OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

San Francisco Budget and Appropriation Committee Meeting - May 20, 2026

Budget and Appropriations Committee — Wednesday, May 20, 2026
BodySan Francisco, California
SessionBudget and Appropriations Committee
DateWednesday, May 20, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 4:34:02
Transcript — Verbatim
0:08

Good afternoon.

0:09

The meeting will come to order.

0:10

Welcome to the May 20th, 2026 meeting of the budget and appropriation committee.

0:15

I'm Supervisor Connie Chan, Chair of the Committee.

0:18

I'm joined by Vice Chair Supervisor Matt Dorsey and members supervisors Denny Souter, Shaman Walton, and Cheyenne Chin.

0:27

Our clerk, it's Brent Halipa.

0:29

I would like to thank James Kawana from SFGov TV for broadcasting this meeting.

0:35

Mr.

0:36

Clerk, do you have any announcement?

0:37

Thank you, Madam Chair.

0:38

Just a friendly reminder to those in attendance to please make sure to silence all cell phones and electronic devices to prevent interruptions to our proceedings.

0:46

Should you have any documents to be included as part of the files?

0:49

They should be submitted to myself, the clerk.

0:51

Public comment will be taken on each item on this agenda.

0:54

When your item of interest comes up in public comment is called, please line up to speak on the west side of the chamber to your right, my left along those curtains.

1:01

And while not required to provide public comment, we do invite you to fill out a comment card and leave them on the trade by the television to your left by those doors.

1:09

If you wish for your name to be accurately recorded for the minutes, alternatively, you may submit public comment in writing in either of the following ways.

1:17

Email them to myself, the budget and appropriations committee clerk at B R E N T.j.

1:25

Sf G O V dot O R G.

1:27

If you submit public comment via email, it will be forwarded to the supervisors and also included as part of the official file.

1:34

You may also send your written comments via U.S.

1:36

Postal Service to our office in City Hall at one Dr.

1:39

Carlton Big of the Place.

1:41

Room 244, San Francisco, California, 94102.

1:45

And items acted upon today, actually after our observance of Memorial Day, will appear on the board of supervisors agenda of June 2nd, unless otherwise stated.

1:57

Madam Chair.

2:00

Thank you, Mr.

2:01

Clark.

2:02

And before we get started, we'll need to excuse President Amendment.

2:06

I would like to move to excuse President Amendment from today's meeting.

2:10

Second by Vice Chair Dorsey and the roll call, please.

2:13

And on that motion by Chair Chan, seconded by Vice Chair Dorsey.

2:17

Do we excuse Supervisor Mandelman from attending today's meeting?

2:20

Vice Chair Dorsey.

2:22

Dorsey, I.

2:23

Member Sauter.

2:24

Sauter, I.

2:25

Member Walton.

2:26

Walton, I.

2:27

Member Chen.

2:28

Aye.

2:28

Chen.

2:28

Aye.

2:29

Chair Chan.

2:30

Aye.

2:30

Chan, I.

2:31

We have five eyes.

2:32

The motion passes.

2:36

I also want to kind of walk us all through what we can expect from today's hearing.

2:43

And last week we have we heard presentations from the 13 enterprise departments that are part of the mayor's May budget submission.

2:52

Today, some departments will be returning for their second hearing to consider additional recommendations for budgetary reduction by the budget and legislative budget and legislative analyst.

3:06

EBA department is in agreement with the budget and legislative analyst uh recommendations.

3:13

Then they will not be returning to committee today.

3:16

However, if the department has outstanding issues or budget trailing legislation, which are items four through 11 on today's agenda, then they will be presenting today on those legislation.

3:31

For today's department, I will call up the department.

3:34

We will hear first uh from the budget and legislative analyst, and then then we'll hear the department's response, and then the committee will have discussion uh with the department to be able to um attempt to reach a resolution if we could today.

3:50

Um, with the exception of items four to four and five, each trailer will be heard with their corresponding corresponding departments.

3:59

If anyone is here from for item 12, the free city college hearing, that will be heard at the end of today's budget deliberation, which will be approximately 3 p.m.

4:11

Um with that said too though.

4:13

Um colleagues, I also want to prepare ourselves and the city departments a little bit, knowing that technically um these items will then again to be continued um to the June process.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Comment█████████████████████████████████33%
Budget and Finance██████████████████18%
Personnel Matters███████████11%
Procedural██████████10%
Technology And Infrastructure████████8%
Public Education███████7%
Procurement███3%
Engineering And Infrastructure███3%
Finance And Debt██2%
Summary of Proceedings

San Francisco Budget and Appropriation Committee Meeting – May 20, 2026

The San Francisco Budget and Appropriation Committee, chaired by Supervisor Connie Chan, met on May 20, 2026, from approximately 1:30 p.m. to past 5:00 p.m. The committee considered the mayor’s proposed budget for numerous departments, reviewed budget and legislative analyst (BLA) recommendations, and heard public testimony on the Free City College program. The committee approved several items, moved others to the full board, and continued unresolved budget items to June.

Consent Calendar

  • Item 6 – Resolution authorizing the San Francisco Public Library to accept and expend up to ~$1.12 million in in-kind gifts and cash from the Friends of the San Francisco Public Library for fiscal year 2026-2027. Moved to full board with recommendation (5-0).
  • Item 7 – Ordinance adjusting Department of Building Inspection (DBI) fees and allowing DBI and Planning to charge notary fees; final fee increase of ~2% on average to achieve full cost recovery. Moved to full board (5-0).
  • Items 8–11 – Public Utilities Commission (PUC) capital budget and bond authorizations: power revenue bonds (~$138.1 million), wastewater revenue bonds (~$1.1 billion), water revenue bonds (~$570.5 million), and the two-year capital appropriation ordinance. Moved to full board (5-0).
  • Items 4–5 – Resolutions concurring with Controller certification for contracting out services (PUC protective services; various services at Airport, MTA, Port, and PUC). Moved to full board (3-0 after quorum reduced).

Public Comments & Testimony

  • On Item 12 (Free City College), over 40 members of the public spoke in strong support of maintaining full funding at the current $9.3 million level. Speakers included students, faculty, labor representatives, and community members who shared personal stories of how the program transformed their lives, emphasizing its role in workforce development, equity, and economic mobility for low-income, immigrant, justice-impacted, and first-generation students.

Discussion Items

  • Items 1–3 (Hearing & Ordinances for multiple departments) – The hearing covered the airport, library, DBI, Planning, PUC, and retirement system budgets. The committee heard from department heads and the BLA on disagreements over positions, vehicles, and other budget items. No final action was taken on the departments; the hearing was filed and the appropriation and salary ordinances were continued to the call of the chair for further deliberation in June.
  • Library (Item 6 discussion) – The library requested retention of a vacant Chief Innovation and Information Officer position, arguing it is critical for cybersecurity, digital inclusion, and IT leadership. The committee rejected the BLA recommendation to delete the position, citing the recent vacancy (since October 2025) and the department’s plan to hire within four to five months.
  • DBI and Planning (Item 7 and related positions) – DBI and Planning discussed BLA recommendations to delete or reduce positions, vehicles, and funding related to the Permit SF project. The committee was inclined to place Permit SF funding ($4.8 million in FY27, $7.4 million in FY28) on reserve pending future contract approval. Chair Chan indicated opposition to new vehicle purchases for DBI amid budget deficits. The committee did not finalize these items.
  • PUC (Items 8–11 and related BLA recommendations) – The PUC presented its capital budget and bond authorizations. The BLA raised affordability concerns for water and sewer rates, projecting rates may exceed targets by 2033-34. The committee recommended the PUC report on affordability strategies every two years. No final resolution on PUC’s contested personnel items (six positions, vehicle requests) was reached; discussion continued.
  • Retirement System (SFERS) – The retirement system disagreed with BLA recommendations to reduce non-personnel expenses, materials/supplies, and professional services budgets, as well as to delete three vacant manager positions. The committee tabled discussion, pending further information on a planned move and equipment upgrades.
  • Free City College (Item 12) – The committee heard from City College of San Francisco (Chancellor Kimberly Massina, Dean Monica Liu, Vice Chancellor of Finance Dr. Ligue, student leaders, and Board of Trustees President Aliyah Christie). The proposed budget cuts would reduce funding from $9.3 million to $6.5 million, threatening tuition waivers and cash grants for approximately 6,000 students (one-third of participants). The program serves 20,243 students, with 93% of eligible residents participating; completion rates are higher among Free City scholars. The committee expressed strong support for restoring full funding, with multiple supervisors committing to fight the cuts. Supervisor Chan noted that the Prop W transfer tax revenues are performing better than projected, questioning the rationale for the cut.

Key Outcomes

  • Item 6 – Approved and moved to full board (5-0).
  • Item 7 – Approved and moved to full board (5-0).
  • Items 8–11 – Approved and moved to full board (5-0).
  • Items 4–5 – Approved and moved to full board (3-0).
  • Item 12 – Hearing heard and filed; committee directed staff to work with the controller’s office on reserve funds and MOU details, and committed to restoring funding to at least $9.3 million.
  • Items 1–3 – Hearing on item 1 filed; items 2 and 3 continued to the call of the chair for the June final budget deliberation.
  • Departments (airport, library, DBI/Planning, PUC, Retirement) – No final votes on contested BLA recommendations; items will be revisited in June as part of the complete budget package.

Meeting Transcript

Good afternoon. The meeting will come to order. Welcome to the May 20th, 2026 meeting of the budget and appropriation committee. I'm Supervisor Connie Chan, Chair of the Committee. I'm joined by Vice Chair Supervisor Matt Dorsey and members supervisors Denny Souter, Shaman Walton, and Cheyenne Chin. Our clerk, it's Brent Halipa. I would like to thank James Kawana from SFGov TV for broadcasting this meeting. Mr. Clerk, do you have any announcement? Thank you, Madam Chair. Just a friendly reminder to those in attendance to please make sure to silence all cell phones and electronic devices to prevent interruptions to our proceedings. Should you have any documents to be included as part of the files? They should be submitted to myself, the clerk. Public comment will be taken on each item on this agenda. When your item of interest comes up in public comment is called, please line up to speak on the west side of the chamber to your right, my left along those curtains. And while not required to provide public comment, we do invite you to fill out a comment card and leave them on the trade by the television to your left by those doors. If you wish for your name to be accurately recorded for the minutes, alternatively, you may submit public comment in writing in either of the following ways. Email them to myself, the budget and appropriations committee clerk at B R E N T.j. Sf G O V dot O R G. If you submit public comment via email, it will be forwarded to the supervisors and also included as part of the official file. You may also send your written comments via U.S. Postal Service to our office in City Hall at one Dr. Carlton Big of the Place. Room 244, San Francisco, California, 94102. And items acted upon today, actually after our observance of Memorial Day, will appear on the board of supervisors agenda of June 2nd, unless otherwise stated. Madam Chair. Thank you, Mr. Clark. And before we get started, we'll need to excuse President Amendment. I would like to move to excuse President Amendment from today's meeting. Second by Vice Chair Dorsey and the roll call, please. And on that motion by Chair Chan, seconded by Vice Chair Dorsey. Do we excuse Supervisor Mandelman from attending today's meeting? Vice Chair Dorsey. Dorsey, I. Member Sauter. Sauter, I. Member Walton. Walton, I. Member Chen. Aye. Chen. Aye. Chair Chan. Aye. Chan, I. We have five eyes. The motion passes. I also want to kind of walk us all through what we can expect from today's hearing. And last week we have we heard presentations from the 13 enterprise departments that are part of the mayor's May budget submission.

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