The Office of Legislative Oversight (OLO) conducts studies, evaluations, and program reviews at the request of the County Council. Bill 27-19, enacting the County’s Racial Equity and Social Justice Act, tasks OLO to develop racial equity and social justice impact statements for all legislation introduced by the Council on and after August 1, 2020.

RESJ impact statements apply a racial equity and social justice lens to proposed legislation to describe the anticipated impact of legislation on communities of color and low-income residents. The following questions guide the development of OLO’s RESJ statements:

  • What does the bill seek to accomplish?
  • Who’s impacted by the bill and how (both negative and positive aspects)?
  • If there are potential adverse impacts, how can they be mitigated?

More specifically, OLO relies on the Racial Equity and Social Justice Impact Tool adapted from the City of Madison to apply a racial equity and social justice lens to the development and review of proposed legislation. For additional information on OLO’ RESJ impact statement process, contact Dr. Theo Holt at [email protected] or Dr. Elaine Bonner-Tompkins at [email protected].

OLO Resources on Racial Equity and Social Justice

Racial Equity in Government Decision-Making: Lessons from the Field
This report describes promising practices for advancing racial equity in government decision-making based on a review of research and local practices. The County Council tasked OLO to draft this report as part of its 2018 Work Program to help inform its understanding of best practices for advancing racial equity in local government.

Racial Equity Profile for Montgomery County
Montgomery County’s Racial Equity Profile serves as a benchmark report to describe racial and ethnic disparities by policy area among County residents. The report describes disparities in employment, household income, housing, education, educational attainment and other life outcomes.

Racial Equity & Social Justice Community Conversation Toolkit
With the Office of the County Executive and the County Council, OLO developed this toolkit to help organize and convene community conversations among residents, organizations, and community groups in 2019. The RESJ community conversations toolkit is available in English and Spanish.

Findings from 2019 Racial Equity and Social Justice Community Conversations
This report summarizes findings from the RESJ Community Conversations sponsored by the Montgomery County Council and the Office of the County Executive in 2019.

OLO Racial Equity and Social Justice Impact Statements

OLO’s RESJ statements are available at https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/OLO/resjis.html. A listing of RESJ statements organized by County Council committee as of April 16, 2021 follows.

Education & Culture Committee

Government Operations and Fiscal Policy Committee

Planning, Housing, and Economic Development Committee

Public Safety Committee

Transportation & Environment (T&E) Committee