1976–1985
The mandate
Commission founded to "expose, eliminate and prevent discrimination against women." The DV Resource Guide becomes its signature service.
Commission founded to "expose, eliminate and prevent discrimination against women." The DV Resource Guide becomes its signature service.
The regional domestic-violence movement builds out shelters and services; the Commission carries the referral tradition forward.
Post-VAWA (1994), specialized DV court practice and victim-services coordination reach Pima County.
Tucson City Court's Domestic Violence Court holds specialized arraignments and weekly review hearings.
◆ ~15,000 DV calls a year to TPD + Sheriff; DV Court carries ◆ 1,500–2,000 active cases; a gun in the home = ◆ +500% homicide risk.
DV Resource Guide online and linked; a direct-referral pathway with Emerge, SACASA/CODAC & PCAO Victim Services.
◆ 41% — women's share of the Pima workforce (1980). 1976 built the foundation: spousal IRAs + credit without a male co-signer (ECOA).
◆ 45% of the workforce (1990). The Commission's Comparable Worth (1984) and Status of AZ Women (1987) push pay equity locally.
◆ 47.5% of the workforce (2000). Women's labor-force participation stabilizes near half after two decades of climb.
◆ 48.5% (2010). Degreed women out-earn the median; non-degreed women concentrate in service & retail.
◆ ~49.5% of the workforce; participation ◆ 76.2% (women) vs ◆ 85.1% (men); 473,733 employed civilians (2024).
Back equal-pay policy (HR 2403); grow women-owned businesses; lift wages in essential, female-dominated sectors.
The Commission's wellness work starts; Tucson's Promotora (community health worker) tradition takes root through UArizona & the YWCA.
Hispana Conferencias and Black Women's Awareness conferences bring culturally-grounded health into the community conversation.
The community-health-worker model becomes a Southern Arizona strength — a Tucson-built approach, not a deficit.
Reproductive and behavioral health move to the center of advocacy alongside physical wellness.
Provider-to-patient access tracked for Tucson (DataUSA); reproductive + mental-health access are 50th-anniversary priorities. Baseline figure to be pulled.
Publish a citable Pima women's-health baseline; scale Promotora coverage; expand behavioral-health access.
1976's ECOA + Tax Reform Act let women build credit and assets independently — the legal start of women's homeownership.
As the dual-income norm rises, single-income and single-mother households begin facing widening housing-cost pressure.
Single women begin outpacing single men in Arizona homeownership — property becomes women's chief wealth vehicle.
Post-recession affordability strain intensifies rent burden on single mothers and young women.
◆ 18.9% Tucson poverty; women ◆ 18–24 are the largest group in poverty (◆ 12.0%); single mothers pay ◆ 30–50%+ of income on rent.
Formal liaison with the Commission on Equitable Housing & Development; down-payment help for single-income heads of household; childcare subsidies at Pima CC.
1976 Education Amendments open Title IX fellowships to women — ◆ >half awarded to women since. The Commission hosts young-women leadership from the start.
Networking Conference (1981), Women in the Trades (1982) and leadership programming widen girls' horizons; college enrollment climbs.
The 1976 reforms mature into a pipeline effect — women approach the majority of regional college students.
2013: My Girl Power launches at the Commission — the Legacy & Wingtappers Tour to DC & NYC; Youth Commissioner Leadership Development.
◆ 55% of UArizona undergrads are women; ◆ 51% / 69–70% grad rates beat the campus average; Pima CC ◆ 48% female completion; AZ HS grad ◆ 83%.
Convert enrollment into STEM/CTE fields; grow My Girl Power chapters; build the next generation of women leaders.
City ordinance creates the Women's Commission (Dec 8, 1975; first meeting 1976). Women's Equality Day begins in 1977.
1992: the Commission expands into a joint City/County body — doubling its civic mandate and reach.
The Commission stewards its historic 240 N. Court Ave. home (deed fully received 2000) while advising Mayor & Council and the Board of Supervisors.
Women in Government Day and My Girl Power's "Running & Winning" bring girls into the civic pipeline early.
The 50th program alone features a woman ◆ Governor's office, Congresswoman, Mayor, Supervisor & County Attorney — Hobbs, Grijalva, Romero, Allen, Conover.
Fill PCTWC's 5 open seats (◆ 15/20 → 20/20); lower voting barriers — transport, childcare, language access.
Fifty years in, the Commission can walk into Mayor & Council and the Board of Supervisors with numbers, not just stories. The gaps are loudest on Childcare & Housing and Economic Equity; the win to brag about is Girls' Leadership. Here's the ask for the next 50 years: