San Francisco Government Audit and Oversight Committee Meeting - January 7, 2021
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San Francisco Government Audit and Oversight Committee Meeting - January 7, 2021
The Government Audit and Oversight Committee met on Thursday, January 7, 2021, at 10:00 AM, chaired by Supervisor Gordon Maher, with Vice Chair Aaron Peskin and member Matt Haney. The committee considered seven agenda items, including a resolution on community benefit district transparency, annual reports for three Community Benefit Districts, and three ordinances extending COVID-19 employment protections. All items were approved and forwarded to the full Board of Supervisors.
Consent Calendar
- Items 2-4: Annual Reports for Civic Center, Central Market, and East Cut Community Benefit Districts – These resolutions receiving and approving annual reports for fiscal year 2018-2019 (Civic Center and East Cut) and calendar year 2018 (Central Market) were approved without opposition and recommended to the full board.
Public Comments
- No public comments were received on any agenda item.
Discussion Items
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Item 1: Resolution Urging OEWD and Public Works to Adopt Policy on CBDs, BIDs, and GBDs Regarding Private Contributions and Surveillance Technology (File 201372) – Presented by Vice Chair Aaron Peskin, the resolution urges the Office of Economic and Workforce Development and Public Works to require disclosure of all private contributions, prohibit anonymous contributions, and require a public hearing before using surveillance technology. Supervisor Peskin noted concerns about anonymous donations and surveillance cameras potentially chilling First Amendment rights. An amendment was adopted to specify that contributions over $100 must be reported. Supervisors Maher and Haney co-sponsored the resolution. The committee voted unanimously to recommend the item as amended to the full board.
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Items 2-3: Civic Center and Central Market CBD Annual Reports – Chris Corgas (OEWD) and Tracy Everwine (Executive Director of both CBDs) presented the reports. The Civic Center CBD met all four benchmarks, had a 93.59% weighted vote in favor of renewal through 2034, and reported activities including cleaning, safety, and community events. The Central Market CBD met three of four benchmarks (failed to indicate carry-forward designation), and reported challenges with illegal drug sales, encampments, and illegal vending, while collecting 29,000 needles in 2018. Supervisor Peskin inquired about the U.S. Department of Agriculture accessing surveillance footage from the Central Market CBD; Ms. Everwine agreed to provide more details. Supervisor Haney asked about tracking business storefront activity. The committee voted unanimously to recommend both items.
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Item 4: East Cut CBD Annual Report (Fiscal Year 2018-2019) – Chris Corgas and Executive Director Andrew Robinson presented. The East Cut CBD met three of four benchmarks; the unmet benchmark was due to the nine-month closure of Salesforce Park (cracked structural beams), which shifted expense allocations. The CBD reported removing over 200,000 pounds of trash and 2,000 needles, and funding 80% of Salesforce Park operations. Supervisor Haney praised the partnership and neighborhood development. The committee voted unanimously to recommend the item.
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Item 5: Ordinance Making Permanent COVID-19 Employment Protections (SAFER Act) – Police Code Amendment (File 201188) – Paul Mongey, legislative aide to Supervisor Ronen, presented the ordinance, which makes permanent the protections originally enacted as an emergency ordinance. It prohibits employers from firing, demoting, or discriminating against workers who test positive for COVID-19 or are quarantining. The ordinance aims to encourage testing by removing fear of job loss. The committee voted unanimously to recommend the item as a committee report to the full board for consideration on January 12, 2021.
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Item 6: Reenactment of Emergency Ordinance for Grocery, Drug, Restaurant, and On-Demand Delivery Employee Protections (File 201329) – Supervisor Matt Haney presented the reenactment, extending the emergency ordinance for an additional 60 days. The ordinance provides health and scheduling protections and a complaint mechanism with the Office of Labor Standards Enforcement. The committee voted unanimously to recommend the item as a committee report for the January 12, 2021 board meeting.
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Item 7: Reenactment of Emergency Ordinance for Temporary Right to Reemployment Following Layoff Due to COVID-19 (File 201287) – Chair Maher presented the reenactment, extending the ordinance for 60 days. It requires employers to rehire laid-off workers before hiring new employees for substantially similar positions. The committee voted 2-0-1 (Vice Chair Peskin absent) to recommend the item as a committee report for the January 12, 2021 board meeting.
Key Outcomes
- All agenda items were approved and forwarded to the full Board of Supervisors with positive recommendations. Items 5, 6, and 7 were specifically requested to appear on the Board of Supervisors agenda for January 12, 2021, while other items will appear on the January 26, 2021 agenda unless otherwise stated. Votes were unanimous for items 1-6; item 7 passed 2-0-1 (Peskin absent). The committee also noted that the Central Market CBD failed to meet benchmark 4 (carry-forward designation) and the East Cut CBD failed to meet benchmark 3 (budget variance) due to the Salesforce Park closure.
Meeting Transcript
Good morning. The meeting will come to order. Welcome to the Thursday, January 7th meeting of the Government Audit and Oversight Committee. I'm Supervisor Gordon Maher, the chair of this committee, and I'm joined by Vice Chair Aaron Peskin and Committee Member Matt Haney. Thank you to this committee's clerk, John Carroll, and I'd also like to thank SFGov TV for staffing this meeting. Mr. Clerk, do you have any announcements? Yes, I have. Thank you, Mr. Chair. In order to protect board members, city employees, and the public during the COVID-19 health emergency, the Board of Supervisors, Legislative Chamber, and Committee Room are closed. This precaution is taken pursuant to all various local, state, and federal orders, declarations, and directives. Committee members will attend the meeting through video conference and participate in this meeting to the same extent as if they were physically present in our chamber. Public comment will be available for each item on this agenda. Both San Francisco Cable Channel 26 and SFGovTV.org are streaming a public comment call in number across your screen. Your opportunity to speak and provide public comments during any of to during any of today's public comment periods will be available by calling calling the following number. That number is 4156550001. Once you've connected to the call and you've been prompted, enter today's meeting ID. Today's meeting ID is 146876 9772. Then press Pound twice to be connected to the meeting. When connected, you will hear the meeting discussions, but you'll be muted and in listening mode only. When your item of interest comes up, please dial star followed by three to be added to the speaker line to speak for that item. A system prompt will indicate at that point that you have raised your hand. Please wait until the system indicates that you've been unmuted and you may then begin your comments. Best practices are to call from a quiet location to speak clearly and slowly and to turn down your television, your radio, or your streaming device. Everyone must account for potential time delays and speaking discrepancies that we may encounter between live coverage and streaming. Alternatively, you may submit your public comment in either of the following ways. You may email me. My name is John Carroll, and I'm the clerk of the government audit and oversight committee. My email address is J-O-H-N, period C A R R O L at SFGOV.org. If you submit your public comment via email, I will include it as part of the legislative file on which you are commenting. Your written comments may also be sent via U.S. Postal Service to our office in City Hall. The address for our office is 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlit Place, room 244, San Francisco, California 94102. And of course, all this information is also posted on our agenda as well if you want to reference that there. And finally, Mr. Chair, items acted upon today will appear on the Board of Supervisors agenda of January 26th, 2021, unless otherwise stated. Thank you, Mr. Clerk. Can you please call item number one? Agenda item number one is a resolution urging the Office of Workforce and Economic Development and Public Works to adopt a policy that community benefit districts, business improvement districts, and green benefit districts shall disclose all private contributions on an annual basis. Cease accepting anonymous contributions and disclose their use of surveillance technology to the Board of Supervisors at a public hearing. Members of the public who wish to provide public comment on this resolution should call the public comment number now. That number is 415-65501. Enter the meeting ID of today's meeting, which is 146-876-9772. Press the pound symbol twice to connect to the meeting, and then press the star key, followed by the number three to enter the queue to speak. A system prompt will then indicate that you've raised your hand. Please wait until the system indicates you've been unmuted.
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