Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice outlines staffing, training changes and proposed RIA amendment

Tiffany Ward, director of the Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice, told the committee the office is now staffed at eight full-time positions and is refining training and reporting processes. She said the office adjusted two in-house training modules so they can be completed every two years as part of staff members' 8-hour annual training requirement and is developing a dashboard to help managers track compliance; the dashboard is expected to be operational in spring.

On the office's proposed amendment, Ward said the office is seeking to limit the scope of Racial Equity Impact Statements. "What we are asking for in that amendment is that our office no longer do RIAs on every single supplemental appropriation ... but that we do RIAs for general fund appropriation," Ward told the committee. She said the change aims to prioritize staff time toward work with the greatest potential impact and invited committee discussion about where to set screening thresholds.