City officials are examining using social equity measures when deciding how to use and distribute city resources.

The Human Rights Commission discussed the idea of creating an equity index for the city of Jamestown during last week’s meeting to determine where to provide services and how to best meet the needs of the community. Mayor Eddie Sundquist provided the commission with a presentation of how other cities have created an equity index with the intention of meeting the needs of residents by considering a variety of factors.

He also explained that the administration is “moving toward a larger pool of data to help make decisions.”

“One of the things we’ve been talking about here in the city is ensuring equity in the services we provide and the areas we deliver those services,” Sundquist said. “I raise this idea because at the same time we are talking about social equity, we as a city, are also engaging in a program that we received a grant fund to start to use to help gauge the health of the neighborhood.”

Sundquist said an equity index, made up of various data points in the community, has been used in other cities to determine where city services are provided and to help improve neighborhoods.

“They have plotted various demographics to determine which areas have high social equity and which areas are in need of more equity,” he said.

The mayor said an equity index typically considers factors such as environmental health, job rates, poverty rates, graduation rates, and proximity and accessibility to services, as well as a variety of other factors.

Once cities have formulated an equity index, the index has been utilized to help determine different city services.

“What they’re using this equity index for is prioritizing funding, resource planning, loan distribution and business budgeting,” Sundquist said.

Sundquist asked the Human Rights Commission to spearhead research into what other city’s have factored into an equity index and consider whether an equity index would be beneficial to the Jamestown community.

“I would love for the Human Rights Commission to help us research other equity index programs that cities have done and whether we should make one here and what metrics we should use in order to do that,” he said. “I would like to know what you all think are the most important things that should be included to help us determine where we are delivering services.”

The mayor told the commission they would be the first committee to research the idea of an equity index but would be able to work with groups such as the I.D.E.A. Coalition.

While Sundquist told the commission the city does not currently have a specific grant for the formation of an equity index, he encouraged the commission to proceed with the research and put together ideas for the city to consider as it attempts to put together a “comprehensive” and “central” database of demographics.