SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Wednesday update:
Sacramento City Councilmembers voted Tuesday in a 5-4 decision to pull the plug on a Youth Advisory Liaison position at the council dais despite prior approval in 2022.
Sacramento Youth Commission chair and high school senior Leo Hsu said he hopes the council reconsiders their decision.
"I am nevertheless disappointed," he said. "Just because there are things imperfect about this position does not mean that we should stop it."
Instead of the position, city councilmembers voted on a motion by Karina Talamantes and Lisa Kaplan to designate the Sacramento Youth Commission as the official youth voice of Sacramento—and to increase their presence on city boards and commissions.
But Sacramento Youth Commission member Kimora Morley said having a non-voting seat on the council would put them at the center of the people's business.
"If we were able to sit through this 3-hour meeting so far, we have the capacity to sit right there," she said as she pointed to the city council dais.
Original story:
Sacramento Youth Commission members are hoping city officials green light a Youth Advisory Liaison position Tuesday—the same position city council members approved just one year prior.
If passed, the Youth Advisory Liaison to the City Council will be between the ages of 16 and 17 will sit on the council dais.
"To demonstrate the City’s commitment to the engagement of youth voice at a significant policymaking level and to recognize the benefits of doing so, an updated Resolution for the Creation of Youth Advisory Liaison to the City Council will be considered by the City Council for approval," according to the city agenda.
Though initially approved on Dec. 6, 2022, a city-run committee charged with implementing the position instead sent it back to city staff.
"I am not supportive of youth sitting on this dais," said Lisa Kaplan on Sept. 19 as she chaired the Personnel and Public Employees Committee.
She offered a counter proposal that would see 14 youth placed across various city boards and committees.
West Campus High School senior Leo Hsu chairs the Sacramento Youth Commission and said he has been an advocate of the youth advisory liaison to the City Council position since it was approved in 2022.
He said having over one dozen positions on boards and committees doesn't amount to the impact a youth position at the City Council level would have.
"The position is so important to me because it uplifts a young person directly to the dais to provide real time input on time sensitive policy decisions," he said Tuesday. "It's different from the Sacramento Youth Commission because the Sacramento Youth Commission only has the opportunity to advise the City Council on policy when the city council formally seeks our advice."
A prospective budget for the new position sits at $40,400, which includes a $25,000 annual stipend for the Youth Advisory Liaison.
City Councilmembers will decide Tuesday whether to implement the Youth Advisory Liaison or establish multiple youth advisory positions on city boards and commissions.
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