(a) Establishment. A Gender Equity Commission is hereby established. The Commission shall report to the Mayor. The City will employ a Gender Equity Manager to lead and manage the Commission. The Commission in coordination with the Director of the Department of Human Resources and the Director of the Department of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion shall develop a job description and define the position of the Gender Equity Manager within six months of the effective date of this chapter.
(b) Purpose. The Commission shall be designated as monitoring agency of CEDAW in the City. The Commission is established to:
(1) Advise on the impact of all government policies on women and girls;
(2) Monitor the situation of women and girls comprehensively in recognition of the interconnectedness of discrimination based on gender, race and other social criteria; and
(3) Help formulate new policies and effectively carry out strategies and measures to eliminate discrimination.
(c) Powers and duties. The Commission shall have all powers and duties enumerated within this chapter.
(1) The Commission shall select the method for conducting the intersectional gender equity analyses of the City.
(2) The Commission shall oversee and provide support for the intersectional gender equity analyses of the City.
(3) The Commission shall, based upon the equity disparities identified in the analyses, provide guidance to departments (bring in community or subject experts, identify best practices, etc.) in the development of Departmental Action Plans.
(4) The Commission shall monitor and guide the departments in implementation of the Departmental Action Plans.
(5) The Commission shall work with the Gender Equity Manager to draft recommendations in the five-year City-wide Action Plan.
(6) The Commission shall ensure that the Departmental and City-wide Action Plans are consistent with the intent, purpose, and requirements of CEDAW.
(7) The Commission shall produce annual reports to the Mayor and City Council.
(8) The Commission shall make annual funding recommendations to the Mayor and City Council.
(9) The Commission shall seek outside sources of funding to supplement Gender Commission activities.
(d) Membership and organization.
(1) The Commission shall consist of fourteen (14) members each appointed by the Mayor and confirmed by City Council, as follows:
(A) One member representing City Council;
(B) The Gender Equity Manager;
(C) The Chair of the Human Relations Commission;
(D) Two members representing the Toledo for CEDAW Steering Committee on the Commission's initial composition, thereafter two members shall be appointed from the community, one knowledgeable about health issues and the other with general knowledge of women and girls' issues; and
(E) Nine members from the community;
(i) Two members shall be knowledgeable about international human rights and be knowledgeable about CEDAW;
(ii) Two members shall be knowledgeable about the intersectionality of women and girls' issues and race, poverty, immigration status, disability, gender identity, and sexual orientation;
(iii) One member shall be knowledgeable about economic development, including employment issues;
(iv) One member shall be knowledgeable about violence against women and girls;
(v) One member shall be a youth under age eighteen (18) at the time of appointment; and
(vi) Two at-large community members.
(2) All appointed members of the Commission shall serve at the pleasure of their appointing authorities. The initial composition of the seven community members appointed by the Mayor and subject to confirmation by City Council will include three members appointed to one-year terms, two members appointed to two-year terms, and two members appointed to three-year terms. All other members, and community members appointed thereafter, shall be appointed for three-year terms.
(3) The Commission will annually elect one member to serve as Chair and four additional members to serve with the Chair as an Executive Committee.
(e) The Commission process.
(1) The Commission shall meet in regular session monthly and shall conduct its first meeting no later than 30 calendar days after its members are appointed.
(2) Meetings of the Commission shall be public and shall be advertised in a manner designed to ensure full and meaningful public participation in Commission decisions.
(3) The Commission shall also provide a mechanism through which interested persons may request timely notification of regular and special meetings, which shall include, at a minimum, a summary of the matters that will be under consideration.
(4) The Commission shall allow for public comment on matters up for deliberation at each public meeting, and shall make publicly available a summary of actions taken at each meeting within seven days.
(f) Attendance requirement. In the event that any community member misses three regularly scheduled meetings of the Commission without prior notice to the Commission, the Chair shall certify in writing to the Mayor that the member who missed three meetings. On the date of such certification, the member shall be deemed to have resigned from the Commission. The Chair shall then request the appointment of a new member.
(g) Donations; gifts. The Commission is authorized to solicit and accept donations and gifts for the express purpose of realizing the goals and objectives of this chapter. Any and all donations or gifts received shall be deposited in the CEDAW Trust Fund in the Department of Finance. Disbursements from this Fund shall be made by the Director of Finance upon presentation of proper vouchers from the Commission Chair with the concurrence of the Mayor.
(h) Budget. A budget shall be prepared annually by the Commission. The budget shall include, but is not limited to, a salary for the Gender Equity Manager and funds, where necessary, for the Intersectional Gender Equity Analysis of City departments. The budget shall be submitted to City Council for approval.
(i) Expenses. Expenses for operation of the Commission shall be met by such appropriations as made by City Council in accordance with the budget prepared by the Commission and submitted to City Council. Expenses may also be met by contributions from outside sources as are made for such purposes.
(Ord. 95-22. Passed 3-15-22; Ord. 395- 22. Passed 8-16-22; Ord. 65-23. Passed 2-21-23.)