1 File No.

20-174
2
3By County Executive Abele, Supervisors Nicholson, Martin, Haas, Moore Omokunde,
4and Johnson, Jr.
5
6
7 A RESOLUTION/ORDINANCE
8
9 Committing Milwaukee County, in collaboration with its departments, to advancing the
10 strategic priority of achieving racial equity to improve the health of the entire community
11 by eliminating any racism in the County’s policies, procedures, practices, and power
12 structures
13
14
15 WHEREAS, according to Federal Reserve Economic data, Milwaukee is one of
16the most racially-segregated metropolitan statistical areas in the United States and,
17according to the 2019 County Health Rankings, Milwaukee County is ranked 71 out of
1872 counties for health in the state of Wisconsin; and
19
20 WHEREAS, according to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS), in
212019 a white person in Milwaukee County lives, on average, nearly 14 years longer
22than a black person; and
23
24 WHEREAS, the Wisconsin DHS further reports that the infant mortality rate is
25nearly three (3) times higher for black infants versus white infants in Milwaukee County,
26at 14.2 deaths and 4.8 deaths per 1,000 births, respectively; and
27
28 WHEREAS, race is a social construction with no biologic basis, yet racism can
29produce an assigned societal value based on the way a person looks; and
30
31 WHEREAS, race is a consistent predictor of a person’s quality and length of life,
32in which black and brown communities have lower access to safe, quality: green spaces
33and recreation, transportation, healthcare and social services, affordable housing,
34education, healthy food options, clean drinking water, and financial security; and
35
36 WHEREAS, structural, institutional, and individual racism are root causes of the
37racial disparities in quality and length of life in Milwaukee County; and
38
39 WHEREAS, structural racism is racial bias among interlocking institutions and
40across society, causing cumulative and compounding effects that systematically
41advantage white people and disadvantage black and brown people; and
42
43 WHEREAS, institutional racism includes policies, practices, and procedures that
44work better for white people than for black and brown people, often unintentionally and
45unconsciously; and
46
47 WHEREAS, structural and institutional racism deplete the strength of the entire
48society through the inefficient use of human resources; and
49
50 WHEREAS, the lack of an intervention to right the wrongs of the past means that
51health outcomes for black and brown communities have worsened and will continue to
52worsen until government, including Milwaukee County, and other institutions across the
53county, identify and eliminate any inequitable policies, procedures, practices, and power
54structures; and
55
56 WHEREAS, Milwaukee County commits to supporting the Office on African
57American Affairs by ensuring it is strategically positioned within County government to
58assist with the development and institutionalization of racial equity tools to collaborate
59with departments to assess and transform policies, procedures, practices, and power
60structures to help the County become a place where all citizens are thriving; and
61
62 WHEREAS, the Office on African American Affairs has led the normalization of
63conversations about race and racism at all levels of Milwaukee County government to
64facilitate institutional change and has created a Racial Equity Ambassador program to
65begin transforming institutional operations, as prescribed by the model from the
66Government Alliance on Race and Equity (GARE); and
67
68 WHEREAS, in a unanimous decision by the County Board of Supervisors and
69the County Executive in May 2019 (File No. 19-397), Milwaukee County was the first
70governing jurisdiction in the United States to declare racism a public health crisis;
71however, the County must not only have a challenge statement in its legislation, but
72must also have a commitment to addressing the challenge, which is contained herein;
73and
74
75 WHEREAS, while there is no epidemiologic definition of “crisis,” the health
76impacts of racism clearly exemplify the definition proposed by experts, which is that the
77“problem must affect large numbers of people, it must threaten health over the long-
78term, and it must require the adoption of large-scale solutions”; and
79
80 WHEREAS, with this ordinance, the County resolves to commit to the long-term
81priority of achieving racial equity and by assessing and revamping policies, procedures,
82practices, and power structures using a racial equity lens to take down the barriers that
83may exist for black and brown individuals and communities so everyone in Milwaukee
84County can thrive; now, therefore,
85
86 BE IT RESOLVED, to transform Milwaukee County government, employees at all
87levels will first focus on solutions related to the following topics, which directly address
88power structures and institutional practices contributing to racial health disparities of
89County residents:

90  Diverse and Inclusive Workforce: Milwaukee County leadership, management,

91 and staff will reflect the diversity of its residents to better represent the
92 experiences and ideas of the people it serves. The County resolves to build a
 93 collaborative, supportive, respectful workplace environment that increases the
94 participation and contribution of all employees.
95  Employee Perspective: To enhance the health of Milwaukee County residents,
96 County government should strive to ensure that services meet everyone’s needs.
97 Thousands of Milwaukee County employees directly serve residents each day
98 and their perspectives should be more intentionally considered to continually
99 improve the equity of policies, procedures, practices, and power structures.
100  Customer-Focused Design: A “customer” is defined as an individual who
101 currently uses or could use County services; customers may include Milwaukee
102 County residents, visitors to Milwaukee County, or Milwaukee County
103 employees. Government services should meet the needs of its customers.
104 Redesigning what, where, and how services are provided to meet customer
105 needs should be undertaken with customer participation. Defining customer
106 populations and including those customer groups in the design and decision-
107 making of services will help ensure that government services are meeting the
108 needs of those using, or who could be using, County services. To this end, the
109 County must focus on purposeful and meaningful community engagement on the
110 front-end and throughout the process of decision making, which will produce
111 more appropriate and equitable power-sharing between experts working in the
112 government and the customers of County services.
113  Improved Performance & Equitable Practice: Milwaukee County government
114 must improve the quality of the data it collects and the analysis of that data to
115 better understand the impact of services on customers. It is not enough to
116 assume that a service is producing its intended outcome; the County should use
117 qualitative and quantitative data to assess impact and continuously improve
118 where services are falling short in order to improve the quality of life for all
119 residents.
120  Fiscal Health: Over the past decade, Milwaukee County has cut between $20
121 and $30 million annually due to the structural deficit and has accumulated
122 hundreds of millions of dollars in deferred maintenance. Because of decisions
123 made decades ago and the restrictive authority given to local governments to
124 generate new sources of revenue, the County and municipal governments are
125 forced to make decisions about cuts to services and repairs each year that can
126 impact the health of County residents. The County must find sustainable revenue
127 sources and continue to pursue organizational efficiencies so the County
128 government can make meaningful investments to advance racial equity
129
130; and
131
132 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that every employee is responsible for the
133implementation of this Resolution/Ordinance and developing skills and capacities to
134create and maintain a culture in which employees recognize and respect the diverse
135values, beliefs, and behaviors in the workforce and the community they serve; and
136
137 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that to address systemic racism affecting county
138residents, Milwaukee County government commits to engaging municipalities and
139institutions within the county to prioritize racial equity to address structural racism
140producing disparate population health outcomes; and
141
142 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that by achieving racial equity, Milwaukee County
143will eliminate health and opportunity gaps along racial lines and will increase the
144success of all groups by distributing resources justly across all communities; and
145
146 BE IT RESOLVED, that the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors hereby
147creates Chapter “Achieving Racial Equity and Health” of the Milwaukee County Code of
148General Ordinances by adoption of the following:
149
150
151 AN ORDINANCE
152
153The Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors does ordain as follows:
154
155Section 1. Chapter 108 “Achieving Racial Equity and Health” of the Milwaukee County
156Code of General Ordinances is hereby created as follows:
157
158108.01 – Achieving Racial Equity and Health.
159
160 Racism has been and is a public health crisis in Milwaukee County. According to
161the County Health Rankings, Milwaukee County is, and has consistently been, one of
162the lowest-ranked counties for health in Wisconsin and, according to Federal Reserve
163Economic Data, Milwaukee County is one of our nation's most racially segregated
164areas. According to 2019 statistics, a white person lives, on average, nearly 14 years
165longer than a black person and the infant mortality rate is nearly three (3) times higher
166for black infants compared to white infants. Race is a social construction with no
167biologic basis, yet racism may produce an assigned societal value based on the way a
168person looks that has resulted in race being a consistent predictor of a person’s quality
169and length of life. With this ordinance, Milwaukee County government declares its
170commitment to achieving racial equity by identifying and eliminating any racism in its
171institutional policies, procedures, practices, and power structures for black and brown
172individuals and communities so everyone in Milwaukee County can thrive.
173
174108.02 – County Strategic Priority, Mission, Vision, and Values
175
176 1. The institutionalization of racial equity in the County’s mission, vision, values, and
177 services are of the utmost priority. Milwaukee County government declares that:
178 a. Racism has been, is, and will continue to be, a public health crisis until
179 race is no longer a predictor of quality or length of life in Milwaukee
180 County.
181 b. The vision of the County be: “By achieving racial equity, Milwaukee is the
182 healthiest county in Wisconsin.”
183 c. The mission of the County be: “We enhance the quality of life in
184 Milwaukee County through great public service.”
185 d. The values guiding the culture of the County workforce be:
186 i. Respect: We work with and for others.
187 ii. Integrity: We do the right thing.
188 iii. Excellence: We never stop improving.
189
190108.03 – Guiding Framework and Strategic Objectives to Achieve the County’s
191Vision
192 1. Milwaukee County adopts the “Health and Equity Framework,” adapted from the
193 Wisconsin Population Health Institute’s model, as its guiding framework for
194 addressing the root causes of institutional and systemic racism. The framework
195 first directs that influencing the “Power to Make Change” is the most sustainable
196 and transformational way to affect racial equity and health in the County
197 population. The second key area that the framework directs focus to is
198 “Institutional Practices,” which entails identifying and eliminating any racial biases
199 in governmental practices. By addressing these two causal areas of racial and
200 health inequities, Milwaukee County will make huge strides in advancing its
201 vision of achieving racial equity and being the healthiest county in Wisconsin.

202
203
204 2. To this end, Milwaukee County government declares that it will achieve the
205 following objectives, which directly affect the “Power to Make Change” and
206 “Institutional Practices”:
207 a. Diverse and Inclusive Workforce:
208 1. Milwaukee County leadership, management, and staff will reflect
209 the demographics (including, but not exclusively racial) of
210 Milwaukee County.
211 2. Milwaukee County will have an inclusive workplace culture where
212 differences are welcomed, where different perspectives are heard,
213 and where individuals feel a sense of safety and belonging.
214 3. Employees will understand what skills and experience are expected
215 to advance to the next level and will have opportunities to gain
216 those skills and experiences.
217 b. Employee Perspective:
218 1. Milwaukee County leaders and management will regularly consult
219 and problem solve with a racially diverse representation of frontline
220 staff to inform equitable policy, process, and customer service
221 delivery decisions.
222 c. Customer-Focused Design:
223 1. Milwaukee County will determine what services we offer and how
224 money is spent based on robust, diverse public participation.
225 2. Milwaukee County will determine where services are offered based
226 on robust, diverse public participation.
227 3. Milwaukee County will determine how services are offered based
228 on robust, diverse public participation.
229 d. Improved Performance and Equitable Practice:
230 1. Milwaukee County will monitor and evaluate the impact and equity
231 of all services on customers and will use data to continuously
232 improve.
233 2. Milwaukee County will be held accountable by external partners
234 and community members for progress and results on the strategic
235 plan.
236 e. Fiscal Health
237 1. Milwaukee County will secure additional revenue and achieve cost
238 savings each year to be able to cover existing operating costs.
239 2. Milwaukee County will identify and implement mechanisms to make
240 investments into strategic priorities to achieve the objectives
241 outlined above.
242 3. Milwaukee County declares that it will, at a minimum, use racial equity tools to
243 evaluate the impact of decisions on black and brown communities for the
244 following enterprise-wide areas:
245  The budget
246  Processes, policies, and procedures
247 4. Milwaukee County declares that it will continue to offer trainings to support racial
248 equity work at all employee levels.
249 5. Milwaukee County declares that every informational and action report that is
250 submitted to the County Board will incorporate the impact on the vision and
251 connection to racial equity and the strategic objectives.
252 6. Milwaukee County declares that it will create and maintain an external website
253 dedicated to racial equity and health work at the County.
254 7. Milwaukee County declares that it will create and maintain an intranet site
255 dedicated to racial equity and health work at the County.
256
257108.04 – Key Stakeholder Roles and Responsibilities
258
259 1. The County directs that the stakeholders below will carry out the described roles
260 and responsibilities in support of the successful execution of the strategic
261 objectives outlined in this ordinance:
262 a. County Leaders, Managers, and Staff: Leaders are accountable for the
263 success of the objectives outlined above to advance racial equity in
264 Milwaukee County. Furthermore, every employee is responsible for the
265 implementation of this Resolution/Ordinance and developing skills and
266 capacities to create and maintain a culture in which employees recognize
267 and respect the diverse values, beliefs, and behaviors in the workforce
268 and the community they serve.
269 b. Office on African American Affairs: The Office provides guidance,
270 education, research, and technical assistance to support the County vision
271 and strategic planning priorities.
272 c. Strategic Plan Advisory Council: Milwaukee County declares that it will
273 create a Strategic Plan Advisory Council. The Advisory Council shall
274 provide both input on and support for the implementation of solutions
275 designed to advance Milwaukee County’s vision of achieving racial equity
276 and becoming the healthiest county in Wisconsin. The Advisory Council
277 shall consist of eleven (11) representatives:
278 i. One (1) chairperson, who must be a Milwaukee County employee
279 and shall be nominated by the County Executive and approved by
280 the County Board Chairperson.
281 ii. Three (3) County Board Supervisors selected by the County Board
282 Chairperson.
283 iii. One (1) Elected Official from the District Attorney’s Office, the Chief
284 Judge’s Office, the Clerk of Courts, or the Milwaukee County
285 Sheriff’s Office, who will be nominated by the County Executive and
286 approved by the Chairperson of the County Board of Supervisors;
287 in the event that none of these elected officials serve on the
288 Advisory Council, their seat will be filled by an additional external
289 partner, following the same rules as outlined in 108.04 (1)(c)(viii).
290 iv. One (1) Elected Official from the Register of Deeds Office, the
291 Office of the Comptroller, the Office of the County Clerk, or the
292 Office of the Treasurer, who will be nominated by the County
293 Executive and approved by the Chairperson of the County Board of
294 Supervisors; in the event that none of these elected officials serve
295 on the Advisory Council, their seat will be filled by an additional
296 external partner, following the same rules as outlined in 108.04 (1)
297 (c)(viii).
298 v. The Director of the Office on African American Affairs.
299 vi. Two (2) Department Directors selected by the County Executive.
300 vii. One (1) non-supervisory Racial Equity Ambassador selected by the
301 Office on African American Affairs and approved by the
302 Ambassador’s Department Director.
303 viii. One (1) community member, who will be nominated by the County
304 Executive and approved by the Chairperson of the County Board of
305 Supervisors.
306 The composition of the Advisory Council shall be assembled with diversity
307 at the front of mind.

309 The Advisory Council shall convene at least once each quarter, or four
310 times annually. In addition to monitoring the County’s progress toward
311 realizing the objectives outlined in the County’s strategic plan, the
312 Advisory Council shall provide input and support for overcoming obstacles
313 encountered by County employees working to advance the plan.
314
315 As appropriate, the Advisory Council shall provide input on the refinement
316 and implementation of the strategic plan. Recommendations for significant
317 changes to the plan (for example, changes to wording of the objectives, or
318 reallocating employee time or County resources to achieve the objectives)
319 shall require a written recommendation to both the County Executive and
320 the County Board Chair for consideration and approval.
321
322 The Director of Strategic Planning and the County Board Chairperson’s
323 Chief of Staff or their designees shall jointly prepare the agenda and
324 materials for the meetings. One or both of individuals shall (co-)facilitate
325 each meeting.

327Section 2. The provisions of this Ordinance shall become effective upon passage and
328publication.