REGULAR MEETING OF THE ASIAN AMERICAN QUALITY OF LIFE ADVISORY COMMISSION February 18, 2025, at 6:00 p.m. City of Austin, Permitting & Development Center, Room 1406 6310 Wilhelmina Delco Dr Austin, TX 78752 Some members of the Asian American Quality of Life Advisory Commission may be participating by videoconference. Public comment will be allowed in-person or remotely via telephone. Speakers may only register to speak on an item once either in-person or remotely and will be allowed up to three minutes to provide their comments. Registration no later than noon the day before the meeting is required for remote participation by telephone. To register to speak remotely, call or email Christi Vitela at (512) 974-2792 or christi.vitela@austintexas.gov. CURRENT COMMISSIONERS: Hanna Huang, Chair Sarah Chen Zachary Dolling Pierre Nguyễn Alpha Shrestha Seonhye “Sonny” Sin Kuo Yang CALL TO ORDER Padmini Jambulapati, Vice Chair Sarah Xiyi Chen Hailey Easley Sabrina Sha Nayer Sikder Luan Tran AGENDA PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL The first ten speakers signed up prior to the meeting being called to order will each be allowed a three-minute allotment to address their concerns regarding items not posted on the agenda. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Asian American Quality of Life Advisory Commission regular meeting on December 17, 2024. STAFF BRIEFING 2. Staff briefing by Angelica Benton-Molina, Equity and Inclusion Program Manager I, Equity Division, regarding the City of Austin Equity Office’s Undoing Racism Training and programs offered that include participation from the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community. DISCUSSION ITEMS 3. Presentation by American Gateways regarding their work in the Austin community providing legal services to the low income and immigrant communities. Presentation by Rebecca Lightsey, Co-Executive Director, American Gateways and Edna Yang, Co- Executive Director, American Gateways. 4. Discussion of Draft Budget Recommendations for Fiscal Year 2025-2026. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 5. Approve updates to the membership of FY2026 Budget Working Group. 6. Approve updates to the membership of Asian American Resource Center Working Group. 7. Approve updates to the membership of the Food Security Working Group. 8. Approve updates to the membership of the Working Group to plan for meetings between AAPI community leaders and the City Manager's office. 10. Update from the FY2026 Budget Working Group on the Asian American Resource Center 11. Update from the FY 2026 Budget Working Group on the Joint Inclusion Committee (JIC) 12. Update from the Working Group …
ASIAN AMERICAN QUALITY OF LIFE ADVISORY COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING MINUTES DECEMBER 17, 2024 The Asian American Quality of Life Advisory Commission convened in a regular meeting on December 17, 2024, at 301 W. 2nd St. in Austin, Texas. Chair Huang called the Asian American Quality of Life Advisory Commission Meeting to order at 6:07 p.m. Commissioners in Attendance: Hanna Huang, Chair Commissioners in Attendance Remotely: Padmini Jambulapati, Vice Chair Sarah Chen Zachary Dolling Hailey Easley Pierre Nguyễn Sabrina Sha Nayer Sikder Kuo Yang Commissioners Absent: Sarah Xiyi Chen Alpha Shrestha Sonny Sin Luan Tran PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL CALL TO ORDER Michael Ward Jr. - Austin Urban Technology Movement PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL The first ten speakers signed up prior to the meeting being called to order will each be allowed a three-minute allotment to address their concerns regarding items not posted on the agenda. 1 APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Asian American Quality of Life Advisory Commission regular meeting on November 19, 2024. The minutes from the meeting of November 19, 2024, were approved on Commissioner Nguyễn’s motion, Commissioner Sarah Chen’s second on a 9-0 vote. Commissioners Sarah Xiyi Chen, Shrestha, Sin, and Tran were absent. DISCUSSION ITEMS 3. Presentation regarding the City of Austin emergency language access plan from the Communications and Public Information Office and the Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. The presentation was made by Marion Sanchez, Public Information and Marketing Manager, Communications and Public Information Office, Houmma Garba, Community Engagement Consultant, Communications and Public Information Office, David Wiechmann, Public Information Specialist Senior, Homeland Security and Emergency Management, and David Alcorta, Community Engagement Specialist, Homeland Security and Emergency Management. Presentation regarding Austin American Resource Center (AARC) Phase 2 progress from Christina Bies, Project Manager, Capital Delivery Services Department. The presentation was made by Christina Bies, Project Manager, Capital Delivery Services Department. Discussion of the inclusion of the Asian American Quality of Life Advisory Commission's budget recommendations in the FY2025 Budget. Discussed. Approve updates to the membership of the budget working group. Commissioner Nguyễn was added to the working group without objection. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEM 5. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS None ADJOURNMENT Chair Huang adjourned the meeting at 7:27 p.m. without objection. The minutes were approved at the XX meeting on XX’s motion, XX’s second on a X-X vote. 2. 4. 2
Asian American Quality of Life | Equity Office Staff Briefing February 18, 2024 The History of the Equity Office In 2015: Austin is the best place to live in the nation according to U.S. News and World Report & One of the most economically segregated cities in the U.S. according to the Martin Prosperity Institute Community Organized for Accountability Which led to… • In 2015, Council passed a resolution creating the Equity Office to administer an Equity Tool • After an extensive search and interview process, Chief Equity Officer Brion Oaks was hired in October 2016 “Maintaining the Spirit of the Resolution” • Brion intentionally followed the spirit of the resolution, engaging the community whose organizing resulted in the Office. • With these people he co-created the Equity Assessment Tool, and defined “equity” for the City of Austin. • In total volunteers dedicated over 900 hours to the process. 6 City Equity Definition Racial equity is the condition when race no longer predicts a person’s quality of life outcomes in our community. The City recognizes that race is the primary determinant of social equity and therefore we begin the journey toward social equity with this definition. A Framework for Equity Equity Lens City of Austin Equity Network Departments that have Equity Staff • Transportation Public Works (1) • Austin Public Health (4) • Austin Public Library (1) • Austin Police Department (1) • Development Services Department (2) • Human Resources Dept • Parks and Recreation(1) • Austin Energy (1) • Economic Development Department • Austin Water • Watershed Other Depts: • Office of Sustainability • • Equity Coordination Team IDEA (TWP) (Watershed) • Equity Council (APH) • Austin Energy • Equity and Inclusion Workgroup (FSD) • DEIB (CTM) • CCCN (PARD) 9 Equity Office Trainings and Workshops Overview of Trainings People's Institute for Survival and Beyond Latine Challenge 11 Data Overall Participants: • Non-COA Participants: 348 (38%) (62%) • COA Participants: 569 Data • Partnered with AACHI about Anti- Asian hate. • Equity Office has been a big proponent of disaggregating data in the Asian Population – Socio economic Latine/Hispanic: 262 (27%) • Black: 149 (15%) • • White: 404 (42%) • • Asian: 56 (6%) • Other: 80 (8%) • Prefer not to Answer: 15 (2%) Indigenous: 4 (0%) Data • Partnered with AACHI about Anti- Asian hate. • Equity Office has been a big proponent of disaggregating data …
