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What brought about these changes: Beginning in January Presidential Executive Orders were issued regarding Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (EO14173) and Immigration Compliance (EO 14218) among other. These Executive Orders were followed by the issuance of multiple new Federal Agency grant requirements that require federal grant recipients to certify that they do not operate any programs promoting Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in violation of federal anti-discrimination laws. HUD grantees must ensure that financial assistance is provided to "qualified" immigrants. Violations of these requirements could result in loss of grant funds and consequences under the False Claims Act.
Steps Taken Following City Council June 25, 2025 Resolution In late June (at the last Council meeting before City Council July recess), the City Council directed City Manager Tolbert to take operational efforts to ensure that the City of Dallas is in compliance with these federal directives. City Manager Tolbert immediately issued operational instructions for City departments to temporarily cease any policy using race, gender, ethnicity, or national origin in decisions and conduct a careful and thoughtful review of policies to ensure compliance with federal directives. At the direction of City Manager Tolbert, a cross-departmental grant compliance task force was formed which is currently evaluating policies and plans. The grant compliance task force will return to the City Council in late September with policy recommendations for City Council following completion of its policy review, community engagement and completion of best practices research and recommendations.
City Council Briefing on August 6, 2025 On Wednesday, August 6, 2025, the City Manager’s Team provided a briefing to update the City Council on the Federal Grant Compliance efforts. No action was taken by the City Council related to the City's grant compliance efforts on this date.
Opportunity-Centered Approach Moving Ahead Together This review process consists of swift, thoughtful revisions, that are legally resilient. The City’s Business Inclusion and Development (BID) Policy has been temporarily halted as the City develops a new small business model, the Dallas Capacity Building Collaborative, that builds on the City’s work to ensure that the procurement process remains open, transparent, and accessible to every qualified business. With the support from a national consultant with expertise in local government procurement, and in collaboration with community partners and small business stakeholder and certification entities, government to government and public, private, partnerships the City Manager will return to brief the City Council and seek their direction.
Opportunity-Centered Approach Moving Ahead Together (cont.) Building on the 2017 Drivers of Poverty developed by a task force of committed community leaders—and the Resilience Strategy goal of closing disparities in Dallas, the City is refreshing and transitioning to the Drivers of Opportunity (DOO) Framework. This is a work in progress, and meaningful community engagement will guide its development. The framework will align efforts to expand opportunity by focusing on the City’s core functions while partnering with anchor institutions, philanthropic, community leadership in a broader ecosystem in areas beyond the City’s direct scope.
The five Drivers of Opportunity are:
- Gainful employment
- High-quality education
- Opportunity-rich neighborhoods
- Healthy environment
- Public safety and well-being
Valuing Our Community We value the voices of community members whose partnership has shaped the City’s equity and inclusion work over the years. We have worked hard to earn trust through transparency and accountability, and that commitment remains steadfast. Our realigned efforts will continue to invest in neighborhoods and expand opportunities so all Dallas residents can thrive.
This year’s budget features the unification of four offices – Community Care, Housing, Homeless Solutions, and Equity and Inclusion, in the office of Housing and Community Empowerment - an all-in-one Center bringing together Housing, Supportive Services such as WIC, Homelessness Prevention, etc., ADA coordination, Veteran’s Support, Human Rights, and Community Empowerment. This new structure strengthens our commitment to advancing an Opportunity Framework building on the foundational work of the Drivers of Poverty and Resilience Strategy.
Throughout August, we will host community engagement sessions to gather feedback and ensure these efforts reflect shared priorities. Together, we will develop clear measures to track progress and hold ourselves accountable. In the coming week, please find more information on our website dallas.gov.
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