California reparations: What to know about the plan to give billions to Black residents
California is moving forward with its effort to compensate and apologize to Black residents for harm caused by discriminatory policies over generations after the state’s reparations task force voted to approve recommendations Saturday.
The nine-member committee – first convened nearly two years ago – approved a hefty list of proposals during a meeting Saturday.
Though the meeting and the vote marked a crucial moment in the fight for atonement for generations of harm by discriminatory policies on the local, state and federal level, the proposals are far from approved policy.
The list of recommendations now goes to state lawmakers to consider for reparations legislation.
More: Will California become the first state to pay Black people reparations?
What was recommended?
The task force recommended a range of policy proposals, including the creation of an agency to handle compensation claims and possible “down payment” to those eligible as well as how to calculate the amount California owes its Black residents.
Among the recommendations were possible estimates of reparations owed by the state, including:
An estimated $13,619 for each year of residency, based on a 71-year life expectancy, for harm caused by health care disparities.
An estimated $115, 260 or $2,352 for each year of residency in the state within the 49-year period between 1971 and 2020 to compensate for mass incarceration and overpolicing of Black communities.
An estimated $148,099 – or $3,366 for each year between 1933 and 1977 spent as a California resident – to account for discriminatory housing policies.
'Long overdue:' California reparations bill would give some Black residents compensation
How much would reparations cost?
Some economists have estimated that the state could owe roughly $800 billion in reparations.
That estimate, however, doesn’t include the recommended $1 million per older Black resident for disparities in health care responsible for shortening their average life span or the amount to compensate residents whose property was unfairly taken by the government or devalued.
But the number does account for the $246 billion to compensate eligible residents subjected to mass incarceration and overpolicing from 1970 to 2020 and the $565 billion for redlining – a discriminatory practice – in housing loans.
Contributing: The Associated Press
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: California reparations task force passes billions for Black residents
