FY2005-06 Strategic Plan

COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN

 

 

2005-2008 Strategic Plan

FY2005-06

 

 

I. IMPLEMENTATION OF WOMEN AND GIRLS' HUMAN RIGHTS

A. The U.N. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)

 

In April 1998,San Francisco became the first municipality to pass implementation of CEDAW at the local level. In April 2003, then-Supervisor Gavin Newsom sponsored the CEDAW Gender Analysis Resolution at the Board of Supervisors, requesting that City departments conduct a gender analysis of budget cuts, including layoffs. Since then, the Commission on the Status of Women has appointed a CEDAW Committee, staffed by the Commission and the Department, to continue cutting edge work to promote the human rights of not only women, but all people.

 

1. Goal(s)

a. Develop and conduct a training for all City department heads or their designees on the Convention to Eliminate all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), including a training component for each department's budget staff as well as the Mayor's Budget Office, on gendered budget analysis, and ask that CEDAW be supported by each department head.

b. Issue a gender parity report on City employment in order to better inform policies that address hiring, retention, and promotion in the workforce.

c. Actively promote a CEDAW partnership with community agencies.

d. Develop a plan to encourage other municipalities, national, state, and local agencies, to promote CEDAW.

2. Resources

In the addback process for the FY2005-2006 budget, the Board of Supervisors restored 1.0 FTE for a Senior Policy Analyst to support the work of CEDAW. This position will be staffed by 2 partial time policy analysts beginning October 1, 2005. This is an addition to the 0.5FTE currently assigned.

 

3. Fiscal Year 2004-2005 Accomplishments
In 2004, the Department convened regular meetings of the CEDAW Committee to implement the Five-Year Action Plan. Women's health was identified as a priority area. Department staff worked closely with the Department of Public Health Office of Women's Health and participated in a landmark health summit co-sponsored by the Department of Public Health and University of California at San Francisco in June.

 

a. Team-Up for Youth Grant

The Team-Up for Youth Foundation announced an initiative to fund programs specifically designed to promote gender equity in youth recreation and sports programs. San Francisco was awarded a $30,000 grant to fund an afterschool athletics program for 50 young girls in the Bayview/Hunter's Point neighborhood. The Department worked closely with Department of Children Youth and Their Families and the Mayor's Office of Community Development on the grant application. As a result of this initiative, a cohort of girls will have improved

access to playing fields, recreational opportunities, and supportive social services. A follow-up grant of up to $50,000 may be available to further address gender equity, in competitive sports in particular.

 

b. Gender Parity Report

In the past, the Department has issued gender parity reports that provide basic statistical information about the workforce composition from all City departments as well as the demographic profiles of boards and commissions. These are important measures of gender equity within the government agencies of the City and County of San Francisco . Our summer CEDAW Intern put together a draft report based on statistics provided by the Department of Human Resources. Results from the gender parity report can provide important planning data for recruitment and hiring efforts at City departments. They are also means by which the City can reduce its liability against class action discrimination lawsuits.

 

c. Public Outreach

This past year included several important opportunities to showcase CEDAW work in San Francisco . Executive Director Murase participated in the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women meetings in January 2005, testified before the New York City Council in April 2005, presented at the Institute for Women's Policy Research International Conference in Washington, DC in June, and the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom International Congress in August in San Francisco on our work. By sharing our CEDAW success stories with representatives of other countries, states, and municipalities, we underscore the cutting edge human rights policy work that is being conducted as part of the Newsom Administration.

 

4. Assignments

Commissioner: Angela Williams

Staff: Executive Director, 1.5 FTE Policy Analysts

Senior Policy Analyst Ann Lehman will develop a City-wide CEDAW training for all City departments. Policy Analyst Carol Sacco will finalize a gender parity report. Grants Administrator Richard Eijima will actively promote a CEDAW partnership with Partner Agencies and community organizations. Senior Policy Analyst Lehman will develop a plan to encourage other municipalities, nation, state, and local agencies, to promote CEDAW.

 

5. Administrative Code Requirements

This work meets the following areas of the San Francisco Administrative Code:

33.4 (d), 33.4 (e.3), 33.4 (e.4), 33.4 (h), 33.4 (i), 33.4 (j), 33.4 (o), 33.5, 33.6

 

 

II. RIGHT TO ADEQUATE STANDARD OF LIVING

A. UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES

The Commission has established two new areas for policy development within in its current Strategic Plan, underserved communities and economic development. These two specific policy areas will allow the Commission and Department staff to focus on concerns brought before the Commission and to reflect current policy trends in the areas of violence against women.

 

1. Goal(s)

a. Advocate and promote the implementation of legislation to combat unsafe working conditions.

b. Target outreach to underserved communities, with a special emphasis on immigrants, by convening an ethnic media roundtable to publicize the Violence Against Women Invention and Prevention Services provided by Partner Agencies.

c. Enhance language access to City services.

d. Work to clarify the Commission's relationship to human trafficking prevention policy.

2. Resources

These goals fall within the purview of the CEDAW policy analysts and will be supported by related staff.

 

3. Fiscal Year 2004-2005 Accomplishments

The Commission on the Status of Women has been holding hearings since August of 2004 on the labor conditions of exotic dancers in San Francisco, who have been bringing formal complaints to the City since 1996. The Commission and the Department have enlisted assistance from other City, state, and federal agencies. The Commission has spearheaded the introduction of new legislation that would create better labor conditions for exotic dancers in San Francisco.

 

The Commission and Department recognize the need to develop an outreach plan that will address the needs of immigrant women in the areas of violence, trafficking, housing, economics, legal status, and other areas. The Commission and the Department will partner with ethnic media and non profit and non-governmental organizations to develop outreach ideas.

 

4. Assignments

Commissioner: Andrea Evans, Jing Xu Lee

Staff: Executive Director, 1.5 FTE Policy Analysts

Executive Assistant Bernice Casey will help to finalize the legislation to combat unsafe working conditions for exotic dancers. Grants Administrator Eijima and Graduate Intern Lisa Sapiro will complete a new Needs Assessment. Graduate Intern Sapiro and Secretary Garry Consolacion will target outreach to underserved communities. Secretary Consolacion will work to enhance language access to City services. CEDAW Policy Analyst Kim-Shree Maufas will work in the area of policy development to combat human trafficking.

5. Administrative Code Requirements

This work meets the following areas of the San Francisco Administrative Code:

33.4 (a), 33.4 (e.7), 33.4 (l.1), 33.4 (l.2), 33.4 (p), 33.5

II. RIGHT TO ADEQUATE STANDARD OF LIVING

B. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

 

1. Goal(s)

a. Partner with the Small Business Commission on joint initiatives.

b. Consult with community-based organizations on areas of need.

c. Work in partnership with the Human Rights Commission's Employment, Housing, and Public Accommodations Division on policies affecting women.

2. Resources

These goals fall within the purview of the CEDAW policy analysts and will be supported by related staff.

 

3. Fiscal Year 2004-2005 Accomplishments

Staff begun outreach in August of 2004 to community-based organizations. This is a new initiative.

 

4. Assignments

Commissioner: Angela Williams

Staff: Executive Director, 0.5 FTE Policy Analysts

Policy Analyst Carol Sacco will work with the Small Business Commission, Human Rights Commission, and community-based organizations improve the economic development of women and girls in San Francisco.

5. Administrative Code Requirements

This work meets the following areas of the San Francisco Administrative Code:

33.4 (a), 33.4 (e.7), 33.4 (l.1), 33.4 (l.2), 33.4 (p), 33.5

III. RIGHT TO BODILY INTEGRITY

A. VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN INTERVENTION & PREVENTION GRANTS

(VAW) PROGRAM

 

Historically, the vast majority of the Department's funds have been earmarked to underwrite community programs specifically designed to address violence against women. For example, in this fiscal year, $1.8 million of our overall budget of $2.6 million is dedicated to the Violence Against Women Grants Program. Categories of funded programs include: 1) crisis lines, 2) intervention/ advocacy, 3) legal assistance, 4) shelter services, 5) transitional/ advocacy, and 6) prevention education.

1. Goal(s)

a. Pending funding availability, initiate a needs assessment to evaluate current funding allocations to meet community needs and identify ways to strengthen the VAW Program, to be concluded by June 2006.

b. Convene an annual conference to review preliminary findings of the program review, solicit feedback, and provide training to facilitate capacity-building among grantees.

c. Work with Partner Agencies on on-going technical assistance and begin site visits to address questions and concerns.

d. Lead the efforts to reinvigorate the Family Violence Council and focus on underserved communities.

e. Analyze potential additional funding sources including, marriage license fees and increase collection and allocation of batterer's fees.

 

2. Resources

Although the bulk of the Department's budget is allocated to the VAW Program, a comprehensive review has not been conducted since 2000. The Department requested $35,000 in carry-forward monies to pay for an outside consultant to conduct a comprehensive review of the VAW Program and is awaiting a response from the Mayor's Budget Office. The Grants Administrator will begin visits with Partner Agencies in order to strengthen our relationships, provide technical assistance, and address questions and concerns.

 

3. Fiscal Year 2004-2005 Accomplishments
Given the many issues that contributed to the delayed conclusion of the VAW grant agreements, the Department convened a post-mortem in November to review the issues and solicit feedback on improving the process.

The Department invested considerable time into technical assistance and capacity-building with the Partner Agencies. In May 2005, the Department held a spring conference Capacidad: Building Capacity Workshop focusing on diversifying funding, and overview of available resources, including affordable healthcare and housing. Department staff has provided technical assistance for individual Partner Agencies in areas including budgeting, fiscal analysis, program analysis, performance evaluation, and fundraising. Department staff has eliminated an 18-month backlog of Partner Agency service data for FY2004-2005 and FY2003-2004.

 

4. Assignments

Commissioner: Andrea Evans, Jing Xu Lee, Katherine Munter

Staff: Executive Director, 1.0 FTE Grants Administrator

Grants Administrator Eijima will focus on all five goals with the assistance Graduate Intern Saprio and Secretary Consolacion.

 

5. Administrative Code Requirements

This work meets the following areas of the San Francisco Administrative Code:

33.4 (a), 33.4 (e.5), 33.4 (h), 33.4 (l.1), 33.4 (l.2), 33.5

 


 

B. JUSTICE AND COURAGE PROJECT

Now 5 years since the tragic murder of Claire Joyce Tempongko, allegedly by her ex-boyfriend, the Justice & Courage Project has a number of achievements to share. These achievements reflect the recommendations of the 2002 report: Justice & Courage Report: A Blueprint for San Francisco's Response to Domestic Violence, which represents an in-depth review of City policies and procedures within the criminal justice system and calls for improved responses to prevent domestic violence homicides, including the creation of an Oversight Panel to monitor reforms. The Justice and Courage Oversight Panel convened for the first time in October 2002, and initiated four working committees as part of the Justice and Courage Project. Currently, Commissioner Dorka Keehn and Supervisor Fiona Ma Co-chair the Oversight Panel. The overarching goal of the Justice and Courage Project is to prevent domestic violence homicides and to create a national model in domestic violence response.

 

1. Goal(s)

a. Conduct an assessment by department of progress to date on recommendations contained in the Justice & Courage Blueprint for San Francisco's Response to Domestic Violence report.

b. Secure additional funding for Justice & Courage Projects.

c. Monitor implementation of the domestic violence module of JUSTIS.

d. Continue outreach efforts to the Filipina community.

e. Develop a plan for the Justice & Courage Oversight Panel to continue after federal funding concludes in September 2006.

 

2. Resources

The federal funding supporting the 1.0 FTE Justice & Courage Policy Analyst is scheduled to conclude in September 2006. The coming year is crucial in terms of program evaluation, securing additional funding, and planning work beyond September 2006.

 

3. Fiscal Year 2004-2005 Accomplishments

As of September 2006, the federal grant from the Department of Justice Violence Against Women Office will conclude. This grant has funded 1.0 FTE at the 2998 classification for a Justice & Courage Policy Analyst. In order for the policy reform of San Francisco's response to domestic violence to continue, it is essential that this position remain funded. Therefore, the Commission is identifying this as an area requiring additional budgetary resources. Specifically, we would request that the position be funded for the entirety of FY06-07. The position, including benefits, is roughly $100,000. Since the first quarter would be grant-funded, the request would be for the remaining $75,000, to be annualized to $100,000 in FY-07-08. Key components of this work include the following projects:

 

a. Domestic Violence Query and Reporting Service

A key recommendation arising from the 2002 report was to create a seamless response system to domestic violence among City agencies. A major milestone was achieved when, in August, the Department of Telecommunications and Information Services demonstrated a working model of the Domestic Violence Query and Reporting Service, a subproject of the multi-agency JUSTIS computer program. This service, scheduled to be deployed in early 2006, will greatly enhance the Department's ability to focus the investment of public monies to those areas in greatest need. For example, based on statistical data generated by the service on specific variables such as past history of domestic violence, stalking, and firearms possession, the Department can better understand the causes and effects of domestic violence.

 

b. Domestic Violence Training Consortium

To address the fact that key law enforcement agencies, among them the District Attorney, Adult Probation, and the Sheriff's Department, have all lost most, if not all, of their training budgets, the Justice & Courage Oversight Panel proposed a training consortium including all relevant agencies be convened. Private monies would be solicited from foundations to underwrite this training consortium. A Funders Summit was convened in April and a proposal has been submitted to local funders. The training consortium would enable district attorneys, probation officers, and sheriffs to comply with existing laws governing training requirements, thereby reducing the City's liability. More importantly, the training consortium affords law enforcement officials who do not normally train together the opportunity to sit side-by-side and acquire the same basic information. This could serve as a national model for training of law enforcement officials.

 

c. Safety & Accountability Audit

Cities such as St. Louis, Knoxville, and Colorado Springs have undertaken a cutting edge approach to evaluating the criminal justice system as it relates to domestic violence in their respective cities by employing a safety and accountability audit. This innovative approach, pioneered by veteran domestic violence advocate Dr. Ellen Pence of Praxis International, requires a systematic, not episodic, evaluation of the institutions and practices that surround the handling of domestic violence cases from beginning to end. In January, the Department submitted a concept paper to the National Institute of Justice for funding to support this project. The Institute requested a full proposal in April, signaling that the proposed audit passed the first hurdle towards funding. However, in September, the Department was notified of a denial of funding. Implementing a safety and accountability audit in the City and County of San Francisco would be a major undertaking, involving roughly $260,000 to complete.

d. Evaluation of Batterer's Programs

Dr. Joanne McAllister, who has over 10 years of experience in the development and evaluation of prevention and intervention programs for domestic violence offenders, completed a report, funded in part by the Department, that examined batterers programs contracted by the City and County of San Francisco. This study revealed that over 60% of those mandated to complete batterer's programs fail to do so and that efforts to track non-compliant offenders are ineffective.

 


e. Filipina Advisory Council

The Department partnered with West Bay Multi-Services to convene a working group of community members from the Filipino community which has met 3 times. The working group is in the process of detailing goals and strategies in the effort to combat domestic violence, in light of recent high-profile domestic violence homicides of Filipina women.

 

4. Assignments

Commissioner: Dorka Keehn

Staff: Executive Director, 1.0 FTE Justice & Courage Policy Analyst

The Justice & Courage Policy Analyst position is currently vacant and until filled, the work will be divided amongst staff, specifically Executive Director Murase, Graduate Intern Sapiro, and Secretary Consolacion.

 

5. Administrative Code Requirements

This work meets the following areas of the San Francisco Administrative Code:

33.4 (a), 33.4 (b), 33.4 (f), 33.4 (h), 33.4 (l.2), 33.5, 33.6

 

IV. RIGHT TO ADEQUATE HEALTH CARE

The Commission recognizes the importance of health in the lives of women. Due to staffing constraints, the Department has and will continue to utilize existing resources and educate other agencies, including our Partner Agencies (those funded in the VAW Grant Program) about available services.

1. Goal(s)

a. Work with the Department of Public Health, community based organizations, and individuals on promoting a universal health-care initiative.

b. Help women in Bayview/Hunter's Point neighborhood, immigrant women, and underserved women to combat breast cancer.

2. Resources

These goals fall within the purview of the CEDAW policy analysts and will be supported by related staff.

 

3. Fiscal Year 2004-2005 Accomplishments
In September 2004, the Department sent materials to Partner Agencies informing them of health insurance through the City and County of San Francisco 's San Francisco Health Plan which offers three plans to meet the needs of no- and low-income families and individuals.

 

The Commission released the 2005 Social Services Director for Women, an update of the 2000 Directory. This has been distributed to over 100 local organizations.

 

4. Assignments

Commissioner: Carolene Marks

Staff: Executive Director, 0.25 Policy Analyst

CEDAW Analyst Maufas will work in this area, with an emphasis placed on helping women in the Bayview, immigrant women, and underserved women.

5. Administrative Code Requirements

This work meets the following areas of the San Francisco Administrative Code:

33.4 (a), 33.4 (c), 33.4 (e.3), 33.4 (h), 33.4 (l), 33.4 (p), 33.5

V. HUMAN RIGHTS OF GIRLS TO EDUCATION AND SOCIAL SERVICES

 

The holistic work of the Commission and the Department incorporates policies for both women and girls. Through the work of CEDAW, VAW Grants, Justice & Courage, policies are developed around both women and girls in combating violence, access to services, etc. The work developed in this area of the Strategic Plan focuses solely on girls.

 

1. Goal(s)

a. Identify potential members for a Girls Issue Committee and plan the first meeting for early 2006.

b. Work with the San Francisco School District and School Board to develop sexual harassment and violence prevention programming in San Francisco schools.

c. Assist the Mayor's Office of Community Development, Recreation and Park Department, and the Department of Children, Youth, and Their Families, to develop a gender equity program for youth.

 

2. Resources

These goals fall within the purview of the CEDAW policy analysts and will be supported by related staff.

 

3. Fiscal Year 2004-2005 Accomplishments
In June 2005, the Department reprinted copies of A Report on Girls in San Francisco, Benchmarks for the Future and provided over 300 copies to San Francisco Unified School District 's administrators.

 

The Commission and the Department met with members of the school board and school district to discuss sexual harassment and violence prevention programming.

 

4. Assignments

Commissioner: Andrea Shorter

Staff: Executive Director, 0.25 FTE Policy Analyst

CEDAW Policy Analyst Maufas will work in these areas.

5. Administrative Code Requirements

This work meets the following areas of the San Francisco Administrative Code:

33.4 (a), 33.4 (e.7), 33.4 (l.1), 33.4 (l.2), 33.4 (p), 33.5