BOARD/COMMISSION:  Cultural And Ethnic Communities Leadership Council

ACTIVITY SUMMARY

Per the CECLC Bylaws, the duties of the council are as follows:

 Section D. Duties of the Council. The Cultural and Ethnic Communities Leadership Council shall:

1. Recommend to the commissioner for review identified policies in the Department of Human Services that maintain and create, magnify, etc. racial, ethnic, cultural, linguistic, and tribal inequities and advance and promote health equity’

2. Identify issues regarding disparities by engaging diverse populations in human services programs;

3. Engage in mutual learning essential for achieving human services parity and optimal wellness for service recipients;

4. Raise awareness about human services disparities and health equity needs to the legislature and media;

5. Provide technical assistance and consultation support to counties, private nonprofit agencies, and other service providers to build their capacity to provide equitable human services for persons from racial, ethnic, cultural, linguistic, and tribal communities who experience disparities in access and outcomes;

6. Provide technical assistance to promote statewide development of culturally and linguistically appropriate, accessible, and cost-effective human services and related policies;

7. Provide training and outreach to facilitate access to culturally and linguistically appropriate, accessible, and cost-effective human services to prevent disparities;

8. Facilitate culturally appropriate and culturally sensitive admissions, continued services, discharges, and utilization review for human services agencies and institutions;

9. Form work groups to help carry out the duties of the council that include, but are not limited to, persons who provide and receive services and representatives of advocacy groups, and provide the work groups with clear guidelines, standardized parameters, and tasks for the work groups to accomplish;

10. Promote information-sharing in the human services community and statewide; and

11. By February 15, 2014, and annually thereafter, prepare and submit a report to the chairs and ranking minority members of the committees in the house of representatives and senate with jurisdiction over human services that summarizes the activities of the council, identifies the major problems and issues confronting racial and ethnic groups in accessing human services, makes recommendations to address issues, and list the specific objectives that the council seeks to attain during the next biennium. The report must also include a list of programs, groups, and grants used to reduce disparities, and also statistically valid reports of outcomes on the reduction of the disparities.