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Racial Equity Commission outlines statewide framework timeline, community engagement and evaluation grant
Summary
The California Racial Equity Commission told the Assembly select committee it is developing a racial equity framework due to the legislature by Dec. 1, has held extensive community meetings across the state and secured engagement and evaluation funding to support outreach and assessment.
Dr. Larissa Estes, executive director of the Racial Equity Commission, told the Assembly select committee the commission is developing a statewide Racial Equity Framework that will be delivered to the Legislature and the administration no later than Dec. 1.
Estes described an extensive engagement effort: more than 40 hours of public commission meetings since January 2024, more than 150 hours of direct engagement with community organizations, in-person meetings across the state and roughly 700 residents participating in community-centered gatherings. She said the commission is raising resources to support community engagement — noting about $170,000 in community-engagement grants — and has been awarded a $200,000 grant for evaluation of framework implementation.
The commission’s stated priorities include accessible, actionable tools for agencies and community partners, technical assistance to state and local governments, and approaches that center race and intersectionality. Estes said agencies reported barriers to effective community engagement such as lack of funds to compensate participants and insufficient language access, and the commission is emphasizing plain-language materials and disaggregated data to avoid “data erasure” of smaller groups.
Estes invited committee members to participate in upcoming field meetings, announced additional listening sessions (including Spanish- and Indigenous-language work) and said the commission will continue to brief the Legislature as recommendations are finalized.
