicable.
Economic Impacts: Not applicable.
Environmental Considerations: This action is exempt from California Environmental Quality Act.
Sustainability: Not applicable.
Commission/Committee Action: Not applicable.
File ID: 2025-00380 1/21/2025 Discussion Item 2.
Rationale for Recommendation: This report is an overview of Council’s stated mission and purpose for the REC and City racial equity efforts. It is provided for informational purposes at the beginning of the year.
Financial Considerations: Development and implementation of appropriate tools can be used to assess how funding allocations benefit and/or burden previously disadvantaged communities, guiding funding decisions and broadly informing policy decisions across the City. Establishing shared definitions and metrics in conjunction with evaluation of program outcomes will provide the framework to understand the impact of efforts to embed racial equity in City systems. To implement and sustain racial equity initiatives, evaluation of current staff capacity along with identifying resources, if any, will need to be determined.
Local Business Enterprise (LBE): Not applicable.