1. Draft Meeting Minutes 20260326 — original pdf

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Draft Meeting Minutes March 26, 2026 Asian American Quality of Life Advisory Commission Special Called Meeting Minutes Thursday, March 26, 2026 The Asian American Quality of Life Advisory Commission convened in a Special Called meeting on Thursday, March 26, at the Permitting and Development Center, Room #1406, Wilhelmina Drive in Austin, Texas. Chair Sin called the Special Called Asian American Quality of Life Advisory Commission Meeting to order at 6:06 p.m. COMMISSIONERS IN ATTENDANCE: Seonhye “Sonny” Sin, Chair Padmini Jambulapati, Vice Chair Sarah Xiyi Chen Hanna Huang COMMISSIONERS IN ATTENDANCE REMOTELY: Aasiyah Baig Sarah Chen Hugh Li Ahmed Moledina Alpha Shrestha Nayer Sikder Nirali Thakkar Kuo Yang PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL None present. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Asian American Quality of Life Advisory Commission regular meeting on February 17, 2026. The minutes from the Asian American Quality of Life Advisory Commission regular meeting on February 17, 2026 were approved on Commissioner Huang’s motion, Commissioner 1 Draft Meeting Minutes March 26, 2026 Chen’s second on an 11-0 vote. Commissioner Yang was off the dais. Commissioner Dolling was absent. STAFF BRIEFINGS 2. Staff Briefing regarding the Levers of Economic Mobility Index. Presentation by Gary Aaron, Business Process Consultant Sr., Austin Equity and Inclusion and Shivani Datar, Business Process Specialist, Austin Equity and Inclusion. The presentation was made by Gary Aaron, Business Process Consultant Sr., Austin Equity and Inclusion and Shivani Datar, Business Process Specialist, Austin Equity and Inclusion. WORKING GROUP UPDATE 3. Update from Asian American Quality of Life Advisory Commission Commissioner Search Working Group Update was given by Commissioner Huang. Stakeholder candidates were discussed. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 4. Approve two stakeholder seats to the Asian American Quality of Life Advisory Commission. The motion to approve a stakeholder seat to Alka Bhanot was approved on Commissioner Huang’s motion, Commissioner Thakkar’s second on a 12-0 vote. Commissioner Dolling was absent. The motion to approve a stakeholder seat to Bhumika Purohit was approved on Commissioner Shrestha’s motion, Commissioner Huang’s second on a 12-0 vote. Commissioner Dolling was absent. 5. Approve a Budget Recommendation to Council regarding the Quality-of-Life study. The following amendment was made by Commissioner Huang and seconded by Commissioner Xiyi Chen. The amendment was to insert the following: “Without updated, disaggregated data, Asian American communities remain underrepresented in City decision-making and program design. The UT Austin School of Social Work is currently working on an updated pilot based on our 2016 Asian American Quality of Life Study.” The amendment was approved on a 12-0 vote. Commissioner Dolling was absent. The following amendment was made by Commissioner Huang, seconded by Commissioner Chen. The amendment was to insert the following paragraph as a new third paragraph under “Rationale”: 2 Draft Meeting Minutes March 26, 2026 “This study would help the City to optimize engagement with the Asian American community. The AAQoL Commission has experienced that during city staff presentations, we often hear staff do not have enough data or reference points that are updated in order to improve service delivery to Asian American communities in Austin.” The amendment was approved on a 12-0 vote. Commissioner Dolling was absent. The motion to approve a budget recommendation to Council regarding a Quality-of-Life study as amended was approved on Commissioner Huang’s motion, Commissioner Chen’s second on a 11-0 vote. Commissioner Thakkar abstained. Commissioner Dolling was absent. 6. Approve a Budget Recommendation to Council regarding Asian American Resource Center (AARC) staffing. The following amendment was made by Commissioner Huang and seconded by Commissioner Shrestha. The amendment was to include the following: “These acting roles significantly expand the scope of responsibility and require oversight of facilities with distinct missions, staffing needs, and operational demands, including newly onboarded assets. To date, acting cultural center division managers have not been approved for even acting pay. Moreover, However, acting pay does not compensate at the same level as a permanently classified Division Manager position, resulting in staff performing sustained, higher-level leadership functions without commensurate compensation, authority, or long-term structural support.” The amendment was approved on a 12-0 vote. Commissioner Dolling was absent. The motion to approve a budget recommendation to Council regarding Asian American Resource Center (AARC) staffing as amended was approved on Commissioner Chen’s motion, Commissioner Xiyi Chen’s second on a 12-0 vote. Commissioner Dolling was absent. 7. Approve a budget recommendation to Council regarding unmet needs of the Asian American Resource Center. The motion to approve a budget recommendation to Council regarding unmet needs of the Asian American Resource Center was approved on Commissioner Thakkar’s motion, Commissioner Shrestha’s second on a 12-0 vote. Commissioner Dolling was absent. 8. Approve a Budget Recommendation to Council regarding Austin Public Health (APH) Immigration legal services. The following grammatical revision was made by Commissioner Xiyi Chen. The grammatical revision was to insert the following period: “Cuts to its Pro Se Assistance funding have similarly required American Gateways to reduce the number of individuals it can serve in Austin/Travis County through its pro se 3 Draft Meeting Minutes March 26, 2026 clinics by approximately 10%. That means 10% fewer families and individuals receiving…” And strike the following comma: “These individuals all earn below 200% of the federal poverty guidelines and, without representation and support, will not be able to afford legal assistance or representation., They are also at risk of fraud from non-attorneys/notaries.” The motion to approve a budget recommendation to Council regarding Austin Public Health (APH) Immigration legal services as revised was approved on Commissioner Moledina’s motion, Commissioner Shrestha’s second on a 12-0 vote. Commissioner Dolling was absent. 9. Approve a Budget Recommendation to Council regarding APH social services and community health navigator positions. The motion to approve a budget recommendation to Council regarding APH social services and community health navigator positions was approved on Commissioner Huang’s motion, Commissioner Chen’s second on a 12-0 vote. Commissioner Dolling was absent. 10. Approve a Budget Recommendation to Council regarding Historic Preservation. Withdrawn without objection. 11. Approve a Proclamation for Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. The motion to approve a proclamation for Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month was approved on Commissioner Thakkar’s motion, Commissioner Moledina’s second on a 12-0 vote. Commissioner Dolling was absent. Chair Sin adjourned the meeting at 7:52 p.m. without objection. 4