(a) Findings.
(1) Although not unique to the County, many County residents suffer from stark disparities linked to race and social justice issues.
(2) These disparate outcomes among County residents include wealth, housing, criminal justice, education, and health.
(3) Inequitable outcomes linked to race and social justice issues will persist in the County without intentional intervention.
(4) The work to dismantle racial and social justice inequity must occur on an individual, institutional, and structural basis.
(b) Definitions. As used in this Division:
Director means the Director of the Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice or the Director’s designee.
Equity means fair and just opportunities and outcomes for all people.
Equity assessment means a systematic process of identifying policies and practices that may be implemented to identify and redress disparate outcomes on the basis of race or social justice issues.
Individual racism means explicit or implicit pre-judgment bias or discrimination by an individual based on race.
Inequity means systematic and patterned differences in well-being that disadvantage one group in favor of another caused by past and current decisions, systems of power and privilege, and policies.
Institutional racism means policies, practices, and procedures that work better for some members of a community than others based on race.
Office means the Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice.
Race means a social construct that artificially divides people into distinct groups based on characteristics such as physical appearance (including color), ancestral heritage, cultural affiliation, cultural history, ethnic classification, and the social, economic and political needs of a society at a given period.
Racial equity and social justice means changes in policy, practice and allocation of County resources so that race or social justice constructs do not predict one’s success, while also improving opportunities and outcomes for all people.
Racial equity and social justice action plan means a comprehensive plan to incorporate and embed racial equity and social justice principles and strategies into operations, programs, service policies, and community engagement.
Social justice means that everyone deserves to benefit from the same economic, political and social rights and opportunities, free from health disparities, regardless of race, socioeconomic status, age, sex – including on the basis of gender identity or orientation, religion, disability, or other characteristics.
Structural racism means the history and current reality of institutional racism across public and private institutions which combine to create a system that negatively impacts certain groups based on race.
(c) Functions. After consulting with each department and office, the Office must:
(1) perform an equity assessment to identify County policies and practices that must be modified to redress disparate outcomes based on race or social justice;
(2) develop metrics to measure progress in redressing disparate outcomes based on race or social justice;
(3) work with each County department and office to develop a racial equity and social justice action plan designed to remedy individual, institutional, and structural racism or social justice issues adversely impacting County residents;
(4) provide racial equity and social justice training to County employees;
(5) develop short term and long term goals for success in redressing disparate outcomes based on race or social justice issues;
(6) measure progress in meeting both short term and long term goals; and
(7) provide staff support for the Racial Equity and Social Justice Advisory Committee.
(d) Racial Equity and Social Justice Action Plan.
(1) The Executive must adopt, by Method 2 regulation, a racial equity and social justice action plan.
(2) The racial equity and social justice action plan must include:
(A) a community engagement process;
(B) mandatory racial equity and social justice training for all County employees;
(C) the use of explicit racial equity and social justice considerations in establishing new programs and evaluating existing programs;
(D) a requirement for the Executive to explain how each management initiative or program that would be funded in the Executive’s annual recommended operating and capital budgets, including the recommended operating and capital budgets for the County Board of Education, or in a supplemental appropriation promotes racial equity and social justice;
(E) short term and long term goals for promoting racial equity and social justice;
(F) metrics for measuring progress in meeting these goals;
(G) guidelines for each department and office to develop its own equity action plan;
(H) recommended racial equity and social justice tools and strategies for a department or office to use in redressing disparities based on race or social justice issues; and
(I) priority areas for additional County efforts.
(e) Reports. The Director must submit an annual report on the activities of the Office to the Executive and the Council on or before each September 30. The report must include:
(1) the metrics used to measure the success of each short term and long term goal of the approved racial equity and social justice action plan;
(2) the progress toward meeting the goals of the approved racial equity and social justice action plan; and
(3) any recommendations for changes in law, regulation, or operating budget resources to assist in meeting the goals of the racial equity and social justice action plan.
(f) Responsibilities of each department and office. Each Executive and Legislative Branch department and office must:
(1) designate an employee to serve as the racial equity and social justice lead for the department or office to coordinate work with the Office;
(2) develop a department or office racial equity and social justice action plan in coordination with the Office; and
(3) provide discrete data on disproportionality and other information to the Office as needed.
(g) Responsibility of the Council. The Council must:
(1) establish a structure to provide oversight of the County’s progress in meeting its racial equity and social justice goals. The Council may retain experts from academic and scientific organizations to assist the Council with this oversight responsibility;
(2) establish a process to explain how each special appropriation promotes racial equity and social justice; and
(3) ensure that the operating budget is sufficient:
(A) for the Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice to provide the services required by this Section; and
(B) to implement the Racial Equity and Social Justice Action Plan. (2019 L.M.C., ch. 27, §1; 2020 L.M.C., ch. 38, §1; 2021 L.M.C., ch. 26, § 1.)
Editor’s note—2019 L.M.C., ch. 27, § 2, states:
Transition and Effective Date.
(a) The first report of the Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice required in Section 1 must be submitted to the Council on or before September 30, 2020 and the first report of the Racial Equity and Social Justice Committee required in Section 1 must be submitted to the Executive and the Council on or before December 1, 2020.
(b) Section 2-81C as added by Section 1 of this Act takes effect on August 1, 2020.