Millions of dollars from billionaires have poured into San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie’s package of November ballot measures that could reshape City Hall.
Lurie has proposed three measures — Propositions D, E and F — that would give the mayor greater power to change department leadership, alter how measures get on the ballot, and expand the city administrator’s authority over contracting.
Lurie is presenting the propositions as a package through his “Clean Up City Hall” ballot measure committee, which so far has raised $9.6 million, including donations from several billionaires. So far, supporters of the package include Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, Board President Rafael Mandelman, San Francisco Democratic Party Chair Nancy Tung, and a few workers’ unions.
“San Francisco has made a lot of progress in the last two years,” Lurie said in a statement on the committee’s website. “But we are still held back by a corrupt and broken system that only works for the insiders. You have the opportunity to change it in this election. Propositions D, E and F will make city government more accountable and deliver better results.”
Prop. D
Prop. D proposes raising the threshold of signatures required for citizen-led ballot measures from 2% of the city’s registered voters to 8%, an increase of about 10,600 signatures to 40,500.
Currently, the mayor or four or more members of the Board of Supervisors are also allowed to put measures on the ballot. Prop. D would take that power away from the mayor and also require that supervisors get a majority in order to get it on the ballot instead of only four.
The measure also proposes raising the threshold of signatures needed to call for a special election from around 39,000 signatures to 53,100.
Supporters argue that the measure will shorten ballots and be more representative of popular opinion since small groups of voters or a few politicians won’t as easily be able to get measures qualified for the ballot.
“Currently a minority of supervisors, just 2% of voters or the mayor acting alone, can throw anything on the ballot without public input, transparency or proven community support,” reads the official proponent argument. “San Francisco is the only city in California that allows these low thresholds — that’s why we have the longest and most confusing ballots in the state.”
We are still held back by a corrupt and broken system that only works for the insiders. You have the opportunity to change it in this election.
Mayor Daniel Lurie
Those against Prop. D say that the 2% signature threshold for citizen-led initiatives is hard enough to achieve and community groups won’t have enough resources to reach an 8% minimum.
Opponents include Supervisor Shamann Walton; the San Francisco Labor Council, which represents thousands of union workers; the United Educators of San Francisco teachers’ union; and the civic action group Indivisible SF.
“Prop. D takes away rights that San Franciscans have held for 125 years: to put citizen initiatives on the ballot,” reads the official opponent argument. “Wealthy interests can afford to pay one million dollars to collect 42,500 signatures. Neighborhood groups, labor unions and community advocates will be priced out. We’ll lose our voice in the democratic process.”
Prop. E
Lurie is also pushing for Prop. E, which would give the City Administrator more power over procurement, which involves the city selecting vendors and entering into contracts with people or groups to purchase commodities and services for the city. The City Administrator is an appointed position that oversees the day-to-day operations of more than 25 city departments.
Currently, the Board of Supervisors can introduce and pass rules that govern how the city handles procurement, but Prop. E would give the City Administrator exclusive authority to set citywide rules for contracting. Ordinances for contracting introduced by the City Administrator would automatically pass unless the Board rejects them within 60 days.
Prop. E also proposes raising the monetary threshold for contract approval. Current city rules require Board approval for certain contracts and lease agreements.
Prop. E would raise the approval requirement threshold for revenue-generating contracts and lease agreements from $1 million to $4 million. Contracts that will cost the city more than $10 million also require Board approval, but Prop. E proposes increasing that threshold to $25 million.
The measure would also increase the City Administrator’s term from five years to 10 years.
Supporters say that Prop. E will reduce bureaucratic delays and costs associated with the process for approving contracts, while also allowing the City Administrator to set stricter standards for handing out contracts as a way to try and root out corrupt dealmaking.
“San Francisco pays thousands of businesses and nonprofits but doesn’t have a contracting system built for results,” said former San Francisco Controller Ben Rosenfield in the proponent letter submitted for the ballot. “[Prop] E ensures public dollars are invested in better and faster city services instead of lost to waste and delay.”
Attorney Larry Marso submitted the sole opposing argument to Prop. E. In his letter of opposition, Marso argued that Lurie is using D, E and F to gain more executive authority and “concentrate power in his own hands.”
Prop. F
Prop. F seeks to allow the mayor to hire deputy mayors to supervise departments. It would also give the mayor the power to hire and fire certain department heads without cause and without involvement from boards or commissions that oversee the department.
The measure also entails allowing the mayor to reorganize some executive branch departments that exist under the City Charter by consolidating the duties of certain agencies under one department head or transferring functions of one department to another. Watchdog agencies like the Ethics Commission would not be subjected to this change.
Proponents say that Prop. F could help tackle corruption amongst department heads in City Hall.
“Departments that act as their own kingdoms are where corruption can grow,” said former City Attorney Louise Renne in a letter submitted by supporters to the Department of Elections. “[Prop] F makes it clear that every department head is ultimately accountable to the people of San Francisco.”
Small Business Forward, an organization that advocates for small businesses in San Francisco, submitted a letter opposing Prop. F. The group said that the measure could give too much power to the mayor and interfere with checks and balances.
The San Francisco Chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, a socialist organization, also opposes Prop. F. Supervisor Jackie Fielder and former Supervisor Dean Preston signed on to the group’s letter of opposition.
“Proponents say they want to stop corruption,” the letter reads. “But if that’s the assignment, Prop. F gets an F. It concentrates power in the executive, stripping away checks and balances. That will only enable corruption.”
Registered voters in San Francisco can expect their ballot packets to arrive in the mail in early October. Residents can check their voter registration status through the San Francisco Department of Elections’ online voter portal.
