Dallas City Council approves city’s first ever comprehensive Racial Equity Plan
The Dallas City Council overwhelmingly approved adoption of the Racial Equity Plan (REP) led by the Office of Equity and Inclusion (OEI). The REP will provide a comprehensive strategic framework that outlines progress measures for each city department to address the racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic disparities named in the Equity Indicators Report.
“This historical vote shows the commitment of Dallas leadership, placing equity at the forefront of our work as public servants with a mission to continue improving the quality of life of historically underrepresented groups in the city,” said Assistant City Manager Liz Cedillo-Pereira. “The plan is designed to hold accountable the work that is currently being done and will continue to record and measure the work that still needs to be improved.”
The next phase of engagement will build out the “Big, Audacious Goals” and how the REP’s Action Targets and goals will be developed and potentially funded in the Fiscal Year 2023 biennial budget and longer term.
OEI continues to strategically engage community residents, nonprofits, philanthropists, and other key stakeholders. Engagement events scheduled in the coming weeks include:
Based on community input more events may be added to the City Calendar.
“Ongoing engagement of Dallas residents will be needed as this plan matures. Making it a priority for the plan to be accessible for all communities that reside in Dallas will prove to be vital to its results. We are just getting started and I look forward to the progress to be made” said District 11 Council Member Jaynie Schultz, Chair of the Workforce, Education and Equity Committee.
In 2018, the City Council approved the Resilient Dallas Strategy, which aims to advance equity in City government through an intentional analysis of service delivery, strategic planning, and budget allocation. In 2019, the City Council adopted an equity resolution that established, among other things, the Budgeting for Equity (BfE) process and called for the City to commit more resources to areas and populations with the greatest need, based on data and a newly designed equity tool for budget development.
On March 24, 2021 Dallas City Council unanimously approved the city’s first Racial Equity Resolution. This resolution reaffirmed Dallas’ commitment to work towards addressing the impact of institutional racism and creating a city where everyone can thrive. The development and ongoing refinement of the comprehensive Racial Equity Plan (REP) is done through the collaborative work of City department leadership and through the input of Dallas residents.
“This effort did not happen overnight, with the dedication of City staff, community leaders, and stakeholders this plan was brought to fruition. A step in the right direction with many more to come. I am proud of the commitment of my colleagues who helped champion these efforts” said District 3 Council Member Casey Thomas, Chair of the Housing and Homeless Solutions Committee.
The draft Racial Equity Plan in English and Spanish is on the OEI webpage; final translation in Dallas’ top five languages will be added to bit.ly/DallasREP before the end of the fiscal year.
