minnesota legislative report card on racial equity - Organizing ...

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Grade: BOn policy, the state legislature and governor earneda “B” for 83 percent support for racial equity bills.The body as a whole made remarkable progress, afteryears of <strong>legislative</strong> sessions of failure and stagnantprogress on policy. Last year, lawmakers earned an“F”. During the 2009 session, lawmakers earnedhigh marks on racial equity tests by enacting 10 of12 bills that we studied, translating into a “B.” Racialequity bills that were passed include promoting hiringequity in green jobs, banning the box on statewidepublic employment, exposing decision points toreach juvenile justice, covering more kids with healthinsurance, strengthening efforts to revitalize Dakotaand Ojibwe languages.
GRADING METHODOLOGYState Legislature and GovernorThe state legislature and governor were given a shared grade. As a whole, they were given agrade based on the number of racial equity bills enacted into law out of the total numberof bills examined for this <strong>report</strong>. The grading system includes: 90-100 percent equals an“A,” 80-89 equals a “B,” 70-79 equals a “C,” and 60-69 equals a “D”. Below 60 percentequates to an “F”.Legislators• Leadership. The first five senators and first 10 house representatives—seven percentof each chamber—that signed onto a bill were given leadership points. Legislatorsare awarded 20 points as authors of a proactive piece of racial equity legislation and-20 points as authors of a bill that would adversely impact communities of color.• Votes. Legislators are awarded 4 points for voting for a piece of racial equitylegislation and -4 points for voting against a piece of legislation.• Passage. A legislator is granted 4 points if the bill passes both chambers or becomeslaw. However, if a legislator voted against the bill, they were not awarded points forpassage.• Final Grade. A legislator’s grade is a reflection of total points from leadership, votesand passage. The points are tallied and converted into a letter grade curve.GradesA B C D F100 to 148 points 72 to 99 36 to 71 0 to 35 -1 and BelowThree methods were employed to select and analyze racial equity legislation: (1) Interviewswere conducted with leaders and organizations that advance racial, economic and culturalequity to understand their experience and gain input on selecting legislation; (2) Criteriafor selecting legislation were developed—the legislation had to meet one or more of thefollowing criteria:• Focuses on reducing racial disparities;• Expands access to institutions and public benefits for communities of color;• Advances enfranchisement for communities of color;• Protects against discrimination, racial violence and racial profiling;• Preserves and strengthens American Indian tribal sovereignty;• Is adequately funded; and• Is enforceable with mechanisms in place to monitor racial justice outcomes.(3) The potential impact on communities of color and American Indian communitieswas estimated by reviewing and analyzing quantitative and qualitative sources of research.Major data sources used were testimonies from interviews, fiscal notes on policies preparedby the Minnesota Department of Finance. Also consulted were public policy analysts ofgovernmental and nonprofit organizations of issue areas.Organizing apprenticeship project | 29
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