Baltimore councilman proposes $15M racial equity fund

BALTIMORE (AP) — A Baltimore city councilman plans to introduce legislation that would require each city agency to assess its policies and establish an annual fund, a two-pronged approach to eliminating “structural and institutional racism.”

Council Public Safety Committee Chair Brandon Scott told The Baltimore Sun the two bills he plans to introduce Monday aim to address Baltimore’s history of codified “racial inequity.”

One bill would mandate agencies develop a plan to reverse disparity trends based on race, gender and income. The other is a proposed charter amendment that would create an “equity assistance fund” worth 3 percent of the police department’s budget. Operating off this year’s police budget, the fund would receive more than $15 million.

City Council President Bernard C. “Jack” Young said he supports studying city policies, but doesn’t think the city can afford the fund.

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Information from: The Baltimore Sun, http://www.baltimoresun.com

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