Title
Supervisors Parlin and Thomas recommending the Board remove the Implicit Bias Training requirement for Board appointed members of all Committees/Commissions/Boards.
FUNDING: N/A
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DISCUSSION / BACKGROUND
On February 9, 2021, Supervisors Novasel and Turnboo recommended that the Board implement a requirement for Board appointed members to all Committees/Commissions/Boards to participate in an Implicit Bias training. Since that time the Board has seen unintended consequences from that action, such as resignation of appointees and difficulty in recruiting new appointees due to the Implicit Bias Training requirement.
Enforcement of the Implicit Bias Training requirement has been a challenge for the Clerk of the Board staff and has resulted in a lot of time and energy into encouraging compliance. Compliance has stalled at approximately 67%. With the update to the Committee, Commission & Board Handbook on December 13, 2022, the Clerk’s Office is required to make three attempts for compliance and then, if unsuccessful, refer the noncompliant appointee to the appointing Supervisor. Some Supervisors have made it clear that they will not enforce compliance while others have indicated that they will strictly enforce compliance and remove appointees for noncompliance. As such, the Board has inadvertently created an inconsistency in this requirement that could cause further confusion and consternation among our appointees.
Additionally, for various reasons concerning the Implicit Bias Training requirement, several appointees have resigned from Committees, Commissions & Boards and left a void of their knowledge with their departure. Since these are valued volunteers in our community and the Board wants to streamline their training to best use their time, it seems reasonable to remove requirements that are not enforceable and may or may not attain the Board’s original intent.
ALTERNATIVES
The Board could continue to require Implicit Bias Tra...
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