The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities (CCM) on June 22 released its first-ever checklist guidebook designed to help municipal leaders across the state better respond to racial tension in their community.

The booklet is designed to present Connecticut municipal leaders with guidance recommended by US Department of Justice’s Community Relations Service and the National League of Cities.

“Connecticut’s towns and cities have a key role to play in the renewed efforts across the nation to promote racial equity,” said Joe DeLong, CCM Executive Director and CEO. “Much attention has been directed toward policies and practices at the national and state levels, and rightly so. But meaningful change is within reach at the local level.”

Local government and school districts typically impact daily life in multiple ways: Police and fire protection, education, parks and playgrounds and recreation, zoning, housing code enforcement, trash pick-up, street maintenance, economic/job development and more.

“CCM, dedicated to carrying out its mission of ‘collaborating for the common good’, is uniquely positioned to advance racial equity at the local level by virtue of a long-standing and supportive working relationship with the leaders of Connecticut’s municipalities,” noted DeLong. “CCM has been and will continue to work hard to advance racial equity in towns and cities across Connecticut.

One of these initiatives has been CCM’s CARES in Action (Communities Advancing Racial Equity) program, which has provided a guided process to support municipal leaders working toward real progress on racial equity in their cities and towns. This has included a series of workshops, roundtables, technical assistance and sharing best practices, all designed to help municipalities implement seven action items that can lead to more equity in their local governments.

The new CCM guidebook revolves around two significant checklists for responding to racial tension — one for Connecticut municipal chief-elected officials and one for Connecticut police officials.

As part of CCM’s CARES in Action initiative, the conference has presented innovative and impactful best practices from experts across the country on a range of key issues. In this instance, CCM is sharing the advice and best practices recommended by the US Department of Justice Community Relations Service and the National League of Cities to respond to heightened racial (or other) tensions in a community.

Newtown First Selectman Dan Rosenthal said that having a checklist like this is “always helpful,” and that while nothing in the publication seemed to be something town officials hadn’t considered, it is “nice to have” a checklist like this because it can be difficult to keep track of everything that needs to be done during a critical incident.

“We can accidentally overlook something obvious that could magnify in a difficult situation,” said Rosenthal. “Having something to refer to makes sure we get the message out, and getting it out efficiently is important.”

He said that the things in the list that jumped out at him include a concentration on “transparency and engagement,” which are “important to get through something like that.”

“Being as transparent as possible is the key to navigating something like that,” said Rosenthal.

Newtown Chief of Police David Kullgren said it is “definitely a great checklist for those who find themselves in a critical situation.”

“When in the midst of an incident, that’s not a time to be creating protocols,” said Kullgren. “Having this ready is fantastic.”

He said recommended items such as reaching out to community stakeholders is important, and are things the department currently tries to do “on a regular basis,” such as meeting with organizations such as the Rotary Club and the Board of Realtors.

“We try to keep our ear to the ground,” said Kullgren.

This report includes recommendations and checklists drawn directly from two important publications on responding to racial tensions in a community: NLCs’ Municipal Action Guide: “Responding to Racial Tension in Your City” for Municipal Leaders; and USDOJ Community Relations Service Toolkit for Policing: “Police Critical Incident Checklist” for police officials.

Each of these checklists provides concrete, clear action steps to take in order to be prepared for potential racial tension and to act quickly when an event triggers heightened tension in a community.

For town officials, it recommends items including convening all cabinet/executive level staff to ensure city leadership is briefed from outset, so that elected officials, managers, department heads, and key staff operate from the same basis of knowledge and information; consulting with municipal legal counsel to ascertain any issues of municipal liability; identifying options for independent investigation in consultation with legal counsel; and establish a clear and direct line of communication with police chief, to ensure that all facts about the incident are accurately and collectively known in real time.

For police, it recommends taking a number of steps before a critical incident occurs, including discussing notification and response protocols with other town officials, establishing relationships and direct lines of communication with key community leaders; and ensuring the department has a protocol for major incidents, including a media plan, and that investigators, supervisors, and command staff members know their roles and responsibilities.

Immediate action items following a critical incident include ensuring a command-level staff member is on scene, notifying key public officials and community leaders about the situation promptly, and avoiding “dueling” press conferences by getting all officials together so the community can see unity among local leaders.

Each recommends strategies that include partnership and collaboration with all parts of the community and municipal government — particularly the police — and that promote transparency, authenticity, consistency, and empathy.

Additionally, CCM will hold a special CARES in Action webinar session on August 31 that will feature presentations and discussion on both of these racial tension checklists.

Associate Editor Jim Taylor can be reached at jim@thebee.com.