OBSERVER Staff Report
The City of Sacramento has been awarded a $75,000 grant to participate in the “CityStart” initiative with Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund (CFE Fund) to focus on addressing wealth equity.
The grant will provide the City of Sacramento planning dollars and technical assistance to identify strategies that will financially empower residents, with a focus on the Black community.
“This grant will help us continue building stronger partnerships with the community as we develop a strategic blueprint together to identify and address key challenges and opportunities to building wealth and financial stability for our Black community,” said Mayor Darrell Steinberg.
Sacramento was one of eight partners chosen through a competitive process to participate. The eight new local government partners join 32 localities to date that have already completed the CityStart financial empowerment public blueprint process.
The City will work with CFE Fund and Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Greenwood Initiative, whose mission is to accelerate the pace of Black wealth accumulation in the U.S., on the design of its financial empowerment blueprint identifying actionable implementation steps based on the financial needs of residents, especially Black residents.
The City will engage the community in a series of stakeholder conversations to identify local financial empowerment challenges and opportunities.
“It is imperative that the City’s approach to addressing systemic racial inequities is done through multiple channels, such as this CityStart initiative,” said Lynette Hall, Community Engagement Manager. “The City is working hard to address home ownership, housing stability for existing owners, financial coaching and workforce development opportunities that are essential and must be prioritized in addressing upward mobility and economic disparities for Black residents.”
“Financial empowerment strategies are a critical tool for local leaders across the country working to improve their residents’ financial stability,” said Jonathan Mintz, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund. “We congratulate Mayor Steinberg and look forward to working with him to harness the opportunities of financial empowerment work to benefit racial equity and wealth priorities in Sacramento, and we thank Bloomberg Philanthropies for their longstanding partnership and investment in municipal financial empowerment.”
“The lasting impact of systemic inequities in our economies and financial system is glaring, with the typical Black family holding one-eighth of the wealth of the typical White family. Without immediate and innovative interventions, Black people will continue to have less economic power and fewer opportunities to thrive,” said Garnesha Ezediaro, who leads Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Greenwood Initiative. “We are proud to continue our partnership with the CFE Fund’s CityStart program and are excited to equip eight new local governments with the resources they need to strengthen financially related services for their residents.”
The blueprint will enhance the steps the City has already taken to ensure financial health of Sacramento including creation of the Financial Empowerment Center for financial counseling, the Fines & Frees Justice program to access and reduce fees for low-income residents, development of youth workforce programs and support of entrepreneurs and local business growth.