Government Audit and Oversight Committee Meeting - February 4, 2021
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Government Audit and Oversight Committee Meeting – February 4, 2021
The Government Audit and Oversight Committee of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors met on Thursday, February 4, 2021, at 10:00 AM via remote conference. Chair Dean Preston presided, joined by Vice Chair Connie Chan and Committee Member Raphael Mandelman. The committee considered four agenda items: an ordinance on residential hotel protections during COVID-19, reenactment of the Public Health Emergency Leave ordinance, a hearing on public corruption investigations, and an emergency ordinance on the city's COVID-19 vaccination plan. Key actions included continuances, amendments, and forwarding items to the full Board.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Item 1 (Residential Hotel Protections): No public comments were received.
- Item 2 (Public Health Emergency Leave): No public comments were received during the initial hearing or after amendments were proposed.
- Item 3 (Public Corruption Hearing): David Pilpel (public commenter) suggested that large departments like the airport, MTA, PUC, Rec & Park, Port, and DPW could benefit from internal audit functions similar to the PUC's, noting that such units could help prevent corruption.
- Item 4 (COVID-19 Vaccination Plan): Multiple callers spoke:
- LaShawn Walker (District 10 resident, Mega Black COVID-19 Task Force, SF AIDS Foundation board member) urged the city to be more proactive in advocating for vaccine supply and to prioritize comorbidities and vulnerable populations. She also expressed concern that the SF Produce Market site had been announced but was not yet operational.
- A caller (Mr. DeCosta) criticized the city's data and logistics, suggesting FEMA should be consulted and that the city has failed in testing and vaccination planning.
- Angela J. (Mega Black COVID-19 Task Force) called for equitable vaccine access without red tape, especially for unhoused Black San Franciscans and those with mobility issues.
- John Jacobo (Podco Group, affordable housing developers) requested clarification on the mobile vaccination strategy for seniors in affordable housing facilities, emphasizing the need to protect the most vulnerable.
Discussion Items
Item 1: Administrative Code – Protections for Occupants of Residential Hotels During COVID-19 Pandemic (File 201388)
Supervisor Peskin, the sponsor, requested a continuance to the February 18, 2021 meeting, citing ongoing negotiations between the SRO collaborative, his office, and the Department of Public Health. The committee unanimously voted to continue the item.
Item 2: Emergency Ordinance – Public Health Emergency Leave (File 210052)
Supervisor Marr, sponsor, presented the reenactment of the ordinance requiring private employers with 500+ employees to provide public health emergency leave. He noted that this was the sixth time the policy was before the committee and the fifth reenactment. After initial unanimous approval as a committee report, Supervisor Marr requested to rescind the vote to offer amendments. The amendments (deemed non-substantive by the Deputy City Attorney) would:
- Remove the provision requiring leave for employees not scheduled to work.
- Add an exemption for social enterprise nonprofits (excluding healthcare provider nonprofits). The committee approved the amendments and forwarded the amended ordinance to the full Board as a committee report.
Item 3: Hearing – Investigations Into Public Corruption (File 200279)
Supervisor Marr, as former chair of the committee, called the hearing to discuss the fourth public integrity review report from the Controller's Office, focusing on ethical standards for contract award processes at the Airport Commission and other commissions/boards. Mark De La Rosa (Acting Director of Audits) and Todd Rydstrom (Deputy Controller) presented findings:
- The Controller's Office found no substantial structural problems with the Airport Commission's procurement process, but noted that former Commissioner Linda Creighton allegedly violated communication restrictions by meeting with a potential bidder (Nick Bovis) during a quiet period.
- Recommendations included: revising policies to clarify commissioner involvement, annual training on Statements of Incompatible Activities (SIAs), codifying prohibitions on selective assistance, enforcing communication restrictions, and improving transparency through Form 126 reporting.
- The report also recommended codifying limitations on commissioner involvement in contract awards, referencing Los Angeles County as an example.
- The Controller's Office highlighted that the airport has already strengthened contracting policies and that three more reports are pending (citywide ethics reporting, DBI permit practices, and a final summary). Deputy City Attorney Flynn noted that the City Attorney's Office has been investigating vendor misconduct and will suspend eight vendors in the next two weeks. He confirmed that the airport did not follow the same pattern of corruption seen at DPW and PUC. Committee members discussed the effectiveness of current controls, whether the airport was more corruption-resilient, and the need for consistent SIAs across departments. The item was continued to the call of the chair.
Item 4: Emergency Ordinance – San Francisco COVID-19 Vaccination Plan (File 210075)
Supervisor Haney, sponsor, introduced the ordinance requiring the Department of Public Health to create a comprehensive vaccination plan and publicly report data on vaccine doses, administration, and demographics. He emphasized the need for transparency, equity, and a clear communication strategy, noting that other counties (e.g., Contra Costa, San Mateo) already provide disaggregated data. Mary Ellen Carroll (COVID Command Director) and Dr. Navina Boba (Deputy Health Officer) presented the city's vaccination strategy:
- As of the meeting, over 110,000 doses had been administered in San Francisco, with approximately 80,000 to San Francisco residents. About 9% of the population had received at least one dose.
- 62% of the city's allocation had been used; the remaining 38% was earmarked for first-dose appointments or second doses.
- A three-pronged strategy includes high-volume sites (City College, Moscone Center South, SF Produce Market), community vaccine access sites, and pharmacies. Together, these sites could serve over 10,000 people per day once supply is available.
- The city has ordered full allocations from the state and is on a waiting list for over 30,000 additional doses.
- Data transparency efforts are underway, with plans to break down vaccination by race, ethnicity, age, and neighborhood, but the timeline for public release was not specified.
- The state's shift to an age-based priority system (65+ and healthcare workers) has created confusion, and the city is awaiting further guidance on essential workers and people with comorbidities.
- The city is developing a centralized appointment system and mobile vaccination units for homebound populations. Supervisor Haney and committee members pressed for faster data publication, a unified portal, and better communication with vulnerable communities. The ordinance was forwarded to the full Board as a committee report.
Key Outcomes
- Item 1: Continued to the February 18, 2021, committee meeting (unanimous vote: 3-0).
- Item 2: Original vote to recommend rescinded; amendments adopted (unanimous: 3-0); amended ordinance forwarded to the Board of Supervisors as a committee report for consideration on February 9, 2021 (unanimous: 3-0).
- Item 3: Continued to the call of the chair by motion of Chair Preston (unanimous: 3-0).
- Item 4: Forwarded to the Board of Supervisors as a committee report for consideration on February 9, 2021 (unanimous: 3-0).
Meeting Transcript
Good morning. The meeting will come to order. Welcome to the Thursday, February 4th meeting of the Government Audit and Oversight Committee. I'm Supervisor Dean Preston, the chair of this committee, and I'm joined by Vice Chair Supervisor Connie Chan and Committee Member Supervisor Raphael Mandelman. Thank you to this committee's clerk, John Carroll, and I would also like to thank SFGov TV for staffing this meeting. Mr. Clerk, do we have any announcements? Thank you. Yes, Mr. Chair. In order to protect the public, board members, and city employees 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 via conference and participate in the meeting to the same extent as if they were physically present in the board's meeting room. 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 the screen at this time. Your opportunity to speak and provide your public comment during any public comment period on today's agenda will be available to you by phone. You would dial 415-65501 to be connected to our call. Following your dialing that number, you will be prompted to enter the meeting ID for today's meeting. Today's meeting ID is 1464694909. Following that, press the pound symbol twice to be connected to the meeting. Once you're connected, you will hear the meeting discussions, but your line will be muted and in listening mode only. When your item of interest comes up, dial star followed by three to be added to the speaker line. System prompt will indicate 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, 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 the live coverage and the streaming. Alternatively, you may submit your written public comment in either of the following ways. You may email me. My name is John Carroll, and I'm a clerk of a government audit and oversight committee. My email address is J-O-H-N, period C-A-R-R-O-L-L at SFGOV.org. If you submit public comment by email, it will be included in the legislative file as part of the matter that you are commenting upon. Your written comments may also be sent via U.S. Postal Service to our office in City Hall. Our office is one, Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, room 244. San Francisco, California, 94102. And finally, Mr. Chair, items acted upon today will appear on the Board of Supervisors agenda of February 23rd, 2021, unless otherwise stated. Thank you, Mr. Clerk. Please call item one. Agenda one is an ordinance amending the administrative code to establish protections for occupants of residential hotels during the COVID-19 pandemic by, among other things, making it city policy to place in solitary hotel rooms, SRO residents who meet the criteria for isolation or quarantine established by the county health officer, and requiring the departments of public health to post a notice in the common area area and notify the operator of a residential hotel when an SRO resident has tested positive for COVID-19. To facilitate contact tracing, testing for COVID-19 and cleaning. Establish a telephone hotline for SRO residents to respond to questions about accessing COVID-19 health screenings, testing in solitary hotel rooms, provide face coverings to SRO residents and workers in residential hotels, and provide daily aggregate data concerning the incidence of COVID-19 among SRO residents, access to quarantine rooms by such residents and the number of such residents who have died due to complications from COVID-19. Members of the public wish for a public comment on this ordinance should call the public comment number now. I will repeat it. Thank you, Mr. Clerk. Um and uh with uh thanks to uh Supervisor Peskin uh for his ongoing leadership on the issues raised in this uh this ordinance.
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