EQUITY COMMITTEE
Meeting Date: April 15, 2024
Subject: Lived Experience Advisory Board stipends and other current ORESJ projects
Submitted For: Equity Committee
Department: Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice
Referral No:
Referral Name: Lived Experience Advisory Board stipends and other current ORESJ projects
Presenter: Peter Kim, ORESJ Co-Director
Contact: Peter Kim, peter.kim@oresj.cccounty.us <mailto:peter.kim@oresj.cccounty.us>
Referral History:
At the January 22, 2024 Equity Committee meeting and January 30, 2024 Annual Board Retreat, the ORESJ Co -Directors provided an update regarding the 2024 office priorities, recruiting strategy and work plan for the second hiring phase for the ORESJ, and presented a proposal for the structure of the Lived Experience Advisory Board. To move forward with the development of the Lived Experience Advisory Board, the Equity Committee requested follow up conversations about the selection process and stipends.
At the March 18, 2024 Equity Committee meeting, the ORESJ Co-Directors, in collaboration with the Core Committee, prepared updates on the selection process, stipends and timeline for the development of the Lived Experience Advisory Board (LEAB). The high-level updates included the following elements: Supervisors select their two respective appointees, with ORESJ offering support and thought partnership; the Co-Directors convene an ORESJ-led sub-committee to select 10 at-large members; all recommendations go to Equity Committee for review, and to full Board for approval; LEAB members can earn up to $2400 per year in stipends and examples of other advisory boards’ compensation models for comparison.
The Equity Committee directed the ORESJ Co-Directors to wait on moving ahead with stipends and gather more research about how stipends have been administered elsewhere.
Referral Update:
The ORESJ Co-Directors propose to implement Lived Experience Advisory Board stipends as a pilot effort to establish a feasible and effective model of recognition and compensation for advisory body members, particularly for those with extenuating circumstances and lived conditions that pose financial barriers for participation. In research efforts these past few weeks, the ORESJ discovered a range of administrative and legal (i.e. labor, taxes, reporting) implications that warrant further research. The Co-Directors will continue to explore what is needed to effectively and responsibly implement a robust stipend policy that is practical, sustainable, and that does not pose added burden on participants.
Recommendation(s)/Next Step(s):
RECEIVE update and PROVIDE direction on next steps.
Fiscal Impact (if any):
The cost of the LEAB stipend pilot program is included in the FY 24-25 ORESJ Budget.