Meeting_Body
EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE
APRIL 18, 2024
Subject
SUBJECT: COMMUNITY ADVISORY COUNCIL (CAC) QUARTERLY UPDATE
Action
ACTION: RECEIVE AND FILE
Heading
RECOMMENDATION
Title
RECEIVE AND FILE a quarterly status report on the Community Advisory Council (CAC).
Issue
ISSUE
This receive and file report is a Board directed quarterly update on Community Advisory Council (CAC) activities from January 5, 2024, through March 14, 2024.
Background
BACKGROUND
Per state statute, Metro must appoint a citizens’ advisory committee whose membership “shall reflect a broad spectrum of interests and all geographic areas of the county.” The CAC prefers to be referred to as the Community Advisory Council because it better reflects its constituency.
Per the bylaws adopted by the CAC, the group is to consult, obtain, and collect public input on matters of interest and concern to the community. It will communicate the CAC’s recommendations concerning such issues to Metro. Issues may also be assigned to the CAC by Metro for its review, comment, and recommendation.
The CAC is currently comprised of 20 active/voting Members. CAC Members are directly appointed by the Metro Board of Directors and serve at the pleasure of their appointing Director. Each voting Metro Board Director can appoint up to four appointees to serve on the CAC.
Discussion
DISCUSSION
Since the January 18, 2024 update to the Board, the CAC General Assembly convened two times to discuss matters related to Metro business directly with key agency staff working on critical programs, projects, operations, and agency initiatives. Metro staff shared updates on Customer Experience (Wayfinding Signage), and Metro Micro at the CAC January meeting. At the CAC’s February General Assembly meeting, the CAC received updates on the Metro GoPass and Discounted fares programs.
As a result of the CAC’s monthly meetings during this reporting period, staff has coordinated inter-departmentally to secure key Metro updates as requested by the CAC and to ensure the comments expressed by CAC Members in draft meeting notes are considered and incorporated where feasible into the respective Metro team’s analysis. See Attachment A for “highlights” of CAC Members’ individual inputs on requested Metro topics from this reporting period.
CAC members’ feedback on matters related to Metro programs, projects, and initiatives is important and continues to be valued by the Metro Board and staff. One specific example from this reporting period was one CAC Member’s input shared with Metro’s Discounted fares program staff to consider enhanced cross-promotion and marketing of the Metro discounted fare programs. Metro’s Discounted Fare staff were able to confirm with the CAC that such efforts are underway, including recent efforts made towards providing a direct weblink and basic information on the student GoPass program into the application for other discounted fares, such as the LIFE program. This is in addition to Metro staff speaking to the variety of available discount programs at each outreach and tabling opportunity. Discounted fare program staff also indicated that they are exploring additional cross-promotional opportunities as well.
Metro staff have also worked inter-departmentally to provide agency feedback in response to key questions that individual Metro Board Directors raised during the January 2024 Executive Committee Meeting “Receive and File” Update. See Attachment B for a summary of the former questions raised and the latest feedback from agency staff.
Additionally, during this reporting period, the CAC Chair and staff sent reminders to each voting Metro Board Director’s office regarding current appointees and vacancies.
Equity_Platform
EQUITY PLATFORM
CAC Members represent diverse ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds, viewpoints, perspectives, and priorities. Over recent years, the CAC has increasingly become more diverse in terms of race/ethnicity and gender and is comprised of several Members that utilize Metro and partially Metro-funded services (such as Access Services, local municipal operators’ services, etc.) and regularly ride the Metro system. Additionally, some of the CAC members are differently abled, further increasing the equity of representation.
Of the 20-member advisory council, 75% identify as Black, Indigenous, or People of Color (BIPOC) and 30% are women. One woman indicated her need to resign due to scheduling conflicts with other essential priorities, decreasing the total number of women from seven to six. One Caucasian male resigned during this reporting period, citing his move into a retirement community. The diversity of the CAC is critical and the Metro CAC Chair provides reminder emails to each of the Metro Board of Directors’ deputies of their status on appointees and current vacancies while highlighting the need for diversity in their appointments.
Next_Steps
NEXT STEPS
The CAC General Assembly is anticipated to meet at the end of March to hear a high-level update from the Metro Office of Management and Budget regarding the Metro FY 2025 budget development process as well as hear a brief update from agency staff regarding the restrooms pilot initiative and related Metro station-area improvements aimed to enhance the customer experience.
Metro staff will continue to support the CAC. The CAC Chair and staff will keep the Metro Board apprised of their activities, as the Metro Board desires.
Attachments
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A - Summary of CAC Members’ Inputs
Attachment B - January 2024 Report - Staff Feedback
Prepared_by
Prepared by: Danielle Valentino, Manager, Community Relations, (213) 922-1249
Patricia Soto, Director, Community Relations, (213) 922-1249
Lilian De Loza-Gutierrez, Executive Officer, Communications, Community Relations, (213) 922-7479
Yvette Rapose, Deputy Chief Customer Experience Officer, (213) 418-3154
Reviewed_By
Reviewed by: Jennifer Vides, Chief Customer Experience Office, (213) 922-4060
