Deal with single occupancy vehicles, how we get private cars to either to certainly reduce their number, electrify those that are there, and thirdly, very important on that private sector of transportation is how do we electrify the dirtiest vehicles, diesel trucks. That is a big task for us to figure out how our asthma corridors, which are related to our transportation corridors which are related to our movement of goods, how we elect reelect electrify that. But certainly, supporting public transportation, getting people out of vehicle, owning our grid, those are the areas that i think were ripe to have leadership and help. Supervisor mandelman thank you, director raphael. I didnt give you the heads up that i was going to ask that. Great answer. But i was hoping for it. Supervisor mandelman i certainly thank you again for sticking with us and for your leadership on these issues with zero waste and waste and construction waste and im done. Thank you. Supervisor safai ill just i didnt want to interrupt anything, but i wanted to thank the people that came out today and the thoughts that they shared. I know im moving around a lot, but i can do more than one thing at a time. This is something that im deeply invested in and have been working on for over a decade, so im very proud to have engaged in work with the leadership of the department of environment. My background is was working in the Waste Management industry with organized labor, so i have a lot of personal experience working with front line janitors and haulers of waste that happen to be teamsters, so that gave me an insiders perspective. But then having an insight of working in the construction industry. And when we originally came to the realization that we would not achieve our zero waste by 2020, and that was the original goal, worked on that piece of legislation over a decade ago, so that the idea was, then how with can he do that . So very how can we do that . Very productive hearings where we talked about pathways. Some of questions, what are the things we can be doing here locally . We arent just increasing the fees and the charges on plastic bags. We talked about some of the single use plastics, straws, these are some of the smaller i like to say lowhanging fruit, but then we get into the conversations about how were reducing or consumption and reducing our packaging, thats a very important thing. And now talking about the entire conversation about construction and demolition waste, and things we have done reflectively for a reflexsive reflexively for a long time. When i came into office, supervisor mandelman and i did a survey of our small district, but we realized that we could plant a lot more trees, and we did a survey, realized that it was about 7,000 tree basins that were empty. Im very proud to say that we have collectively planted almost 2,000 trees just in my district alone. Supervisor mandelman and i fought for Additional Resources citywide for millions of dollars of more street planting. People always say why do i need a tree in front of my house . Why do we need more trees . Trees are like our sponges. Theyre how we clean the air. These are small things we can do, but we have a lot way to go when we think about our urban cano canopy compared to the rest of the United States. And as director raphael said, its about controlling our grid, and owning our grid, and where that energy comes from and the type of energy that it is. So i very much want to be a part of that. Appreciate you taking the leadership on this, supervisor mandelman and absolutely engaged on this and want to see us continue to make positive steps going forward, so thank you for coming out today. Supervisor safai thank you. Thats it. Youre done . Okay. Do we file this item . Clerk is there a motion to excuse supervisor peskin . Supervisor safai i didnt know if you wanted me to do it before or after. Clerk you would just need to make a motion to do that first. Supervisor safai well make a motion to excuse supervisor peskin. And then well make a motion to file this hearing. Thank you, supervisor mandelman. And i dont believe theres any other items before us today, so we are adjourned. [gavel] better. San Francisco Department of environment is a place where climate hits the street. We know that we dont have all the answers. We need to support our local champions, our local community to find Creative Solutions and innovations that help us get to zero waste. Zero waste is sending nothing to landfill or incineration, using reuse and recovery and prevention as ways to achieve zero waste. The Grant Program is a Grant Program specifically for nonprofits in San Francisco to divert material from landfill. Its important to find the San Francisco Produce Market because theres a lot of edible food that can be diverted and they need positions to capture that food and focus on food recovery. San francisco Produce Market is a resource that connects farmers and their produce with businesses in the bay area. I think its a basic human right to have access to healthy foods, and all of this food here is available. Its a matter of creating the infrastructure, creating jobs, and the system whereby none of this goes to waste. Since the beginning of our program in july 2016 to date, weve donated over 1 Million Pounds of produce to our community partners, and thats resulted in over 900,000 meals to people in our community, which were very proud of. Carolyn at the San Francisco Produce Market texts with old produce thats available. The produce is always excellent. We get things like broccoli, brussels sprouts, bell peppers. Everything that we use is nice and fresh, so when our clients get it, they really enjoy it, and its important to me to feel good about what i do, and working in programs such as this really provides that for me. Its helping people. Thats what its really about, and i really enjoy that. The work at the Produce Market for me representing the intersection between environment and community, and when we are working at that intersection, when we are using our resources and our passion and our energy to heal the planet and feed the people, nothing gets better than once i got the hang of it a little bit, you know, like the first time, i never left the court. I just fell in love with it and any opportunity i had to get out there, you know, they didnt have to ask twice. You can always find me on the court. [ ] we have been able to participate in 12 athletics wheelchairs. They provide what is an expensive tool to facilitate basketball specifically. Behind me are the amazing golden state road warriors, which are one of the most competitive adaptive basketball teams in the state led by its captain, chuck hill, who was a National Paralympic and, and is now an assistant coach on the national big team. It is great to have this opportunity here in San Francisco. We are the main hub of the bay area, which, you know, we should definitely have resources here. Now that that is happening, you know, i im looking forward to that growing and spreading and helping spread the word that needs that these people are here for everyone. I think it is important for people with disabilities, as well as ablebodied, to be able to see and to try different sports, and to appreciate trying different things. People can come and check out this chairs and use them. But then also friday evening, from 6 00 p. M. Until 8 00 p. M. , it will be wheelchair basketball we will make sure it is available, and that way people can no that people will be coming to play at the same time. We offer a wide variety of adaptive and inclusion programming, but this is the first time we have had our own equipment. [ ] usf donates 100120 pounds of food a night. For the four semesters we have been running here, usf has donated about 18,000 pounds of food to the Food Recovery Network. Im maggie. Im nick. Were coechairs of the national led organization. What food recovery does is recover and redistribute food that would go wasted and redistributing to people in the community. The moment that i became really engaged in the cause of fighting food waste was when i had just taken the food from the usf cafeteria and i saw four pans full size full of food perfectly fine to be eaten and made the day before and that would have gone into the trash that night if we didnt recover it the next day. I want to fight food waste because it hurts the economy, its one of the largest emitters of Greenhouse Gases in the world. If it was a nation, it would be the Third Largest nation behind china and the United States. America wastes about 40 of the food we create every year, 160 billion worth and thats made up in the higher cost of food for consumers. No matter where you view the line, you should be engaged with the issue of food waste. Access edible food that we have throughout our Lunch Program in our center, i go ahead and collect it and ill cool it down and every night i prep it up and the next day ill heat it and ready for delivery. Its really natural for me, i love it, im passionate about it and its just been great. I believe its such a blessing to have the opportunity to actually feed people every day. No food should go wasted. Theres someone who wants to eat, we have food, its definitely hand in hand and it shouldnt be looked at as work or a task, were feeding people and it really means so much to me. I come to work and theyre like nora do you want this, do you want that . And its so great and everyone is truly involved. Every day, every night after every period of food, breakfast, lunch, dinner, i mean, people just throw it away. They dont even think twice about it and i think as a whole, as a community, as any community, if people just put a little effort, we could really help each other out. Thats how it should be. Thats what food is about basically. An organization that meets is the San Francisco knight ministry we work with tuesday and thursdays. By the power of your name i have faith to move mountains because i believe in jesus. I believe its helpful to offer food to people because as you know, theres so much homelessness in San Francisco and california and the United States. I really believe that food is important as well as our faith. The San Francisco knight ministry has been around for 54 years. The core of the ministry, a group of ordain ministers, we go out in the middle of the night every single night of the year, so for 54 years we have never missed a night. I know its difficult to believe maybe in the United States but a lot of our people will say this is the first meal theyve had in two days. I really believe it is a time between life or death because i mean, we could be here and have church, but, you know, i dont know how much we could feed or how many we could feed and this way over 100 people get fed every single thursday out here. Its not solely the food, i tell you, believe me. Theyre extremely grateful. Its super awesome how welcoming they are. After one or two times theyre like i recognize you. How are you doing, how is school . I have never been in the city, its overwhelming. You get to know people and through the music and the food, you get to know people. We never know what impact were going to have on folks. If you just practice love and kindness, its a labor of love and thats what the Food Recovery Network is and this is a huge i believe they salvage our mission. To me the most important part is its about food waste and feeding people. The Food Recovery Network National Slogan is finding ways to feed people. Its property to bring the scientific and Human Element into the situation. I love that i was in four plus years a a rent control tenant, and it might be normal because the tenant will for the longest, i was applying for b. M. R. Rental, but i would be in the lottery and never be like 307 or 310. I pretty much had kind of given up on that, and had to leave San Francisco. I found out about the San Francisco Mayors Office of housing about two or three years ago, and i originally did Home Counseling with someone, but then, my certificate expired, and one of my friends jamie, she was actually interested in purchasing a unit. I told her about the housing program, the Mayors Office, and i told her hey, youve got to do the six hour counseling and the 12 hour training. She said no, i want you to go with me. And then, the very next day that i went to the session, i notice this unit at 616 harrison became available, b. M. I. I was like wow, this could potentially work. Housing purchases through the b. M. R. Program with the sf Mayors Office of housing, they are all lotteries, and for this one, i did win the lottery. There were three people that applied, and they pulled my number first. I won, despite the luck id had with the program in the last couple years. Things are finally breaking my way. When i first saw the unit, even though i knew it was less than ideal conditions, and it was very junky, i could see what this place could be. Its slowly beginning to feel like home. I can definitely you know, once i got it painted and slowly getting my Custom Furniture to fit this unit because its a specialized unit, and all the units are microinterms of being very small. This unit in terms of adaptive, in terms of having a murphy bed, using the walls and ceiling, getting as much space as i can. Its slowly becoming home for me. It is great that San Francisco has this program to address, lets say, the housing crisis that exists here in the bay area. It will slowly become home, and i am appreciative that it is a bright spot in an otherwise [ ] i am the supervisor of district one. I am sandra lee fewer. [ ] i moved to the Richmond District in 1950 mine. I was two years old. I moved from chinatown and we were one of the first asian families to move out here. [ ] when my mother decided to buy that house, nobody knew where it was. It seems so far away. For a long time, we were the only chinese family there but we started to see the areas of growth to serve a larger chinese population. The stress was storage of the birthplace of that. My father would have to go to chinatown for dim sum and i remember one day he came home and said, there is one here now. It just started to grow very organically. It is the same thing with the russian population, which is another very large ethnic group in the Richmond District. As russia started to move in, we saw more russian stores. So parts of the richmond is very concentrated with the Russian Community and immigrant Russian Community, and also a chinese immigrant community. [ ] i think as living here in the richmond, we really appreciate the fact that we are surrounded three natural barriers. They are beautiful barriers. The presidio which gives us so many trails to walk through, ocean beach, for families to just go to the beach and be in the Pacific Ocean. We also also have a National Park service. We boarded the Golden Gate National Recreation Area so there is a lot of activity to do in the summer time you see people with bonfires. But really families enjoying the beach and the Pacific Ocean during the rest of the time of year. [ ] and Golden Gate Park where we have so many of our treasures here. We have the tea garden, the museum and the academy of sciences. Not to mention the wonderful playgrounds that we have here in richmond. This is why i say the richmond is a great place for families. The theatre is a treasure in our neighborhood. It has been around for a very long time. Is one of our two neighborhood theatres that we have here. I moved here when i was 1959 when i was two years old. We would always go here. I love these neighborhood theatres. It is one of the places that has not only a landmark in the Richmond District, but also in San Francisco. Small theatres showing one or two films. A unique they are unique also to the neighborhood and San Francisco. Where we are today is the heart of the Richmond District. With what is unique is that it is also Small Businesses. There is a different retail here it is mom and pop opening up businesses. And providing for the neighborhood. This is what we love about the streets. The cora door starts on clement street and goes all the way down to the end of clement where you will see Small Businesses even towards 32nd. At the core of it is right here between here and 20 tenth avenue. When we see this variety of stores offered here, it is very unique then of the any other part of San Francisco. There is traditional irish music which you dont get hardly anywhere in San Francisco. Some places have this long legacy of serving ice cream and being a hangout for families to have a sunday afternoon ice cream. And then also, we see grocery stores. And also these restaurants that are just new here, but also thriving. [ ] we are seeing restaurants being switched over by hand, new owners, but what we are seeing is a vibrancy of clement street still being recaptured within new businesses that are coming in. That is a really great thing to see. I dont know when i started to shop here, but it was probably a very, very long time ago. I like to cook a lot but i like to cook chinese food. The market is the place i like to come to once a year. Once i like about the market as it is very affordable. It has Fresh Produce and fresh meat. Also, seafood. But they also offer a large selection of condiments and sauces and noodles. A variety of rice that they have is tremendous. I dont thank you can find a variety like that anywhere else. Hi. I am kevin wong. I am the manager. In 1989 we move from chinatown to Richmond District. We have opened for a bit, over 29 years. We carry products from thailand, japan, indonesia, vietnam, singapore and india. We try to keep Everything Fresh daily. So a customer can get the best out a bit. Normally during crab season in november, this is the first place i hit. Because they have really just really fresh crab. This is something my family really likes for me to make. Also, from my traditional chinese food, i love to make a kale soup. They cut it to the size they really want. I am probably here once a week. Im very familiar with the aisles and they know everyone who is a cashier cashier here i know when people come into a market such as this, it looks like an asian supermarkets, which it is and sometimes it can be intimidating. We dont speak the language and many of the labels are in chinese, you may not know what to buy or if it is the proper ingredients for the recipe are trying to make. I do see a lot of people here with a recipe card or sometimes with a magazine and they are looking for specific items. The staff here is very helpful. I speak very little chinese here myself. Thinks that im not sure about, i asked the clerk his and i say is this what i need . Is this what i should be making . And they actually really helped me. They will bring me to the aisle and say this is battery. They are very knowledgeable. Very friendly. I think they are here to serve not only the Asian Community but to serve all communities in the Richmond District and in San Francisco. [ ] what is wonderful about living here is that even though our july is a very foggy and overcast, best neighborhood, the sleepy part outside on the west side is so rich with history, but also with all the amenities that are offered. [ ]. Good morning, everyone. The meeting will come to order. Welcome to the july 22, 2019, meeting of the rules committee. I am supervisor hillary ronen, chair of the committee. Seated to my right is vicechair shamann walton, and seated to my left is rules Committee Member gordon mar. Our clerk today is victor young. And i would like to thank the staff for staffing this meeting. Clerk please make sure to silence all cellphones and electronic devices. Completed copies of any documents to be included as part of the file should be submitted items acted upon today will appear on the july 30 supervisors agenda unless otherwise stated. Chair ronen thank you so much. Can you read item number 1. Clerk item number 1 the to the clerk. Motion approving rejecting the mayoral nomination for the appointment of Eduardo Santacana to the board of appeals, for a chair ronen thank you so much. Mr. Santacana, come on up. Thank you for the opportunity to be here today. I am honoured to be nochl nateded to serve as a commissioner on the board of appeals. I would like to start by thanking the mayor for nominating me, executive Julie Rosenburg and commissioners rig swig, daryl honda and racism tanner for speak being to me about the boards work. Ive been a resident of San Francisco for nine years. I live with my wife, my 1yearold daughter and my motherinlaw in the inner park side neighbourhood. For the past four years ive worked as a trial lawyer in jackson square. Before that i had the privilege to serve as a law clerk for judge john tiger here in San Francisco in the Federal District court. In my work i litigate a wide variety of cases, mostly commercial disputes and intellectual property disputes to provide you a recent example of what i do that im particularly proud of, i respected the oakland alamena Council Authority in an arbitration against the Golden State Warriors arising out of the 1996 renovation of the oracle arena in oakland. When the team decided to leave oakland for San Francisco, they sued the Coliseum Authority because they argued their lease entitled them to skip out on 50 million of public debt that renovated the arena for them to play there. My trial Team Successfully persuade the arbitrator that they would have to pay that public debt even if they left which was a significant victory for the taxpayers of alamena and oakland. Im also proud of my commitment to a for pro bono work. I am helping migrants seeking asylum or other forms of immigration relief here in the bay area. I also helped spearhead our challenge to president trumps travel ban along with my colleague who is here supporting me as well. In addition i serve as a board member and prochair for the committee of the bay area chapter of the constitution society, which is a network of progressive lawyers in the bay area that gather at events and panels to discuss relevant issues at local and national committees. I am thrilled to be nominated to the board of appeals. My interest comes from a sense that i could do more in this community and in particular through Public Service. Im aware that the board has often has lawyers on it, but that currently there isnt a commissioner with that set of skills. So my hope is that i can contribute in this unique way to the work of the wonderful commissioners who currently serve on the board are already doing. As a law clerk on the d. C. Circuit, i had the privilege of doing work similar to the work of the board of appeals. In particular the d. C. Circuit hears many administrative appeals for federal agencies and decides whether those agencies have followed federal law. While i was at the d. C. Circuit, i learned the skill set required to study new cases in technical areas of the law and in complicated industries and those skills, as i see them, include ensuring that all parties feel heard, preparing diligently for each case, working to find an impartial and fair solution that serves the ends of justice and the policies enacted by the legislature, and providing consistent guidance to the community so that agencies can act predictably and fairly, not only in the cases that are appealed, but in the many cases not appealed. These are the skills ive developed and honed over several years and i think i can apply them readily and well to the boards work. Im also aware that the boards work involves very emotional disputes, disputes where commissioners must hear neighbours who have disagreements with their own neighbours, disagreements with the way the iis being run, and they are all running for the boards consideration and the boards task is to remain impartial and fair while also remaining to the laws it is charging. As a lawyer helping two different judges perform this task, i can attest to the challenge of threading that needle. I think im wellsuited to the task of exercising independent judgment in these types of cases, while hopefully making sure that even though there must be winners and losers, everybody believes they have a fair opportunity to be heard and their city is working for them. Thank you and im happy to answer any questions you may have. Chair ronen thank you so much. I just say youre absolutely unbelievably qualified for this position. Thank you, madam chair. Chair ronen and i appreciate your willingness to serve in this capacity. Colleagues, do you have any questions . No. Im going to open this item up for Public Comment. If any member of the public would like to come forward now is your time. Good morning, esteemed supervisors. Im rick swig and the board of supervisors appointee as the commissioner to the board of appeals, and i currently serve as president of the board of appeals. Eduardo has been very diligent in investigating what his responsibilities would be with the board of appeals. You know, we serve many masters, we serve those who appeal, those who are the permit holders and of course we serve the city and its departments to make sure as a quasi judicial body we make the best decisions possible. In speaking with him, he was very clear on that subject and hes taken the time to come to our meetings. Hes taken the time to interview my fellow commissioners. We are all very, very comfortable with the opportunity of him joining us on the board of appeals and i hope you feel equally. As he mentioned, we are not only lacking a commissioner, but we are also lacking a commissioner with specific legal skills and he would be very, very helpful in filling out the skill base that we require to do our job. So i hope that you find positively with regard to his appointment. Thank you very much. Chair ronen thank you so much. Next speaker, please. And if anybody would like to speak on this item and if you can line up over to your right, my left, that would be great. Thank you. Good morning. Good morning, im john kecker. I started the law firm where eduardo works and im here to vouch for him, but first ive got to say im so thrilled to be here because in 1977, i ran for supervisor the first time they had district elections, Diane Finestein won and i lost in district 3. Harvey milk won in district 5 those days i got more votes than the Democratic Club and harvey milked it because in those days there were a lot of feuds unlike now. Anyway, its great to be here. I worked with Eduardo Santacana in various contexts. I worked with him on the Alameda County case that he talked about that he was instrumental in winning and saving oakland 50 million. I worked with him on the pro bono cases he didnt mention, hes been an absolutely sensational lawyer. To be a good lawyer, you have to be a good man. He is a good man filled with integrity and judgment and were lucky to have him. Chair ronen thank you so much. Next speaker. When you get this job, id like to see you Pay Attention to the most Vulnerable People who are in the city and county of San Francisco and the area. Id like to see you start off with the people not included and inclusionary ordinance thats been voted for by the people in San Francisco, but every time there is a housing opportunity the most Vulnerable People are not included. Every time the city claims that its 100 affordable housing, the only people that can afford it is the people in high income brackets. A lot of these appointments that come out, the lowest income thats accepted for a person to put in an application is like about 80, 90,000 a year. If you are who you say you are, that is a violation of constitutional law pertaining to the 14th amendment, due process and equal protection under the law. Thats not equal protection under the law, providing housing opportunities for only people in high income brackets and as far as people in income brackets thats below the target, as far as being acceptable and eligible to put an application in for the housing opportunity out of the Mayors Office on housing where you claim you are an equal opportunity Housing Organization is disgusting. Thats called discrimination. Thats why youve got a minimum of 8,011 people out in frisk and it turns out on a review that it says 30 more than that. There is a total of 2,000 people in San Francisco and its because of this price fixing and price gouging. I want to put a strong emphasis on it. You represent that people economically disadvantaged as a pro bono, i do some work for several years myself. So if you get nominated and i think you will, id like to see you focus in on that. Can you promise me that . All right. [ bell rings ]. Chair ronen thank you, mr. Wright. Next speaker, please. Good morning and thank you. My name is simona amaluchi. I am a partner at the kecker law firm. Ive known eduardo for four years when he started working at the firm. I remember thinking this guy is going to be a star and he has absolutely proven that correct. Over the past four years, eduardo and i have had the opportunity to work closely together on various large matters, and im also his official mentor at the firm. So over time, weve had conversations about professional goals, about the purpose of our jobs, about life, about being working parents, and i feel that ive really gotten to know him, not just as a lawyer, but as a human being. The thing that strikes me the most about eduardo is his deep sense of commitment to justice and his ethics. Hes a terrific lawyer and anyone who meets him will know that, but what sets him apart is that he cares about justice, truth, and serving the underprivileged. And as a result of that, hes devoted a large amount of time to pro bono cases, some of which ive worked with him on. Just last week, weve got news that one of eduardos pro bono clients an unaccompanied minor from el salvador called oscar got his papers after fleeing Death Threats from ms 13 because he refused to join the gangs and they put a literally death order on him and he ran for his life and eduardo saved him. Now, when one of my friends nannies needed help because she too had a sister who was fleeing fers persecution, eduardo steppedup to the plate and took her asylum case and hes representing her now. Its not just our paying clients that he devotes his time to, its the people who are the most vulnerable in society. Eduardo understands [ bell rings ]. Chair ronen thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much. Next speaker, please. Good morning, supervisor ronen, fellow supervisors. My name is maxwell pritt. I am here this morning as the chair of the bay area lawyer chapter of the American Constitution Society. In that capacity, i have known eduardo since 2012, and for everyone who doesnt know what the American Constitution Society is, we are a group of a progressive lawyers that believe the law should be used to improve the lives of all people. We believe in genuine equality. We believe in meaningful access to justice. We believe that transparency and truth are the enemy of tyranny and that it is the life blood of democracy. I believe that eduardo, having known him since 2012 in this volunteer capacity, will work to achieve these things for the city of San Francisco and the people of San Francisco in this capacity. So you know, he has been a member of the board the lawyer chapter board since 2012. The board is comprised of about 20 to 30 lawyers from the attorney generals office, the doj, from private practice, from city office, every aspect of progressive lawyering in the bay area. We also have an Advisory Board that includes individuals like City Attorney dennis rara, our good friend and dear friend who passed away jeff adachy as well and many others. [ bell rings ]. Eduardo has not just been a member of the board. He has taken an active role in one of the most difficult things for our board, which is programming chair, and which he has served in that capacity since 2006. We put on roughly two dozen programs every year, and this year under eduardos leadership we received a Programming Award from the National Office of the American Constitution Society at our National Convention in washington, d. C. So i just wanted [ bell rings ]. Chair ronen thank you so much. Next speaker, please. Good morning, thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today. My name is Jay Rappaport and i am an associate at eduardos law firm. As mr. Santacanas colleague, i would like to echo what the other speakers have said about his skill, integrity to pro bono service. As his colleague we see that every day and everyone at his firm shares great pride in his nomination. I feel an added pride because mr. Santacana is not just a coworker but has been my friend and classmate for well over a decade. If you told me when we met as law students long ago that he would have received this honour, i wouldnt have batted an eye. His passion and commitment to Public Service are readily apparent when you meet him. If theres one instance that exemplifies that spirit, its his leadership to join our effort to fight the travel ban. Mr. Santacana mentioned our efforts to fight that in court, but what he didnt mention he was on the ground at sfo within hours of the travel ban coming down. He was there to bring his skills to bear, not because he thought it was glamorous or would help his career, but the great needs of those in need demanded it and thats the kind of person he is. Those values are in the best tradition of the bar, of course, and theyre ones i would hope to see in any public servant. Of course for my perspective mr. Santacana would not be just any public servant. For many years ive benefitted [ bell rings ]. And his unassailable values. Whenever i have a problem, whether its legal or personal, hes the first person i would turn to. I can say from experience that our city would benefit tremendously from his talents. Im proud as a colleague and friend to support his nomination and i promise you, you wont regret his nomination. Chair ronen thank you so much. Is there any other member of the public who would like to speak on this item . Seeing none, Public Comment is closed. Again, mr. Santacana, thank you so much for your willingness to serve in this capacity. Its a very important undertaking and it seems like you do a lot of volunteer work and all of that work you do is so much integrity and passion and were really appreciative that youre going to bring your talents to the city of San Francisco. Does anyone want to make a motion . I would like to make a motion of amending item 1, removing approving rejecting chair ronen without objection, that motion passings unanimously. Thank you so much. Mr. Clerk, can you please read item number 2. Clerk item number 2 is term ending july 1, 2020. clerk of the board is a hearing to consider appointing three members terms ending november 30, 2020. Chair ronen i would like to give time if you would like to speak about your appointments. Good morning, im Betty Packard. I came to San Francisco in 1982. I had my first newspaper job in 1953, and served chair ronen you look very young. I was. I was in high school, as a matter of fact. And served as a newspaper reporter on four different newspapers, one in franklin indiana, two in indianapolis. Then i married, had two children. My husband was killed. I went back to school, got some more education and was a director of High School Journalism at the largest high school in indiana. Then i became an adjunct professor at bal state for weekend education. 15 years i raised my children in indiana and then suddenly i found this great guy and married and one day he said were moving, and i didnt understand why but he was a career army officer. So we arrived here i arrived here as a result of the United States army in 1982. We served at the presidio. When he retired in 87, we decided maybe we would like to stay. I had been serving on the california abortion Rights League board and doing president of the California Press women and doing some work here and head of the High School Journalism contest for both San Francisco and california. So i was already pretty much involved in the work when i received a call and said from the California Broadcasters Association that they needed a representative for the Ballot Simplification Committee. This was 1997. And i said, oh, i just dont have the time to do that. They said, its just a twoweek commitment. Will you please come for the two weeks and do this commitment because we really need a quorum for this very vital committee. And i thought, well, sure, i can do that. I showed up. The room was packed. The hallway was packed and i thought id never done this before. I thought what are all these people doing here for my appointment and it was the cross at mount davidson. So i learned a little humbleness at the moment. But yes, that was 1997. Here i am 22 years later. This is the 12th time ive appeared before this committee. I now represent the National Academy of Television Arts and sciences because the California Broadcasters Association joined forces with them. So i have chaired the committee since 2004. I am very proud of the job we do. I am a constituent of supervisor walton, but he will never see me at any political meeting because its one of the things i do as chair of this committee, i never attend a political meeting. I never want anybody to have the privilege of saying im biased or im walking into something with a bias. I work very hard to keep the committee on a very straight and narrow chair that so that we hear everybody. I know, i think it was chris daily who used to be we are the epitome of democracy and would say go here to bettys committee because they are democracy in action, and im proud of the fact thats been our reputation over the years. For the moment we have been operating at a real disadvantage because the school board has failed to highlight and put forth a nomination. So instead of five people, weve only had four, and it and were going to come through this session with only three because mr. Patterson is travelling and cannot be here for this session. But the fact that were going to have a huge session for november, im happy to have him back. But im very proud of our group. One of the things ive learned to do is go out also and speak to public groups before the election and talk about the need to get out to vote, try to explain the ballot, try to explain why we have a Ballot Simplification Committee, in fact, what a Ballot Simplification Committee is, because a lot of people dont [ bell rings ]. They not only dont know, but dont appreciate it. I ask not only do you approve myself and ill let ashley take the floor here in a minute, but that you also approve scott. Hes a valuable member of the committee too and you dont need to come back to hear him again so that he can come back in november and meet with us. So im very proud of the work that we do and the work that ive done. [ bell rings ]. I hope you move us forward. Chair ronen thank you so much. Were getting in touch with the school board to make sure they make their nomination. [ laughter ]. They used to answer chair ronen were on it. My name is ashley raveche. I thank this committee to listen to my application for reappointment to the Ballot Simplification Committee. I served last term. A little bit about me. I am up for the league of women voters seat, so the Ballot Simplification Committee is a league legacy. We are the champions that brought this committee to San Francisco government as a transparency and accountability measure as well as to streamline election electio elections so that citizens didnt need a law degree in order to vote. So often it is a thorn in the legislators side. I want to say we are a partner in this work and that we really do appreciate and understand the nuances of what youve prepared for us to dismantle and digest into an eighthgrade reading level. So its really im happy to participate on this committee again if you approve my nomination and im happy to work with every board supervisor whos bringing a ballot measure before us. A little bit about how i became a part of this is that i served three years as the league of women voters president for San Francisco, where we do Community Engagement, advocacy, Voting Rights work. Currently im a mom, i have a 7yearold and a 5yearold, as well as doing Community Engagement at the state level and doing human rights lobby work for aca 6 which is a free to vote, as well as reforming yeah, theres a rally out front. It wasnt planned, but you will see the work were doing. Also reforming use of work in the state. So were getting a bill on the governs desk and hes ready to sign. It was exciting because we utilized San Francisco as a model for use of reforms in the state. I wont take up any of your time. Im welcome to questions. Thank you. Yes, please hopefully consider Scott Patterson as well as Betty Packard for the reappointment. Chair ronen thank you so much. If any member of the public would like to speak on this item, now is your chance. Seeing none, Public Comment is closed. I wanted to thank you both for this crucial job. It is one of the leastknown, mostpowerful committees that we have in the city and county in San Francisco. For those who are watching or are here who dont know about the Ballot Simplification Committee, when there is an initiative on the ballot or an ornss or a charter amendment, the City Attorney prepares the question which could makeorbreak basically a measure depending on how you word it, the voters might be more or less inclined to support or oppose the measure. But it doesnt just stop there. It goes before a public body, the Ballot Simplification Committee, where a group of citizens who are appointed from various Interest Groups that want to protect our democracy and make sure that its fair and open, get to sit on the decisionmaking body to rewrite the question if they want to. They are the final arbiters of what the official ballot question is on the ballot, and us as citizens, we get to go and argue one way or the other. What was prepared by the City Attorney wasnt answered and heres why. Their other job is to make sure that every single thing thats written on the ballot is understandable to someone with an eighthgrade education. So its just incredibly important. As some forces in our society are trying to weaken our society, this Ballot Simplification Committee is strengthened. I would like to thank you for
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