To:	The Mayor, Board of Supervisors, & Commission on the Status of Women
From:	Patti Chang, Chair, CEDAW Task Force, President, Commission on the Status of Women
Re:	CEDAW TASK FORCE SECOND PROGRESS REPORT
Date:	May 18, 1999

In April of 1998, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors enacted a local ordinance (No. 128-98) modeled on the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). The ordinance designates the Commission on the Status of Women to implement and monitor CEDAW locally. It also establishes a CEDAW Task Force with designated City officials, department representatives, union participation and community members. In June 1998, the Commission on the Status of Women established the CEDAW Task Force. The Task Force has been meeting regularly since inception. This is the second progress report for the CEDAW Task Force.

During the first six months, the Task Force established criteria for selecting consultants to draft guidelines and perform the first gender analysis of city departments. Beginning in the second six months, the Task Force and the Commission on the Status of Women completed a request for proposals. This process was delayed due to the contract requirements of the Human Rights Commission. The Task Force selected Strategic Analysis for Gender Equity (SAGE of NYC) after an extensive search and review and designed a very ambitious workplan to keep as close as possible to the early deadlines outlined in the Ordinance. The Task Force also narrowed their choice to two city departments, the Juvenile Probation Department and the Department of Public Works to be the first to undergo gender analysis. The ordinance required each department to designate a management-level employee to serve as a liaison to the CEDAW Task Force for the gender analysis.

The analysis began in mid-March, 1999. The Task Force has been meeting twice a month to both draft the guidelines and complete the analysis of two city departments in a four month period. In late March, the Task Force participated in an interactive CEDAW training with the Women's Institute for Leadership Development for human rights (WILD). Since the analysis began, staff at the Commission has been working closely with the consultants, the CEDAW Task Force and the two city Departments, gathering materials, statistics and reports, and conducting meetings to ensure adequate input throughout the process. There have been over twenty meetings with department staff at all levels, from Directors to line staff and numerous other meetings with a variety of both community and union representatives. The purpose of all these meetings is both to acquaint groups with CEDAW and its requirements and also to gather information for the gender analysis. The consultants have been reviewing each department's services, budget and employment practices. This has entailed scrutinizing each department records, policies, contracts, and many City ordinances and reports. Community representatives have given detailed analysis and feedback on a variety of City practices and services.

The draft gender analysis guidelines and questionnaire are being reviewed at this time by the Task Force, each department, numerous community groups and organized labor. Once reviewed and revised (by early June 1999), the guidelines will be used to perform the analysis at the two departments. A final report from the consultants is expected in July 1999. Then a period of public comment and hearings will take place with an action plan for implementation expected in the fall.

The ordinance and the first progress report can be viewed or downloaded from the SFCOSW website at http://www.ci.sf.ca.us/cosw.