CITY OF SEATTLE
ORDINANCE __________________
COUNCIL BILL __________________
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AN ORDINANCE relating to community involvement in the oversight of the Equitable Development Initiative; establishing a permanent Equitable Development Initiative Advisory Board; and adding new Sections 3.14.994, 3.14.995, 3.14.996, 3.14.997, and 3.14.998 to the Seattle Municipal Code.
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WHEREAS, the Equitable Development Implementation Plan seeks to create the structures and expertise needed to create a racially and socially equitable Seattle; and
WHEREAS, the creation of the Equitable Development Initiative was rooted in the collaborative activism of community members seeking to develop new structures of partnership with the City; and
WHEREAS, the Equitable Development Initiative seeks to directly repair the harms caused by Seattle’s history of racial exclusion and disenfranchisement; and
WHEREAS, political and civic disenfranchisement has been at the core of perpetuating disparate outcomes and displacement for Black, Indigenous, and other communities of color, immigrant communities, LGBTQ communities, and people with disabilities; and
WHEREAS, successful implementation of race and social equity strategies requires building structures of accountability that serve to further the empowerment of those historically marginalized from institutional power; and
WHEREAS, the City acknowledges that developing in-depth knowledge about the needs of the City’s historically marginalized communities requires time, talent, and expertise to develop. Further, that persistent barriers exist for people from marginalized communities who have developed this expertise to be able to engage with City processes; and
WHEREAS, in 2004, the City of Seattle launched the Race and Social Justice Initiative (RSJI), led by the Office for Civil Rights, with the vision of achieving racial equity in the community and the mission of ending institutional and structural racism in City government and partnering with the community to achieve racial equity across Seattle; and
WHEREAS, the City works to create racial equity by explicitly naming and addressing the historic and current impacts of institutional and structural racism in our policies, procedures, programming, initiatives, and budgetary decisions; and
WHEREAS, the Equitable Development Initiative, led by Office of Planning and Community Development (OPCD) and the Office for Civil Rights (OCR), provides oversight and an equity framework for the Comprehensive Plan and strategies to mitigate displacement throughout City government; and
WHEREAS, Resolution 31577, adopted in May 2015, affirmed that the City’s core value of racial and social equity is one of the foundations on which the Comprehensive Plan is built; and
WHEREAS, Resolution 31711, adopted in September 2016, adopted the Equitable Development Implementation Plan and Equitable Development Financial Investment Strategy; and
WHEREAS, Ordinance 125173, passed in October 2016, amended the Comprehensive Plan to increase its emphasis on race and social equity; and
WHEREAS, Ordinance 125473, passed in November 2017, requested that the Office of Planning and Community Development (OPCD) present to the City a resolution creating a community advisory board; and
WHEREAS, Executive Order 2017-13: Race and Social Justice Initiative, states that The City of Seattle shall apply a racial equity lens in its work; NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY OF SEATTLE AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. New Sections 3.14.994, 3.14.995, 3.14.996, 3.14.997, and 3.14.998 of the Seattle Municipal Code are added to Subchapter X of Chapter 3.14 as follows:
3.14.994 Equitable Development Initiative Advisory Board established
There is established the Equitable Development Initiative Advisory Board (“Board,” as used in this Subchapter X) to advise and provide recommendations to the City in connection with its equitable development strategies and goals; and to provide guidance and recommendations on the allocation of funds dedicated to reducing current and anticipated displacement pressures and restoring communities already affected by displacement in order to promote access to opportunity for historically marginalized communities, including people of color, immigrant communities, LGBTQ communities, and people with disabilities within Seattle. Administrative support shall be provided to the Board by staff in the Office of Planning and Community Development.
3.14.995 Compensation
The Director of the Office of Planning and Community Development is authorized to expend funds to compensate community members for expertise and participation on the Board. The compensation strategy should take into account the need to reduce barriers for participation for low-income communities and the value provided by Board expertise. The compensation shall be based on compensation rates commensurate with other City reimbursement processes.
3.14.996 Appointment and removal process
A. The Board will consist of 13 members, appointed to positions numbered 1 through 13. Members in positions 1 through 3 shall be appointed by the Mayor, members in positions 4 through 6 shall be appointed by the City Council, and members in positions 7 through 13 shall be appointed by the Board (except that initial members in positions 9, 12, and 13 shall be appointed by the Equitable Development Initiative’s Interim Advisory Board). All members not appointed by the City Council shall be subject to confirmation by the City Council. Initial members in positions 3, 6, 9, 12, and 13 shall be members of the Equitable Development Initiative’s Interim Advisory Board as of the effective date of this ordinance.
B. The initial terms for positions 1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 13 shall be one year; the initial terms for positions 2, 5, 7, 9, 11, and 12 shall be two years; all subsequent terms shall be for three years. With the exception of initial positions 3, 6, 9, 12, and 13 no member shall serve more than two consecutive three-year terms; for the purpose of calculating consecutive terms, serving at least 18 months of a term counts as serving a term. Initial positions 3, 6, 9, 12, and 13 shall serve no more than one additional term. A member whose term is ending shall continue on an interim basis as a member with voting rights until such time as a successor for that position has been appointed by the appointing authority and confirmed by the City Council.
C. Board members may be removed by a two-thirds vote of the Board.
3.14.997 Membership criteria
A. Each member shall: represent a geographic location among high risk displacement and low access to opportunity areas as defined by the City’s Equity Analysis and Displacement Risk Index; represent geographic neighborhoods that have already experienced significant displacement and histories of discriminatory policies or practices; and/or have lived experience with involuntary displacement from Seattle; and have lived experience being targeted by racially discriminatory policies and practices. Priority shall be given to potential members who can demonstrate that their name is being forwarded as the result of a community-based selection process and/or belong to organizations based in and accountable to impacted communities in historically displaced, disinvested neighborhoods, and/or current high-risk displacement areas.
B. The Board should include members who:
1. Have a connection to Seattle and Puget Sound’s Indigenous communities;
2. Have a connection to Seattle and Puget Sound’s Black and other communities of color;
3. Have a relationship within LGBTQ communities, particularly those communities that encounter intersectional oppressions;
4. Demonstrate knowledge of barriers to opportunity for people living with disabilities;
5. Commit to the principles of equity and social justice articulated in the Equitable Development Implementation Plan as well as commit to evaluate and make potential decisions through an equity and social justice lens;
6. Have broad perspectives on community development (e.g. Arts and Culture, Food Sovereignty, Affordable Housing, Social Services, Economic Development);
7. Have previous or current participation in the Race and Social Equity Taskforce; or
8. Have a track record of organizing and collaboration within and among communities of color, particularly those that have experienced specific historical discrimination within Seattle.
3.14.998 Board duties
The Board shall have the following duties:
A. Elevate the voices and needs of communities that have historically been marginalized within the City’s political process;
B. Serve on a subcommittee to advise and assist the City in connection with the development and implementation of equitable development strategies and policies;
C. Develop funding criteria and create recommendations for the allocation of funds from the Equitable Development Initiative Fund;
D. Review annual equitable development monitoring plans;
E. By March 31 of each year, submit a written report to the Director of the Office of Planning and Community Development and the Seattle City Council on the Board’s priorities for the Equitable Development Initiative Fund;
F. Develop equitable development and anti-racist policies and practices to better help the City eliminate institutional and systemic racism;
G. Convene stakeholders to build knowledge of and capacity around equitable development goals;
H. Comply with the requirements of Section 4.16.070;
I. Make appointment recommendations and evaluate letters of interest of individuals wishing to serve on the board to determine whether they meet the membership criteria; and
J. Meet on a monthly basis.
Section 2. This ordinance shall take effect and be in force 30 days after its approval by the Mayor, but if not approved and returned by the Mayor within ten days after presentation, it shall take effect as provided by Seattle Municipal Code Section 1.04.020.
Passed by the City Council the ________ day of _________________________, 2020, and signed by me in open session in authentication of its passage this _____ day of _________________________, 2020.
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President ____________ of the City Council
Approved by me this ________ day of _________________________, 2020.
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Jenny A. Durkan, Mayor
Filed by me this ________ day of _________________________, 2020.
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Monica Martinez Simmons, City Clerk
(Seal)