Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Supervisor Noelia Corzo, District 2
Supervisor Lisa Gauthier, District 4
Subject: Resolution Affirming the County of San Mateo’s Commitment to Advance Economic Mobility and Pathways to Shared Prosperity
RECOMMENDATION:
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Adopt a resolution affirming the County of San Mateo’s commitment to advance economic mobility and pathways to shared prosperity.
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BACKGROUND:
Although San Mateo County is one of the wealthiest counties in the nation, not everyone shares in the wealth. One in 10 residents are unable to afford even their most basic needs like food and housing, with the highest rates of poverty among Black and Latino/e/x residents, single parents, non-college graduates, and part-time workers.
San Mateo County’s Economic Mobility Framework was developed by the Shared Prosperity Coordinating Council (SPCC) <https://www.smcgov.org/ceo/shared-prosperity-economic-mobility-san-mateo-county>, a group of leaders from county and local government, nonprofit, and private sector organizations that seek to advance economic mobility and promote shared prosperity.
The SPCC conducted an extensive planning process to analyze data, discuss issues with impacted local communities, review best practices, and assess the existing landscape of efforts underway to address the challenges of increasing economic mobility. Through this process, the SPCC developed the San Mateo County Economic Mobility Action Plan <https://www.smcgov.org/sites/default/files/2026-05/San_Mateo_County_Economic_Mobility_Action_Plan_2026_0.pdf> which identifies 11 strategies <https://www.smcgov.org/ceo/moving-needle-local-strategies-economic-mobility>to move the needle on economic mobility in San Mateo County.
The Economic Mobility Action Plan includes a “call to action” for agencies to:
• Adopt the key planning principles to guide decision-making and program planning, recognizing that effective and equitable processes lead to stronger outcomes
• Onboard the San Mateo County Economic Mobility Framework to align with other organizations under a common, data-informed framework to strengthen collaboration and improve outcomes for our communities and those we serve
• Make data-informed decisions using the new Community Data Dashboard to examine disaggregated data, identify populations facing the greatest barriers, and track changes over time
• Advance the recommendations in the Economic Mobility Action Plan by leveraging organizations’ influence, partnerships, and resources to help advance key economic mobility strategies.
DISCUSSION:
The County already has numerous efforts underway to advance the goals of the Economic Mobility Action Plan. However, the economic mobility challenges facing San Mateo County are too significant for any single jurisdiction or organization to tackle alone and require collective action.
Thus, the proposed resolution affirms the County’s commitment to advance economic mobility and shared prosperity and aims to respond to the EMAP “call to action” in a manner that can serve as a model for other San Mateo County jurisdictions and organizations to make their own such commitments.
The resolution directs County staff to develop an action plan that, where possible, advances the following specific recommendations identified in the San Mateo County Economic Mobility Action Plan:
• Prioritize local hiring and local purchasing
• Build local career pathways from entry-level jobs to higher-wage careers
• Support local employee ownership and entrepreneurship
• Advance policies and programs that stabilize housing
• Build leadership pipelines and support leaders from underrepresented communities
• Promote the value of diversity, belonging, and acceptance
• Coordinate community resources to improve awareness of available supportive resources
• Help residents navigate systems and access services
COMMUNITY IMPACT:
Affirming the County’s commitment to advance economic mobility and pathways to shared prosperity will help to reduce disparities in housing, employment, and education.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact associated with adopting the resolution.