Racial disparities panel files biennial report, urges impact assessments and changes to crisis response

Susanna Davis, executive director of racial equity and a member of the Racial Disparities in the Criminal and Juvenile Justice Systems Advisory Panel, told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Jan. 28 that the panel filed its biennial report "on the fifteenth of this month" and intends to push a drafted bill to require the legislature to use an impact assessment tool when considering new legislation.

The panel’s report, Davis said, is organized into three parts: a review of prior legislative actions linked to the panel’s past recommendations (including raising the age and creation of a Division of Racial Justice Statistics), a renewal of earlier recommendations from 2019 and 2024, and a newer recommendation proposing use of an impact assessment by the legislative body. "The executive branch does use an impact assessment tool and has since 2020," Davis said, adding the panel "looks forward to supporting" the drafted bill.

Dav…