To: Board of Supervisors
From: Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice
Report Title: Approval Request for the Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice’s Community Celebration
☐Recommendation of the County Administrator ☐ Recommendation of Board Committee
RECOMMENDATIONS:
RATIFY approval for the Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice (ORESJ) to host a community celebration at Los Medanos College held December 4, 2024, with a total cost of $17,957.35, pursuant to Administrative Bulletin No. 114 (County and Non-County Sponsored Events and Activities), Administrative Bulletin No. 614 (Food and Beverage Policy), the County Procurement Card Policy to allow the purchase of food and beverages for the event and retroactive approval of a rental agreement for the use of Los Medanos College District facilities, including full indemnification of the District by the County.
FISCAL IMPACT:
$17,957.35; 100% Measure X. The ORESJ’s community celebration costs for event consulting, cultural music performances, stage management, sound equipment rental, sound engineer services and the food and beverage purchases for 200 attendees, totaled $9,577.35. Costs for simultaneous interpretation in five languages (American Sign Language, English, Mam, Mandarin and Spanish) totaled $8,380.
BACKGROUND:
The Co-Directors of the Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice (ORESJ), Kendra Carr and Peter Kim, seek retroactive approval to host a County-sponsored event (pursuant to Administrative Bulletin # 114) and request a retroactive exemption to the County's Food and Beverage Policy (pursuant to Administrative Bulletin # 614) as well as the County Procurement Card Policy to allow the purchase of food and beverages for the ORESJ community celebration on December 4, 2024 at Los Medanos College.
The December 4, 2024 ORESJ community event brought together cross-sector stakeholders to celebrate the ORESJ’s first year as Contra Costa County’s newest department and included attendees representing the Board of Supervisors, other elected officials, County departments, local and regional system partners, community-based organizations, the faith-based community, philanthropy and education fields, and community members and residents. The attendees represented those who were instrumental in the initial advocacy efforts and establishment of the ORESJ, as well as other champions of equity and justice for the County’s most vulnerable communities. Pursuant to the ORESJ mission, core values, and department goals, the ORESJ Co-Directors provided attendees with a public, transparent update about their learnings and accomplishments from the first year, outlined plans and priorities for 2025, and solicited attendees’ feedback and insights about priority projects for 2025. As a part of the broader effort towards developing a countywide Language Justice Plan that improves and expands the County’s language access and inclusivity practices, the event included simultaneous interpretation in five languages (American Sign Language, English, Mam, Mandarin and Spanish), to ensure that a diverse group of County residents could engage fully with one another in dialogue and idea sharing.
Subsequent to the event, the President of Los Medanos College generously waived all fees associated with the event, including the room rental fee ($2,000), parking fees for event attendees ($600) and all Los Medanos College staffing costs (overtime hours for those who staff the Student Union, Campus Safety and Facilities). Additional generous support came from the staff of Stand Together Contra Costa, who provided in-kind event project management and planning support. Additional volunteers critical to the successful running of the event came from County agencies (Contra Costa Health and the Public Defender’s Office) and community-based organizations (DeafHope and Rubicon).
The event budget is as follows:
|
Vendor |
Amount |
Service Provided |
|
Language Justice Interpreters |
$8,380 |
Language Interpreters (10 total): Mam (2), Spanish (2), Mandarin (2) and Deaf (2) and Hearing (2) ASL interpreters |
|
Audiopharmacy |
$4,975 |
Event consulting, Cultural Music Performance, Stage Management |
|
Oasis Entertainment |
$650 |
Sound Equipment Rental, Set-up, Break-down |
|
La Fauna Music |
$500 |
Sound Engineer |
|
Cocina Danzon |
$1,800 |
Food for 100 people |
|
Mama's Lumpia |
$1,652.35 |
Food for 100 people |
|
Total Event Budget |
$17,957.35 |
|
In addition to requesting retroactive approval to host a County Sponsored Event, the ORESJ Co-Directors seek a retroactive exemption to the County’s Food and Beverage Policy and the Procurement Card Policy for the purchase of food. In addition, ratification of the Rental Agreement for use of the Los Medanos Community College District space is requested as part of this action. Such agreements typically require approval by the Public Works Director pursuant to County Ordinance Code section 1108-10.002 and, in this case, review of the County Counsel’s Office since the agreement includes full indemnification of the College District.
The event budget details a total expenditure of $3,452.35 for food for 200 guests, which amounts to an expenditure of $17.26/person. This expenditure rate is aligned with (and lower than) the meal and incidental expenses rates and guidelines of the US General Services Administration (US GSA). According to the US GSA, the per diem rate for meals in Pittsburg, CA ranges from $22/person for breakfast to $36/person for dinner.
CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:
The ORESJ’s December 4th Community Celebration event is currently out of compliance, due to the ORESJ’s failure to request and secure prior approval to host a county-sponsored event and an exemption to the County’s Food and Beverage Policy. The event will remain unapproved and out of compliance, compounding potential future internal and external audit findings.