The Unity Group released the following statement regarding the city budget and its capacity for racial equity assessment and analysis tools.
"On today, it is our understanding that the city of Chattanooga is preparing to vote on the budget. We also are aware that young members of our community have requested a moratorium on the budget vote until such time as a line by line review of the budget can be conducted as part of divest/invest concerns that have been raised over the police budget.
"While we wholeheartedly support this effort, we believe there should be a tabling of the budget on more justifiable grounds, namely fairness and equity in the process. Notwithstanding, the Unity Group questions the racial equity mechanisms that can be found within the Budgeting For Outcomes process utilized by the city of Chattanooga, and as we did during the debate over Harriet Tubman when our coalition called for a Community Benefits Agreement, we once more call for just and equitable planning processes that considers the needs of those areas have long been neglected, underprivileged, and that are historically and habitually underserved.
"Currently, the city of Chattanooga Budgeting For Outcomes process focal points are:
Reflects citizen priorities.
Outlines tactic and resources to accomplish goals.
Demonstrates collaboration between different departments, organizations, and agencies.
Includes clear and measurable outcomes.
"While these are commendable, worthwhile and lofty goals, they fail to promote inclusiveness nor address the needs of black, brown people and working class people. Other municipalities have adopted more progressive approaches.
"The Alliance for Innovation has documented several racial equity assessment and analysis tools, one being the Seattle Racial Equity Assessment Toolkit, whose steps include:
"Apply the toolkit early for alignment with departmental racial equity goals and desired outcomes.
Be inclusive. The analysis should be completed by people with different racial perspectives. Step by step. The Racial Equity Analysis is made up of six steps from beginning to completion:
"Step 1. Set Outcomes. Leadership communicates key community outcomes for racial equity to guide analysis.
"Step 2. Involve Stakeholders + Analyze Data. Gather information from community and staff on how the issue benefits or burdens the community in terms of racial equity. What does data tell you about potential impacts?
"Step 3. Determine Benefit and/or Burden. Analyze issue for impacts and alignment with racial equity outcomes.
"Step 4. Advance Opportunity or Minimize Harm. Develop strategies to create greater racial equity or minimize unintended consequences.
"Step 5. Evaluate. Raise Racial Awareness. Be Accountable. Track impacts on communities of color overtime. Continue to communicate with and involve stakeholders. Document unresolved issues.
"Step 6. Report Back. Share information learned from analysis and unresolved issue with Department Leadership and Change Team.
"The National League of Cities is another group that has noted how municipalities across the nation are implementing these racial equity tools. They convey:
"'City budgets are important places to prioritize racial equity through targeted investment. Acknowledging inequities and race-based root causes allows cities to make revenue, procurement, and contract decisions intended for improving local governance. Cities are both conducting regular racial equity assessments of budget decisions and making decisions driven by a desire to address inequities and systemic racism.'
"A key aspect of the budget process that the Unity Group is concerned about is the inclusion of a racial equity assessment/analysis tools as an integral component of budgetary decision-making and in the development of city policies, plans, programs and procedures. Many cities and municipalities across the nation have begun to devise their budgets with racial equity assessment/ analysis tools as a framework from which they base their budgetary decision-making, and in the development of city policies, plans, programs, procurements and procedures for future application.
"We are troubled that the racial equity assessment/ analysis tools that many municipalities are currently incorporating into their budgetary planning processes is absent in our local discussions and dialogues. A further set of empirical data that is missing is a disparity study which would reveal what minority goods, services and contracts are available and utilized in an equitable manner. The budget should be one that answers and addresses the needs of neighborhoods and communities in a fair and equitable manner, and without the inclusion of these more progressive tools they will continue to receive insufficient and inadequate resources on par with other sectors of the city.
"Is this budget just and equitable? Does it stand for the fair allocation and redistribution of goods, resources and services? Will it be transformative enough to bring about meaningful change in our neighborhoods and communities? Unfortunately, that answer of this time is emphatically No! This budget is inherently flawed because it lacks the assessment/ analysis mechanisms necessary that takes into account the needs and desires of the people themselves."