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Sacramento diversity office outlines plan to expand racial equity work, adopt outcome-focused measures
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Summary
The Office of Diversity and Equity told the Measure U advisory committee it is expanding the city's Race, Gender and Equity Action Plan beyond workforce issues, aligning it with the SCORE initiative and using a results-based accountability framework to measure outcomes, though staff said budget cuts could slow progress.
Ami Zanzaleh Barnes, the city's Diversity and Equity manager, told the Measure U Community Advisory Committee on March 16 that the Office of Diversity and Equity is shifting its Race, Gender and Equity Action Plan beyond internal workforce work to include procurement, budgeting and service delivery and will align that expansion with the SCORE (Sacramento Centered on Racial Equity) initiative.
Barnes said the office will adopt a Results-Based Accountability (RBA) framework and a Clear Impact dashboard to help departments set and track performance measures that focus not just on outputs but on whether residents are "better off." "We want to move from how much we do to how well we do it and whether anyone is better off," Barnes said, outlining the three RBA measure types: how much, how well and is anyone better off.
The presentation traced the office's work back to its 2018 founding and participation in the Government Alliance on Race and Equity (GARE) learning cohort. Barnes credited technical support and low-cost access to Clear Impact tools gained through a recent Jurisdiction Evaluation Learning Exchange for enabling the RBA rollout. She said the office will continue staff training, capacity building and technical assistance for departmental equity teams and expects departments to finalize RBA performance measures by June 2026.
Barnes also described three planned citywide products the office hopes to beta test this year: an online SAC Equity Impact Planner and assessment tool, a Sacramento Equity Mapping Atlas, and a template equity impact statement to appear in staff reports to Council. "We want to create a web-based equity lens that city staff can use and a one-stop shop of equity data," she said.
Commissioners pressed Barnes on whether the office can maintain the initiatives amid a sizable city general-fund shortfall. Barnes said the three Measure U-supported positions requested this year are central to delivery and that all initiatives could continue with reduced staffing but would likely take longer and reduce the office's capacity for quick consultations on staff reports. "We wouldn't be able to respond to consultations as fast," she warned.
Members also asked about measuring outcomes and data limitations, including challenges collecting disaggregated demographic data and trust barriers preventing residents from supplying detailed information. Barnes said practical approaches—like ZIP-code overlays in the mapping tool and developing a data-development agenda—can provide interim insights while building trust and data systems.
Barnes urged that equity be embedded in departmental priorities and recommended a combination of technical assistance and clearer institutional commitments from city leadership to make equity work sustainable.
The committee received the presentation and engaged in an extended question-and-answer session. The next step identified by staff is continued training and working with departments to refine RBA measures ahead of the June 2026 target.
