Alameda County ad hoc committee backs funding support for Reparations Commission and authorizes outside fundraising

The Alameda County Board of Supervisors' ad hoc committee on reparations on Monday signaled support for the Reparations Commission's request for county funding to carry out listening sessions, town halls, surveys and to draft an action plan, and authorized the commission to solicit outside donations.

The committee's chair, Supervisor Miley, said the committee would coauthor a joint board letter with Supervisor Marquez to present funding options and push the item to the full board before budget deliberations. "We can get a board letter to the board as a result of what you guys prepare this evening, sometime in June," Miley said.

Why it matters: The commission told supervisors it has completed a first year of information gathering and needs staff time and contractor support to synthesize community input and department data into an actionable plan. The commission said it previously requested a two'year, $4.6 million budget (itemized and scoped) but received limited county resources so far'about $120,000 for meeting facilities and stipends over a year and a half. The commission has an extension to complete its work through June 2026.

The commission chair (identified in the meeting as the chair of the Reparations Commission) told the committee that without additional resources "the less rigorous the action plan will be," urging supervisors to back the action items that would let the commission hire facilitators, pay for note-taking and perform analysis. The chair described partnerships with the county library and academic capstone work from the Goldman School of Policy that produced an outline for the harms report and said a fuller outside contractor or university partner will be needed to do the data analysis and final writing.

Library support: Erin Berman, Equitable Libraries Division Director for the county library, introduced herself and said the library is providing in'kind support and that the library staff "are happy to support however we can." Her remarks affirmed the library's role in hosting resources and helping with the repository and web presence the commission is building.

Consultant role and facilitation: The commission described working previously with Exceptional Community Connections (ECC), which helped facilitate the commission retreat and is available to help with infrastructure and framework for engagement. The commission and library clarified ECC would help coordinate subgroups and framework but would not necessarily be the room facilitator for each listening session. Supervisor Marquez asked whether the facilitator contract in the agenda would cover listening sessions and who would actually facilitate the in'person and virtual events.

Funding options and board letter: Supervisors asked the commission to present multiple budget options (best case, mid case, scaled back) so the full board can choose a level of commitment. "If budget wasn't a constraint, this is what we want. If there's some limitations, if we had to scale it back, what does that look like?" Supervisor Marquez said. The committee agreed the joint board letter should include clear options and specifics on who, what, where and when to help colleagues anticipate questions.

Authorization to seek outside funding: The committee also voted to authorize the Reparations Commission to seek philanthropic or corporate support and agreed the joint board letter should clarify where donated funds would be held'for example a designated county account, the county foundation or a nonprofit vehicle'so potential donors could be assured funds would be appropriately designated and accessible. The commission requested clarity about where donor funds would be parked and suggested providing two receiving options (one with nonprofit designation, one a county account) in the board letter.

Data needs and next steps: Commissioners and supervisors said county departments have provided disaggregated data but the commission does not have a dedicated staff FTE to consolidate and analyze those data. The chair said the commission may need to contract with a university or hire analysts to conduct the literature review, clean and analyze datasets and quantify harms. The committee asked staff to agendize a follow'up meeting focused on outstanding data needs, and supervisors sought a regular meeting cadence for progress updates.

Actions taken: By consensus the ad hoc committee approved a motion to support advancing the commission's request for county financial support for community engagement and action plan drafting to the full board, and separately authorized the commission to seek outside funding and have those authorities and funding options spelled out in the same joint board letter to be submitted to the board by the end of June.

What happens next: The commission will hold a work session to refine the scope and options; supervisors Miley and Marquez said their offices will prepare a joint board letter reflecting the commission's options and the proposed mechanisms for receipt of outside funds. The item is expected to be brought to the full Board of Supervisors after the commission finalizes more detailed costing and scope.