Transcripts For SFGTV Rules Committee 20240713

Good morning, everyone. The meeting will come to order. Welcome to the april 27th, 2020 meeting of the rules committee. Im supervisor hillary ronen, chair of the committee. With me on the Video Conference is rules Committee Vice chair catherine stefani. Id like to thank sfgov for staffing this meeting. Mr. Clerk, do you have any announcements . Clerk yes. Due to the covid19 Health Emergency and protocols, Board Members, City Employees and the public, the board room is closed. However, members will be participating remotely. This caution is taken pursuant to the statewide stayathome order and proceeding local, state and federal orders, and directives. Sorry, guys. Supervisor ronen sorry, i thought you were done. Clerk Committee Members will be attending through Video Conference and participating in the meeting in the same extent that they were physically present. Public comment will be available on each item on the agenda, both channel 26, sfgov. Org are streaming the number up. At the top of the screen. Each speaker will be allowed two minutes to speak. Comment or opportunity to speak during the Public Comment period are available via phone call by calling 888 2045984. Again 888 2045984. Access code 3501008. Again 3501008. When connected, dial 10 to be added hot queue alternatively, you may submit Public Comment in either of the following ways, email myself, the rules Committee Clerk at cictor. Oyung cictor. Oyung sf. Gov. Org. Written comments may be sent by u. S. Postal service to city hall, 1 dr. Carlton b. , good let place, room 244, San Francisco, california, 9410. Finally, items acted upon today are expected to appear on the board of supervisors agenda of may 5th, unless otherwise stated. Supervisor ronen wonderful. Can you please read item number 1. Clerk item number 1 my apologies. Switching papers. Item number 1 the motion approving rejecting the mayors nomination for the reappointment of crstina rubke to Municipal Transportation Agency board of directors, term ending march 1, 2024. Supervisor ronen wonderful. And i understand that ms. Rubke is on the line and ready to join us. Clerk go ahead. Yeah. She is go ahead. Clerk hello, ms. Rubke. Hello. I had you bleeped out for a moment. So i couldnt hear anything. Now i can hear you. Supervisor ronen thank you so much for joining us in this remote way. We really appreciate it. We would love to hear any remarks you have on your nomination and then well turn it over to the supervisors to ask questions. Thank you. Thank you so much for taking the time today to hear my nomination to serve on the sfmta board. For the last eight year, i have had the privilege of serving im willing to serve a third and final term, should the board of supervisors confirm the mayors nomination. You have my rezmy and i understand that were focused on many other important needs. Ill keep my remarks short. But, of course, im here to answer any questions you have. Very briefly about me. Im a trademark lawyer, an avid sailor and a huge fan of public transit. I have a disability and used a wheelchair to get around. As a result, i rely on accessible Public Transportation to live an active life. One of the main reasons i moved to San Francisco and since moving here in 2005, i have regularly been on muni. My main lines are the t, the n, the 47, the 10 and the 82. As an sfmta board member, i have focused on the overall accessibility of our transportation system, including physical, economic, and programmatic accessible. Very quickly highlight a few of the things i have worked on, let me know if you want more details. In the last six months, i have attended several San Francisco Human Rights Commission meetings that address transit equity. I hope to continue to work with the Human Rights Commission, and the willingness to partner with sfmta on the critically important access issues. Currently serve as the chair of the sfmta boards policy and governance committee, that meets monthly to look at the Strategic Plan goals and how the agency is meeting or missing Key Performance metrics. I hope that we can take this unique opportunity and time to examine our expectation work as a whole and come out of this with a better, more equitable system. And to me that would be better prioritizing our transit, pedestrians and cyclists. I look forward to working with the other directors. Another thing i have advocated for is expanding the accessibility of emergeing mobility like car share. To me the mode shift goals we need the options to be accessible to as many people as possible, including populations that have historically been excluded from such options. One initiative is the bike share pilot that sfmta ran last fall in golden gate park. Finally and probably most important to me over the last eight years, i have focused on Pedestrian Safety. Im a huge advocate of automatic speed enforcement, as well as other dataproven tools. Additionally, i have focused specifically on Pedestrian Safety for people with disabilities and seniors, who as you know are statistically more likely to be victims of traffic violence. And i hope this continue this important work. If there were Public Comment, i would already have been cut off. So i will stop there. Im happy to answer any questions you have. Supervisor ronen okay. Thank you very much. Appreciate you joining us today. And your service thus far and your willingness to serve into the future. And im sorry i didnt have a chance to speak with you prior to today. But i know that you spoke to my staff and i really appreciate that as well. Im just going to start it off with one question. I was very concerned that the m. T. A. Board, including you, voted to increase fares on clipper card users during this period, when so many san franciscans have lost their jobs, are struggling to put food on the table, when service cuts on m. T. A. Have been extensive. Im sure that you know that the board of supervisors voted 101 urging you not to increase fares. And its its really concerning to me. And i wanted to hear more of an explanation on why you chose to vote to increase fares during this time. Absolutely. Thank you for that question. I voted without you know, there was much hesitation and thought and consideration that we that myself and i know all of us gave to both the board of supervisors perspective on this and frankly just a lot of compelling Public Comment. So i voted for the budget because i really do think it balanced the needs of the agency to move forward in a sustain financially Sustainable Way to be able to provide Transportation Service as we come out of this. So to be clear, the increases that were that are part of our budget will go into effect at the earliest in november of 2020. They arent going into effect now. One of the reasons that we chose to reduce the discount on clipper, which has the effect of raising the fare on clipper, is because when we did an analysis of the populations that use clipper, versus cash fare, the data though that more with this budget we were able to maintain fee cash fare at 3 for the next two budget cycles, the for the next two fiscal years. And so we in doing all of those things, in fact, we deviated from the board policy, thats a fair indexing policy that i very much believe in. Financial sustainability for the agency, as well as transparent and, you know, public transparency for what fares are going to look like as we move forward. The fare policy basically increases fares on an incremental basis over time, to match the cost of providing Transportation Services. As you probably know about 20 of our operating budget comes from transit fares. Thats not an insignificant amount of money. We as Board Members have a responsibility to make sure that sfmta is in a position to continue providing service into the future. Row the exact circumstances youre pointing to. We do have various we have in addition to the muni use program, we have free muni for low and moderateincome senior and people with disabilities. We do have a lifeline pass for lowerincome folks. And we do have other discounted programs. So i think the direction that our staff they were already working on this. But i think were always looking for more options to better serve lowerincome folks who may be in the middle zone, where basically they may not qualify for the lowincome discount. So i think our focus moving forward should be trying to capture folks who may not qualify for the lowincome discount programs we have in existence. I would look forward to input on those issues. Because i think thats really important. Supervisor ronen so i serve on the m. T. C. And we recently were successful in getting 100 i believe its 197 million from the care act in congress for the m. T. A. , which almost covers the cost of the losses during the shelterinplace and covid crisis. Was that considered when making this choice to raise the clipper card fares . It was. And i think an important thing to note that we entered this budget cycle with already basically, as i think the citywide is experiencing, a structural deficit that we needed to close the gap on. That was before coronavirus and covid, you know, that were seeing now. So we are very grateful for the federal funding. Its allowing us to move forward and not have to make drastic service cuts in the future, when were not social distancing. We also have, as you know, a backlog of funding that we need to address, to ensure liability of our transportation system. So we did consider all of that when we approved the budget. Supervisor ronen okay. Okay. Thank you. Do my colleagues have any questions . Supervisor mar yeah. Thanks, chair ronen. First of all, thank you, ms. Rubke, for your service to the m. T. A. Board and for your willingness to continue to serve. Its critically Important Role in our city and for our communities. I just had some followup questions, sort of im drawing on chair ronens questions around how you would approach the difficult and challenging decisions that the m. T. A. Board is going to have to make in light of the significant increased budget deficit. So, yeah, thank you for sharing your sort of general priorities around equity and expanding access, particularly for the disability disabled community and Pedestrian Safety. But i was just wanting to hear a little bit more about how youre going to approach making these really difficult budget decisions, particularly to ensure equity in our Transit Service and Transit System in our city. Yeah, i guess. Im sorry. Just a little more. Id appreciate it. Go ahead. Supervisor mar a little more elaboration on how you approach these difficult decisions. Right. Sees as a we move forward in just the financial situation, that we all are facing. Is that right . Supervisor mar yeah. Right. I think this goes back to one of the reasons i approved the budget, which included fare increases to make sure that we are appropriately or as appropriately as we can, under the circumstances, funding our agency, so that were not making painful cuts to service. Because we already know that in communities of concern and theres certain parts of our city that are, you know, still would benefit from more reliable Transit Service. And so i think, as you know, the m. T. A. Has an equity strategy. I think that strategy is something that im really proud that our agency does. And i think that would be kind of my first starting point as far as, you know, when were having to make difficult decisions. You know, using that as a guide to making sure that were providing service where its needed most, in communities that are historically, you know, left out or not, you know, have been have not had the service that the financial district has, for example. So i would start there. So, you know, transit improvements to the 3rd, for example. I mean thats just one obvious line that needs a lot of attention. But i would, you know, try to make sure that we are funding those that service appropriately, as we move forward, before cutting anything, you know, improving service all together i guess. That would be kind of where i would start. Supervisor mar yeah. Thank you. Just on that, you know, as we look at restoring service, you know, that has been so drastically cut down to the bone right now, besides you mentioned prioritizing the tline, can you mention how you would approach prioritying prioritizing which Service Lines to restore and if theres any other specific priorities specific priorities in terms of service restoration. Yes. I mean, i think as you said, the equity strategy has a really good menu of the things we know we need to do. And so i would, you know, i would want to look at those particular line and get those up and running, you know, as we restore service. And as things go back to normal. We also want to and i know the agency is very committed to doing this, as we ratchet back up as a society in general, see where the riders need the service. See where people are traveling and because i would imagine that in the transition back to transitioning out of shelterinplace, i would imagine transit trends would be slightly different than what we would expect before covid. I would be kind of looking at those two things. And i would also be i think its really important that we look at nontransit options as well. So i think some of the initiatives that we have in place right now are really exciting to me. And i hope that we can use them as a way to transition back. So, for example, making safer streets for people who are cycling and walking. Those are the Streets Initiative thats been really successful. Id be interested in hearing the supervisors perspectives on that. But i think enabling those types of modes to really to flourish as we transition back. I think its really important, because i dont think its appropriate to go back to businesses a usual with Traffic Congestion every business as usual with Traffic Congestion everywhere. Supervisor mar thank you. I dont have any other questions. Thank you so much. Supervisor ronen supervisor stefani, do you have any questions . Supervisor stefani yes, thank you, chair ronen. I thank you for meeting with me last week over zoom. Thank you for your eight years of service thus far. I do have one question that came up subsequent to our meeting. And one of the issues that i have had and ongoing problem with with the sfmta is communication. And it seems like at least, as far as im concerned, i feel like im always the last person to find out whats happening in my district and what the sfmta is doing in my district. For example, the most recent announcement of street closures, the Streets Program during the shelterinplace was announced as we all know, without any input whatsoever from the supervisors. There were no streets that were considered in district 2 at all. And i think its absolutely vital that when the sfmta is doing things that affect our constituents in our districts, that we be involved. And, first of all, i want to know your opinion on i dont think its just anecdotal. I think it does happen. I dont know if the other supervisors feel the same way. I know supervisor peskin made the comment about it. Why does that continue to happen . It seems to be a culture of lack of communication. And whether or not you see it as an issue at all. Do people really think the supervisors need to be involved in these types of decisions . And also will you commit to making sure that we are involved going forward, because i think when issues are affecting our constituents, we should not be the last to find out. So physical you can just opine on that a little bit. Yes. Thats pretty much it. Okay. No, thank you for that question. Youre certainly not the first supervisor ive heard that from. I think the sfmta has an amazing, talented, skilled staff. And i know that theyre committed to communicating with you. I know that me as a board member, i very much value, you know, partnerships with the board of supervisors, because i think our projects are more successful when the supervisor in the district, is not only in support, but just engaged. Because you are talking to your constituents and youre able to get a fuller discussion of the issues. And i think we end up with better projects that way. So im personally very, very supportive and very, you know, i think its very critical that you all are involved in whats happening in your districts. And i you know, like i said, this is not the first time i heard a supervisor complain about this. I know that our staff is working amazingly difficult during this time. I know that the safe streets issue i do think that this was the closed streets, sorry. The initiative i know that came out very quickly. And i did hear that from other supervisors as well that they didnt get advanced warning. I would i hope to look at this as a like an emergency precaution that, you know, rolled out very quickly. And so that is why that was that was the case. And i hope that that is not seen as a, you know, ongoing practice and certainly i hope that you all feel free to reach out to me if you feel this is a continuing issue moving forward. Supervisor stefani thank you for that. I just want to make sure that when items become when we have items that are before the board of supervisors, just to take note of that and make sure that thats a question. And thats something that you ask about to make sure that were involved. Because a lot of times what happens is that we react. And then were pegged as is not being supportive of the sfmta or the underlying project, when we havent even had a chance to evaluate it. So in that thats unfortunate as well. That were pegged as not liking bicycles or not liking this or that, when all were doing is actually reacting to the fact that things are rolling out without our input, without us being able to even have a conversation with our community. And so i just really think that that needs to be a priority going forward. And it sounds to me that youre committed to that. So i appreciate your answer. Thats all i have. Thanks, supervisor ronen. Supervisor ronen thank you. I just want to echo everything supervisor stefani just said. The rollout of the slow streets was pretty disastrous. And it was it was really shocking to all of us that the m. T. A. Didnt consult with us on the streets, that it chose which were very strange choices. And certainly didnt have to do with anything that anyone wanted in my district. So i couldnt agree more with supervisor stefani on that. And we would ask you, if you are reappointed, to please make sure that the staff is communicating with supervisors in a much more direct and consistent way. Supervisor mar chair ronen. Can i just yeah. Just wanted to add on to this. And also say that thanks to supervisor stefani for raising this issue around the sfmtas practice of moving ahead with significant decisions without adequate input from the supervisors or in other cases from neighborhood residents or businesses. And and i think for the slow Streets Initiative, i think thats a good example. That i totally agree with both of you on that it was very problematic how that went forward. Although i do want to add that im very supportive of the slow Streets Initiative and the fact that it was something that i had already been in conversations with sfmta staff about. And in looking at how we could implement slow streets strategy in district 4. And specifically we had already spoken earlier with the sfmta staff about 41st avenue being a good candidate for traffic calming and slow streets. And so i was happy to see that 41st avenue, you know, was one of the first two streets to be implemented, you know, as a slow street on friday. And i was actually out there this weekend on 41st avenue with my daughter bicycling on it. And it was wonderful. You know, enough space for walking and bicycling. But i think, ms. Rubke, your sort of explanation about the problematic process with slow streets and the lack of engagement with the supervisor offices around, your explanation that was mostly due to an emergency the need to sort of act quickly during the emergency situation, that were facing in a city, you know, really doesnt you know, thats not a question adequate or even reasonable explanation, because the slow streets, you know, initiative is something that clearly, you know, wasnt an urgent Emergency Action that had to be taken. And could have and should have been done in more collaborative way with the District Supervisor offices in our communities. Thanks. I just wanted to say that. Supervisor ronen yeah. Understood. I appreciate that feedback. I guess maybe i just think that our staff is working so incredibly hard, kind of around the clock at the everchanging needs of the Transit System. So i just think that this is a very unique time. I just hope that the inadequate communication that you all very well articulated isnt seen as kind of thats business as usual and thats our trend. That is not what were aiming for obviously. Supervisor ronen okay. If theres no more comments from my colleagues, questions, well open this item up for Public Comment. Mr. Clerk, are there any members of the public who would like to speak on this item . Clerk madam chair, operations is actually sfgov is checking to see if there are any callers in the queue. Mr. Chair, there are no callers waiting to speak. Supervisor ronen okay. There are no callers, that what i heard . Clerk yeah. Just to say, if you were on the line and wish to speak, please press 10 to be added to the uaw. To the queue. Give them a few moments if they decide to speak. Supervisor ronen sure. Clerk it appears just checking in with sfgov, it appears there are no speakers for this item. If you could confirm that, please. I can confirm there are no speakers. Supervisor ronen okay. Thank you very much. Public comment is closed. Colleagues, do either of you have a motion on this item . Clerk please note an amendment is required on this item. Supervisor ronen right. Supervisor mar chair ronen, id be happy to move that we amend the motion to remove reject. Supervisor ronen send this forward to a Committee Report . Supervisor mar yeah. So the motion states that we approve the mayoral appointment of crstina rubke to m. T. A. Board of supervisors, recommendation to the bull forward. Supervisor ronen great. Can we have a roll call vote. Clerk yes. On that motion. Supervisor stefani . Supervisor stefani aye. Clerk supervisor mar . Supervisor mar aye. Clerk chair ronen . Supervisor ronen aye. Clerk this matter will be recommended as a Committee Report, as amended to remove the word rejecting throughout the motion. Supervisor ronen thank you so much, ms. Rubke. Congratulations. And hope to talk to you again soon. Thank you so much for your time. Take care you guys. Supervisor ronen bye. Mr. Clerk, can you please read item number 2. Clerk item number 2 is a hearing to consider appointing one member term ending august 1st, 2022 and two members, term ending august 1st, 2023 to the south of Market Community Planning Advisory Committee. Members of the public who wish to provide Public Comment on the item should call 888 2045984, access code 32501008. I believe at this time we have two members two applicants on hold. I believe that mr. Elberling has not called in. Supervisor ronen okay. Before we call the applicants, i was wondering if abigail from supervisor haneys office wanted to make any comments . Clerk give us a moment while we unmute her line. Supervisor ronen okay. Good morning, chair mar, stefani and ronen. This is abigail from supervisor haneys office. Today for your consideration, is the south of Market Community Planning Advisory Committee nominations. Supervisor haney is unable to join us this morning. But would like me to convey that our office has nominated three people for those seats. Seat 4 is john elberling, seat 5 is Heather Phillips, seat 6 is jane weil. Before we hear from the applicant, we have jessica look, a representative from the Planning Department here today, to briefly give some background about this c. A. C. And what the body hopes to achieve during its time. Miss look are you there . Good morning. Can you guys hear me . Supervisor ronen we can. Good morning, supervisors. My name is jessica look. And im a series planner with the Planning Department. A product of the central soma plan, which was adopted in 2018. The c. A. C. Was created in response to both community and Planning Commission desires and introduced into a legislation in 2019 by supervisor matt haney. The soma c. A. C. Will be comprised of 11 members, seven appointed by the board, and four appointed by the mayor. There are also 11 alternates, which are appointed in a same manner and these board appointees will be before this committee. The c. A. C. Is charged with providing advice on not just the implementation of the central soma plan, but also the east soma area plan and the western area plan. The c. A. C. Is responsible to help prioritize projects funded by the eastern neighborhood area plan impact fees, that are collected in soma, along with projects funded by new central soma funding sources. In addition, the c. A. C. Is able to provide input on proposed revisions to documents, that implement the respective plans. And the c. A. C. Can also provide input on individual development proposals, comprised by individual Development Projects and the design and programming of open spaces, including so once the soma c. A. C. Is seated, hell be working with the Committee Members to finalize the bylaws and develop a calendar of agenda items for a monthly meeting. This concludes a really brief overview of what the soma c. A. C. Is. But im happy to answer any questions that you might have. Thank you. Supervisor ronen thank you so much. Is there any questions from my colleagues . I dont think we have any questions. But thank you so much for joining us and for that presentation. Appreciate it. So now we will hear from the applicants. Why dont we start with ms. Phillips for seat 5. Are you on the line, ms. Phillips . Good morning supervisors. Supervisor ronen good morning. Yes, im here. Supervisor ronen please. Good morning, supervisors. Thank you so much. I am Heather Phillips and i just want to say thank you so much to supervisor haneys office for nominating me for this opportunity to apply to serve on the south of Market Community Planning Advisory Committee. A little about me, for the last 14 years ive lived and worked in the south of market. And ive had the privilege to work with many Different Community groups, collaboratives, neighborhood projects. Currently i work full time as the director of programs at united players, where i have the opportunity to work directly with young people and their families, as well as supervise a Program Staff of 14 amazing people. I am also one of the founding members of the friends of jean and Victoria Park, a group which advocates for the only fullservice public park and rec center in south of market. As well as activate these spaces. Most recently i was appointed to serve on the eastern neighborhood c. A. C. And that experience has helped me understand how Community Members, like myself, can influence the longrange planning that theyre preparing for. Ultimately the communitys voice in this process is vital to understanding how to prioritize the needs of residents, stakeholders and most importantly our vulnerable populations, who often dont have the access or the resources to influence these huge systems. I do have a masters degree in urban studies and i feel that this gives me some insight. However, i think what makes me most qualified to serve on this committee is the experience that i share as a district 6 resident, a former Service Provider and a person committed to justice and equity. I would be proud to serve as a member of this committee and im happy to answer any questions that you have for me today. Supervisor ronen thank you so much. Is there any questions . I dont think we have any questions. So thank you so much for your willingness to serve in another capacity. We really appreciate it very much. Thank you all so much for the opportunity. Supervisor ronen of course. Next we would love to hear from jane weil, if you are available. Hello. Can you hear me . Supervisor ronen yes, we can. Okay. Well, hello, supervisors. My name is jane weil. And i appreciate speaking to you today to seek your approval for my appointment to the new soma Community Planning c. A. C. I live in midmarket on mission, between 7th and 8th. The densest, most quickly developing part of the city. And its essential that we try to balance the positive aspects of progress with the needs of the people who already live here. I represent several constituencies, homeowner, seniors, spanish speaker and grandparent of Public School students. And i have worked closely with members of the Filipino Community, who have made soma their home for decades. And are trying to preserve the family neighborhood that exists today. Gentrification and the lack of open space are a real problem here. As is the concentration of Supportive Housing, Navigation Centers and poverty. Making midmarket a containment zone is not healthy for anyone. Its fair that the impact fees from the Rapid Development in soma be plowed back into the community, to stabilize it and enhance services to the lowincome family and seniors live here. The fees generated by the central soma plan are used to benefit everyone. I have worked with the other nominees on earlier c. A. C. S and were all committed to balance the needs of soma residents and work with planning and all city departments as the construct impacts us all. I have lived around the country and committed to making my home in the heart of San Francisco. But i want our central city to be the best it can be. And i want to leave with one sentiment, housing without green space is unhealthy. We cant continue to build highrise buildings with thousands of new units, including many for families of all incomes, and not include more green space thats open to all. We cant rely on developers to provide open spaces. Theyll put it where they want on shady back corners and ask to buy it back later as the public wont use it in the case of being a continental hotel. I represent district 6 to the park and rec open space, Advisory Committee. And i also look forward to serving on this new c. A. C. To help manage the development of soma. Thank you so much. And im happy to answer any questions. Supervisor ronen thank you so much. Is there any questions . I dont think theres any questions. Thank you so much for serving on yet another body to make soma even better. Appreciate it. And then i just wanted to check thank you. With the clerk to make sure mr. Elberling hasnt joined us . Clerk i believe that mr. Elberling has not called in. Can you please confirm . That is correct. Mr. Elberling has not called in. Supervisor ronen okay. Well, i am very familiar with mr. Elberlings work in soma. And its been topnotch. So i am happy to endorse his appointment to seat 4. Can we now open this up to Public Comment. Is there any member of the public who wishes to speak on this item . Clerk madam chair, were checking to see if there are any callers in the queue. Sfgov, please let us know if youre ready. For those already on hold, please continue to wait until youre prompted to speak. Okay, mr. Chair, i see one right now. If you want to please wait a moment to allow them to call in. Otherwise there are none in the queue. Supervisor ronen great. Well wait a moment. Okay. There is one call in the queue. Supervisor ronen fantastic. Caller announcer you have one question remaining. Supervisor ronen good morning. If the Public Comment is on the line, feel free to begin. Has anyone called in for item number 2 to speak in Public Comment on the appointment of the soma Community Planning Advisory Committee . Announcer you have zero questions remaining. Okay. It appears that caller has dropped the line. Supervisor ronen okay. So i think is it appropriate now to close Public Comment, mr. Clerk . Clerk yes, it is. I am happy to make a motion to move these nominees forward. John elberling for seat 4. C. Heather phillips for seat 5 and jane weil for seat 6, with positive recommendation. Can you please take a roll call vote. Clerk on that motion, supervisor stefani . Supervisor stefani aye. Clerk supervisor mar . Supervisor mar aye. Clerk chair ronen . Supervisor ronen aye. Clerk the motion passes. Supervisor ronen wonderful. Congratulations. Thanks again for your service. Mr. Clerk, can you please read item number 3. Clerk item number 3 is a hearing to consider appointing nine members term ending december 1st, 2023 to the Soma Community Stabilization Fund community Advisory Committee. Members of the public who wish to provide Public Comment, should call 888 2045984, access code 3501008 and press 10 to line up to speak. For this item, we have two members who are not able to call in, as of this time. Shannon amitin and conny ford. Supervisor ronen okay. I wanted to see if abby wanted to speak before we opened the floor to the applicants . Is abby from supervisor haneys office still on the line with us . Clerk yes, she is. Chair ronen, thank you so much. Im here. Can you folks hear me . Supervisor ronen yes. Now we can. Wonderful. Thank you, chair ronen, and supervisors mar and stefani. Im here again on behalf of supervisor haney. Thank you for all of our applicants that have applied previously. I know that this matter has been heard by the rules committee at a prior hearing. Today, for your consideration, are two remaining members of two remaining applicants for the permanent seated numbers, as well as alternate seats. Just a brief background and a continuation of supervisor haneys remarks from the first meeting, the Soma Community Stabilization Fund was created in 2005. The mission of this Soma Community Stabilization Fund is to stabilize the community and promote equity through funding recommendations and priorities that mitigate the impact of development. Throughout the funds history, the board of supervisors has always honored the recommendations of this e. A. C. So it has very much had a very real influence on shaping the neighborhood and prioritizing investments to stabilize residents and businesses and their expertise, history and relationships within soma, who will be critical in making impactful decisions in allocating the public dollars. The c. A. C. Will work in partnership with the soma planning c. A. C. To ensure that its investments are aligned, cohesive and strategic. I would like to thank rosario from o. C. D. For all of her hard work with the c. A. C. Throughout the years. We appreciate you calling in and thank you for your dedication to the c. A. C. Chair ronen, we do have some recommendations following the applicants comments. So i would like to turn it over to you to call the applicants for seats 6 and 7. Supervisor ronen sure. So if we can hear from Christian Martin first. That would be great. Is Christian Martin on the line . Yes, i am. Supervisor ronen wonderful. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning, chair, good morning supervisors. My name is Christian Martin. Im the founding executive director of the newly formed soma west benefit district. The notforprofit entity, our mission is to improve the quality of life for all of the residents, businesses and visitors to the western part of soma, through a variety of programs. The boundaries range from mina in the north to thompson in the south and 5th in the west. All 107 blocks, this will touch the lives of many diverse constituencies and people from many walks of life. Our 20member board of supervisors has broad representation of the western Soma Community. And we are continuing to develop and expand our diversity and representation currently. We launched services in march and we provide daily cleaning and maintenance to this large and diverse neighborhood. We sweep trash, remove Hazardous Materials from sidewalks, remove graffiti, on public and private property and work to improve the conditions in the public realm. We ploy predominantly lowincome residents dad this work and to do this work and we engage others through programs that bring clean, green and active public spaces to our neighborhoods. We will prioritize routes to school and transit stops, which disproportionately affect lowincome residents. We prioritize bike Safety Policies and work to bring more green, open spaces to the public realm for the benefit of all living, working and visiting the neighborhood. Once the stayathome order is lifted and he can be with each other again, we will activate the Victoria Park with free books, games and activities for all. We will sponsor and support local arts and cultural groups, highlighting our historic and vibrant filipino culture. We will also activate the newly created eagle program, help ensure the park remains clean and a neighborhood asset that celebrates our community. And all of its beauty and diversity. So all of these programs will be free of charge and designed to make designed to be accessible and welcoming to lowincome residents. In addition, we have hired personnel to conduct outreach to our unhoused persons and link them to services, deescalate conflicts on the street and protect the health and safety of the vulnerable population. In addition, our outreach personnel will be responsible for responding to the unique and immediate needs of very lowincome people who are at risk of becoming homeless and currently homeless as theyre transitioning into housing. This is a role that im familiar with, since ive served in similar roles in the past, most recently at the lower Pope Community benefit district, where we developed a tenant landlord clinic that aims to prevent homelessness through displacement. And throughout my career, i have aimed to give Employment Opportunities to individuals experiencing homelessness, formerly incarcerated, folks with mental and physical disabilities. And i have aimed to empower them to participate in the communitybuilding process. I take pride in developing people, helping them advance in life and overcoming obstacles and setbacks along the way, as i have. Cleaning and outreach jobs, offering outreach, an opportunity to provide stable jobs for very lowincome residents and their families. Almost all of San Francisco residents and representatives offer diversity of the soma neighborhood. I thank you for the opportunity to serve this population. And im happy to answer any questions you may have. Supervisor ronen thank you so much. Do any of my colleagues have any questions . Seeing none, we will move on to the next applicant. Is Janetta Johnson available . Good morning. This is Janetta Johnson. Good morning, board of supervisors. Supervisor ronen good morning, janetta. Ive been an organization that serves Community Members that are currently in the janetta district. We have lived and worked in district 6 in the janetta area for over 20 years, providing district services, supporting members of the community and particularly working with members of the community that have been kicked out of various organizations. And have had many discipline problems, to help them stabilize and get back into access for services. Supporting them to get to their next steps. And were an organization that is very diverse in our staff. I feel like every race and culture is represented in our well not every but primarily. We have a Diverse Group of staff, not just gender orientation and sexuality, but also various cultures that represent the city and county of San Francisco. And i would like to emphasize on that we have been housing and supporting people in getting into weve been housing and supporting people in getting into stable, Affordable Housing opportunities and structures and a large part of that is through a grassroots plan. And really like using private Foundation Money and supporting people into getting into Affordable Housing opportunities and structures, that could be a little bit more sustainable for various individuals, based on their income. Or lack of income. Supervisor ronen thank you. Thats it. Supervisor ronen thank you so much, janetta. Is there any questions . Thank you so much for your willingness to serve and your presentation. Next if we can hear from shanon amitin. Clerk i believe that miss amitin was not able to call in. Supervisor ronen okay. That is correct. Miss amitin has not called in. Supervisor ronen and then carolyn caldwell. Hi. Good morning, supervisors. This is carolyn caldwell. Can you hear me . Supervisor ronen yes. We can hear you. Okay. Haney, good morning. Thank you so much for this opportunity to speak and thank you to supervisor haneys office for the recommendation to be an alternate on this board. I am the director of operations at united players. And a cofounder along with rudy and alisha. The Organization United players has the same timeline, trajectory as the fund. We incorporated in 2005. And we are a direct beneficiary of the fund. And a really great example of the impact the fund has had in stabilizing the community, by looking at the growth of our organization. And what we have been able to accomplish through the support of the fund. I do all of the grant writing for united players. So im deeply experienced with the fund. And understand what it is set out to accomplish in the community, as well as all of the back end, you know, process and procedure and familiarity with how the fund operates. And so would just be so very grateful to be able to serve in as an alternate in helping the fund reach a greater impact across soma. Supervisor ronen wonderful. Thank you so much. Any questions . Seeing none, we will move on to another applicant. Christian martin on the line . Wait, we heard from christian. Is kris romasanta on the line . Hi, im here on the line. Supervisor ronen good morning. Good morning. Good morning, supervisors. Thank you so much for this opportunity. Im here to be considered for reappointment to the soma stabilization community Advisory Committee. Ive served on the fund for about seven years. I was the vice chair occupying the housing seat. And i previously served as a cochair of the soma fund for the previous four years. In addition, i served as a member of the eastern neighborhoods for five years. I lived in the south of market for six years. Im very familiar with the neighborhood. I have also volunteered my time and have been active with many of the soma groups, the nonprofits, all that are related to land use, the filipino cultural district and the Affordable Housing issues. My professional background is in land use and Community Development. As an urban planner and a Community Development practitioner for various local governments, including aba, city of oakland and south San Francisco. I currently work for the city of south San Francisco and management the kdbg program. A program geared towards serving lowincome families. In addition, i work on regional and local housing policies that directly affect lowincome residents. So more specific to the fund, over the last four to five years the funds made Great Strides beyond the original intent, investing in small sites, nonprofit ownership and programming for access to Affordable Housing. Our early purpose of the fund wasnt really to purchase property, but in 2014, me and along with others soma fund members, thought it was time to step in and invest in the first small sites property on natoma street. And this is where we were able to stabilize five very lowincome residents, some making less than 20,000 a year. And a couple of them were seniors. This first site jump started the Mayors Office of housing small sites program. And weve subsequently invested in additional sites in the neighborhood. As a member of the fund, ive introduced proposals of financial empowerment, cultural public events, programming for eviction defense. And have been an advocate for nonprofits to purchase their own buildings. In addition, the fund has invested in areas of the city that the city has not made a priority, such as pedestrian improvements near bessie, carmichael and acquisition nonprofit acquisitions, mainly for united players. The fund has a finite amount of money. And soma continues to develop, the fund will need to see more proposals for the potential acquisitions. And we definitely need this more creative financing. And i want to be able to make sure that we adapt to these needs and changes especially now, since were in this bit of a crisis. And now with the emergence of the Planning Committee, there needs to be more coordination between the two bodies, since i was a member of the eastern neighborhoods. And it was a very more it was a more technical body. And having coordination will have more seamless dialogue if we understand the social and the technical aspects, that will that will be on the ground in soma. So thank you again so much for your consideration. Supervisor ronen sorry, i was on mute. Thank you so much. Is there any questions . Seeing none, thank you again for your presentation and willingness to serve. And i wanted to see if gina rosales is on the line . Im here. Can you hear me . Supervisor ronen we can hear you. Thank you, gina. Awesome. Hi. Thanks so much for having me speak today. My name is gina rosales. Im an s. F. Resident and a former business owner. Some of you may know me as the cofounder of undiscovered s. F. Creative night market, also run an Event Planning committee. Prior to starting my company, i was also director of a nonprofit Dance Organization in soma, where organized dance workshops and classes at city dance, as well as annual shows at the regency ballroom. Im also a dancer myself. Ive been dancing since my High School Days at shcp. Of course, im heavily involved with soma programming. In addition to undiscovered, i also run a nonprofit, which is dedicated to building strong and empowered Filipino Community in the bay area. Im also a recent partner in the new creative project, which is working on building programming to build the future filipinoamerican arts and Cultural Center in soma. And through my work, ive been really excited about this important work weve been doing around traumainformed systems. And how to address Community Trauma by creating organizations and programs. So i now apply the t. I. F. Work into all of our events in soma. And all of our events. Dishly, weve been doing a lot of crosscultural and collaborative work over the years. Im an active supporter of the trevor project, fundraising for lgbtq youth work. I was a former crisis counselor for them. And im also the event planner for a large tech. And prior to covid happening, i was suppose to be the planner of building strong partnerships with cultural district. During these times of crisis, i know that ours are typically the first things to get cut. Its my strong belief that arts and culture is exactly what we need during this time, to provide hope and life. And im committed to doing this collaborative work in soma and throughout San Francisco. And im sure that t. I. F. Is being kept centered for all of our arts and culture work, to keep it thriving and inclusive in soma. And also to work on getting more young people to be active and involved in this work. So thank you so much for the opportunity. Supervisor ronen thank you so much for your willingness to serve. Any questions . Seeing none, i just wanted to check to see if conny ford had called in or if she had not . Mr. Clerk. Clerk i believe miss amitin has called in. Supervisor ronen okay. I had asked about conny ford. Go ahead, shanon amitin . Clerk miss amitin, are you on the line . Give me one second. Please. I believe she is. She is unmuted. Is available to speak. Supervisor ronen shanon, are you there . Hello, miss amitin . Can you hear us . Hello, ms. Amitin, can you hear us . Supervisor ronen i believe its mr. Amitin . Clerk hello, caller . Can you hear me . Supervisor ronen thank you. We can hear you. All right. Excellent. I just want to give a shoutout to jonah. Weve had a chance to Work Together on lesbian 2 tech. And im a huge fan. My name is shanon amitin. Im currently on staff with San Francisco pride. And i am also a representative today for the cultural district. I am a huge fan of the cultural district being a part of both the community and working sidebyside with our City Government to preserve arts, culture, Small Business and especially lgbtq culture. Do you guys have questions for me . Do you want to hear a little bit more about me . Supervisor ronen any questions . I dont have any questions. Im just excited to be here. Supervisor ronen okay. Thank you so much. Then last but certainly not least just checking to see if conny ford had called in. Miss ford has not called in. Supervisor ronen okay. We will now open this item up for Public Comment. If theres any member of the public who wishes to speak, now is the time. Madam chair, we are checking to see if there are any callers in the queue. Please let us know if they are ready. If you have not already done so, please press 10 to be added to the queue. This those on hold, please wait to be prompted to begin at the beep. Madam, there appears to be three callers on the line. Announcer you have three questions remaining. Hi. My name is kevin. Im a resident of the castro. Undeafed ph. D. Candidate. And i just wanted to speak on behalf of shanon. Shanon is a wellknown advocate for the lgbtq plus community, both from the side of private enterprise and a long history of public service, too. The Lgbtq Community and with s. F. Pride and the castro hopeful, the castro cultural association. I just wanted to say that to speak on his behalf that he plays a lot of involvement in the Lgbtq Community. Fully endorse shanon for this position. Thank you. Supervisor ronen thank you. Announcer you have two questions remaining. Hi. I am beth hunt. And im the cultural district manager for the lgbtq cultural district here inssoma. Im a resident of 12 years of soma and active participant and Community Organizer of the Lgbtq Community. I am calling in favor of two candidates today. First would be shanon amitin, who is a wonderful advocate for the Lgbtq Community, as well as rather active in a lot of our local business in soma and castro. Also i would like to support Christian Martin from the soma west. I have worked with both of these individuals on various projects and it has been a wonderful and delightful experience. Great response and they really know how to activate constituents. Thank you. Operator you have one question remaining. Hello. My name is bob goldfarb. Im president of the lgbtq cultural district in soma. And i would like to speak in favor of two candidates, both Christian Martin, who i have worked with in my capacity with the leather district and i have found him to be well reasoned and insightful and i think he would be an excellent addition to the c. A. C. And i would also like to speak in favor of shanon amitin, who has Strong Community involvement as an activist, a Community Leader and an entrepreneur. He has involved excuse me, has volunteered with the compton transgender district, the castro lgbtq cultural district, has served on the Planning Committee for the trans march. And done a lot of fundraising in the bay area. In soma theres lots of placement going on. I think the c. A. C. Is a vital element in preventing that. And keeping San Francisco unique. And a wonderful place that i think we all enjoy to live. And i think that both shanon and christian would be excellent additions to the c. A. C. To help further those goals. Thank you very much. Operator you have zero questions remaining. No more calls, madam. Supervisor ronen im sorry, i was on mute. And with that i will close Public Comment. And well invite abigail from supervisor haneys office back to express supervisor haneys recommendations for this body. Thank you, chair ronen. This is abby, supervisor haneys recommendations for the following seats are as follows. For seat 6, Christian Martin. For seat 7, Janetta Johnson. For seat 9, which is the alternate to seat 2, carolyn caldwell. Seat 10, which is the alternate to seat 3, gina rosales. Seat 11, which is the alternate to seat 4, conny ford. Seat 13 excuse me, seat 14, which is the alternate to seat 7, is kris romasanta. Supervisor haney would also like to express that there are still some remaining seats open. Unfortunately our office hasnt wasnt able to connect with everyone. If there are still some remaining applicants, that were not seated, we will connect with you at a future meeting, since there are still some open seats. And we thank everyone that has applied. And we appreciate all of your support and hard work to make soma a thriving community. Supervisor ronen okay. Thank you so much. Do any of my colleagues have any questions or comments . Supervisor mar chair ronen, i would like to well, i just want to thank all of the applicants. Youre an amazingly talented and diverse and committed group of activists and leaders working to support the Soma Community, which has been ground zero of the sort of techdriven development, despite the boom. So thank you all for all that you do. And, yeah, im inclined to support supervisor haneys recommendations for the appointments today. Supervisor ronen thank you so much. Supervisor stefani, do you have any comments before im happy to make the motion. Supervisor stefani yeah, im supportive of supervisor haneys recommendations as well. And thank you everyone for coming out. Or for being on the line. Supervisor ronen yes. Thank you. I think its appropriate given that this community Advisory Committee is in supervisor haneys district, that we follow his recommendations. So with that i will make a motion to move to the full board, with recommendation for seat 6, Christian Martin, with a residency waiver. Seat 7, Janetta Johnson. Seat 9, carolyn caldwell. Seat 10, gina rosales. Seat 11 conny ford. And seat 14, kris romasanta. Mr. Clerk, can you please take a roll call vote on that motion. Clerk on that motion, supervisor stefani . Supervisor stefani aye. Clerk supervisor mar . Supervisor mar aye. Clerk chair ronen . Supervisor ronen aye. Clerk the motion passes. Supervisor ronen thank you so much to all of those who applied and were here today. Mr. Clerk, is there any other items . Clerk that completes the agenda for today. Supervisor ronen thank you so much. The meeting is adjourned. Nows hg people together. Brought this department together like never before. I am so excited to be swearing in the next chief of the San Francisco Fire Department, ladies and gentlemen, lets welcome, Jeanine Nicholson. applause . I grew up total tomboy, athlete. I loved a good crisis, a good challenge. I grew up across the street from the fire station. My dad used to take me there to vote. I never saw any female firefighters because there werent any in the 1970s. I didnt know i could be a fire fighter. When i moved to San Francisco in 1990, some things opened up. I saw women doing things they hadnt been doing when i was growing up. One thing was firefighting. A woman recruited me at the gaypride parade in 1991. It was a perfect fit. I liked using my brain, body, working as a team, figuring things out, troubleshooting and coming up with different ways to solve a problem. In terms of coming in after another female chief, i dont think anybody says that about men. You are coming in after another man, chief, what is that like. I understand why it is asked. It is unusual to have a woman in this position. I think San Francisco is a trailblazer in that way in terms of showing the world what can happen and what other people who may not look like what you think the fire chief should look like how they can be successful. Be asked me about being the first lbgq i have an understands because there are little queer kids that see me. I worked my way up. I came in january of 1994. I built relationships over the years, and i spent 24 years in the field, as we call it. Working out of firehouses. The Fire Department is a family. We live together, eat together, sleep in the same dorm together, go to crazy calls together, dangerous calls and we have to look out for one another. When i was burned in a fire years ago and i felt responsible, i felt awful. I didnt want to talk to any of my civilian friends. They couldnt understand what i was going through. The firefighters knew, they understood. They had been there. It is a different relationship. We have to rely on one another. In terms of me being the chief of the department, i am really trying to maintain an open relationship with all of our members in the field so myself and my deputy chiefs, one of the priorities i had was for each of us to go around to different fire stations to make sure we hit all within the first three or four months to start a conversation. That hasnt been there for a while. Part of the reason that i am getting along well with the field now is because i was there. I worked there. People know me and because i know what we need. I know what they need to be successful. I have known Jeanine Nicholson since we worked together at station 15. I have always held her in the highest regard. Since she is the chief she has infused the department with optimism. She is easy to approach and is concerned with the firefighters and paramedics. I appreciate that she is concerned with the issues relevant to the Fire Department today. There is a retired captain who started the Cancer Prevention foundation 10 years ago because he had cancer and he noticed fellow firefighters were getting cancer. He started looking into it. In 2012 i was diagnosed with breast canner, and some of my fellow firefighters noticed there are a lot of women in the San Francisco Fire Department, premenopausal in their 40s getting breast cancer. It was a higher rate than the general population. We were working with workers comp to make it flow more easily for our members so they didnt have to worry about the paper work when they go through chemo. The turnout gear was covered with suit. It was a badge to have that all over your coat and face and helmet. The dirtier you were the harder you worked. That is a cancer causeser. It casser. It is not cancer causer. There islassic everywhere. We had to reduce our exposure. We washed our gear more often, we didnt take gear where we were eating or sleeping. We started decontaminating ourselves at the fire scene after the fire was out. Going back to the fire station and then taking a shower. I have taught, worked on the decontamination policy to be sure that gets through. It is not if or when. It is who is the next person. It is like a cancer sniper out there. Who is going to get it next. One of the things i love about the Fire Department. It is always a team effort. You are my family. I love the city and department and i love being of service. I vow to work hard to work hard to carry out the vision of the San Francisco Fire Department and to move us forward in a positive way. If i were to give a little advice to women and queer kids, find people to support you. Keep putting one foot in front of the other and keep trying. You never know what door is going to open next. You really dont. [cheers and welcome to the april 6, 2020 meeting of the rules committee. Im supervisor hillary ronen, chair of the committee. Im joined on this Video Conference with rules Committee Vice chair supervisor katherine stefani. Our clerk today is victor young and id like to thank sfgovtv for staffing this meeting. Do you have any announcements . Yes. Due to the covid19 healthy emergency and to protect Board Members, City Employees and the public, the board of supervisors litingive chamber and Committee Room are closed. However, members will be participating in the meeting remotedly as in the same extent as if they were physically comment. Physically present. We are streaming numbers across the screen. Each speaker will be allowed two minutes to speak. Commentses or opportunities to speak during the Public Comment period are available via phone, by calling 8882045984. Access code 3501008 and then press pound and dial one again. Press 0 and 1 to be added to the queue. You will be lined up in the system in order you dial 1 and 0 while you are waiting t system will be silent. The system will notify you when you are in line and waiting. All callers will remain on mute until the line is open. Everyone must account for the time delay and speaking discrepancies between live coverage and streaming. Al term actively, you may submit Public Comment, email me at victor. Young sfgov. Org. If you submit via email, it will be included in the file as part of the matter. Comments may be sent to city hall, 1 dr. Carlton b. Goodlett place, San Francisco, california. That completes my comments. Thank you so much, mr. Clerk. Can you please read item number one . Item number one is an emergency ordinance to temporarily require private employers with 500 or more employees to provide public Health Emergency leave during the public Health Emergency related to covid19. Thank you so much. This is supervisor mars item. Would you like to introduce the item, supervisor mar . Yes. Thank you so much, chair ronen, for allowing us to hear this item today. An emergency ordinance before us is in response to a true emergency. The lack of sufficient paid leave for workers to follow our Public Health order to weather this crisis. While there is no Silver Bullet to our health and humanitarian emergency, this measure will give an additional twoweek paid leave to hundreds of thousands of san franciscans and make a meaningful difference to countless people trying to take care of themselves and their family and make ends meet. Congress took action to expand paid leave for workers but they left out more than 50 of our workforce by excepting the largest employer. This is inexcusable. So, where our federal government is falling short, im taking immediate Emergency Action to close the gap here in San Francisco. With this emergency measure, employees of private companies will be able to immediately access additional weeks of paid leave, closing the major loophole in the federal legislation in making sure that in health emergencies, workers are able to take time off take the time off that they need for themselves and their families. When sick people have to choose between their livelihoods or incomes, we are all worse off. When parents have to choose between a paycheck or staying home with their kids whose school is closed, were all worse off. San francisco led the nation when we adopted our paid sick leave ordinance in 2006. In this time of crisis, San Francisco must lead again in supporting our workers. Over the last two week, my office has worked with labor leaders and business stakeholders to strengthen this proposal. Around today ill be proposing a series of amendments for clarity and to ensure this measure is as inclusive and impactful as possible. I wanded to briefly go over what the ordinance is right now and summarize the key provision. First, what the ordinance does. It wont immediately give an additional two weeks of paid leave to any San Francisco employee of a private company with 500 or more employees. Who it covers every single s. F. Employee of a private company with 500plus employees. Even if youre furloughed and even if you are the employee in San Francisco, even if you started working a month before shelter in place, even if you are a temp worker, even if you dont live in San Francisco, but you work here. Employers and Health Care Providers are allowed to opt out. However, were amending it to especially sure Health Care Providers are given additional paid leave if they get sick or have to get quarantined. And all workers are presumed to be employees and covered until and unless then their employer demonstrates they are an independent contractor. Now who this emergency ordinance does not cover people who are unemployed, Public Employees and theyre covered bier our executive action, private employees of companies with fewer than 500 employees and theyre covered by the federal law, people who do not work in San Francisco and independent contractors. And when employees can use their immediate leave. If you cant work because theres shelter in place, if you have to stay home to take care of a family member, if its replaced with work and a you cant work remotely, if you are a member of a vulnerable population, if youre showing symptoms and if your doctor recommends you not work. So, again, i presented or today im presenting some set of amendments and there are seven different amendments and theyre probably i believe you received a copy of the amended emergency ordinance and im going to summarize this up in amendments right now. Number one, provide public Health Emergency leave to Health Care Providers when theyre subject to quarantine or sick or otherwise do not meet c. D. C. Returntowork guidelines. In number two, ex. Expand uses of the leave for vulnerable populations including 60 or older. Number three that benefits Like Health Care cant be taken away while employees are on leave. Number four, require employer notice in english, spanish, chinese and any other language spoken by 5 or more of the workforce. Number five, as information on local, state and federal resources to the notice language that theyll draft. Number six, matches the Health Care Provider definition to provider regulation. And number seven, additional paid leave voluntarily provided during the emergency toward this new requirement if the composition offered meets the standard. You know, i would like to request that deputy City Attorney anne pearson provide her assessment of these amendments and whether any of these are substantive and would require continuance before the Committee Takes action. Good morning. Can you all hear me . Yes. Thanks. So ive had a chance to review all of the amendments that supervisor mar just described and the first one on his list is one that is substantive and that is the amendment that would require Health Care Employers of Health Care Providers to provide them with leave under some limited circumstances. The other ones are not substantive and would not require a continuance today. Thank you. Supervisor mar, do you want to split the file and move forward the portion thats not substantive and we can continue the other just to get this moving as quickly as possible or just move them all at the same time . Yeah. Thank you. Thank you, deputy City Attorney pearson and chair ronen. Yes, i in answer to your question, chair, i would like to i will be making a motion to duplicate the file so we can move the nonsubstantive amendments forward as the Committee Records to the full board hopefully for vote and adoption tomorrow and then we can move the substantive amendment forward or continue it as we will need to but then move that forward hopefully a week later. I would say we want to ensure that our Health Care Providers working on the frontlines have paid leave. So, thats important. But we dont want to hold that the overall important provisions of the ordinance while we have to continue that amendment. That makes perfect sense. I just wanted to thank you so much for bringing this forward, supervisor mar. Its pretty outrageous that the Congress Left out of the law the employers that most can afford to provide this benefit. They are the biggest employers making the most money in this society and perhaps their donors to the Congress Members who left them out and that is why they got a break when the smaller employers didnt. We are all in this together. We are all sacrificing. We have to all sacrifice to make sure that everyone [inaudible] and im so grateful for you bringing this forward and if i could be added as a sponsor, i would appreciate that. Supervisor stefani, do you have any comments . Yes, thank you, supervisor ronen and i want to associate myself with your comments. I do agree on the importance and i want to thank supervisor mar for bringing this legislation forward to address the members of our workforce struggling during these difficult times. It is so important that we do everything that we can to protect the working people who faced this crisis. And just, you know, when we think about what happened over a month ago, mayor breed directed our residents to shelter in place earlier than almost any other municipality in the United States. Im grateful to her and our neighboring bay area counties for taking Decisive Action to save lives. And in doing so, when that order went into place, a number of businesses stepped up to provide extra paid time off and income security to their employees. Really recognizing that there were challenging times ahead and i want to thank them and system of them are employers that had more than 500 employees so as this situation involves and this legislation has come to us quickly, which again were reacting quickly and i thank you again for that, supervisor mar, i want to make sure were not being punitive to those companies that have gone above and beyond to support their workers and my hope is that, as we implement this law, wi dont punish those and i know that is not your intention, supervisor mar, i just want to call out the fact that there are precise steps in this ordinance and the legislation has specific requirements to add sick leave that may add up with some of the things that employers with 500 or more have done. For example, when an employer created a fund to pay employees who arent working. I just want to make sure that we dont punish those who have stood up for their employees and even if the actions they have taken dont exactly fit the legislation today. I do plan to be supportive, of course, of this legislation. But just wanted to call that out. And make sure as we move forward, we dont punish those good actors because thankfully there are some because it does restore our faith in humanity when we see Companies Taking care of their employees, as they should. Thank you again and i do plan to support this today. Supervisor . We will now open up this item to Public Comment. Members of public online, please press 1 and then 0 to be added to the queue to speak. You have four questions remaining. Hello, im an organizer with sviu, United Service workers west. We are an organization of almost 10,000 essential workers in San Francisco. Our members help to carry essential operations, including drugstores and banks and the San Francisco international airport. Workers should not be forced to come to work sick, ever. Especially at this time. We support the Emergency Paid Sick leave for workers and we also encourage the board to use its authority to ensure that they pass this immediately and introduce language to cover s. F. O. Airport workers next. Work ers should not have to choose between taking care of themselves, getting a paycheck and protecting their families. Thank you. You have four questions remaining. Thank you. Next speaker. Caller yes. Im a member of the California Faculty Association at San Francisco state and im very appreciative of this legislation. I want to say that im inundated we mails from students who are really, really desperate so this is essential to students. Thank you. Thank you so much. Next speaker . You have two questions remaining. Caller ok. [inaudible]. Sorry. Are you still there on the phone . Now youre able to speak. Caller right now . Yes. Caller i can speak now . Yes. Caller they can hear me now . Yes. Caller ok. I work for a retail store and i would like the see if you can help us out with the bill so we can afford it to stay as [inaudible] and we can get paid when were not working. Because we have a lot of needs, medical and that is why we really should not be working outside. And people who are sick, too. I am 63 years old and have diabetes and im high risk to be working. Because i work in the retail. And i work with the public. With the customer. [inaudible]. I feel like we dont have to [inaudible] help us out. Thank you. My number is 415800[inaudible] 0008. Thank you. Thank you so much. Next speaker, please. You have two questions remaining. Caller hi, this is collan, im the executive director at the [inaudible] of justice and this is really one of the defining workers rights issues of our time which is that we see, you know, our Workers Health is impacting all of us and, you know, weve had the leadership of being the first city in the country to pass paid sick leave and it is our time to lead again bypassing this Health Emergency leave and really rising to this moment. So much of you as supervisors really helped us, you know, take incredible action to stop this pandemic and being the first county to be in shelter in place. Its so important. And now we have another chance, i think that is key to preserve the Public Health by having a public Health Emergency leave. Some of these difficult moments that people are testing, too. But one thing that i do take away as a bit of hope is that folks are realising how much of our health is linked with others around us. Were only as healthy as our neighbor, as our neighbors neighbor. Afternoon some of the people have come together to take care of each other in this moment. And this public Health Emergency were taking care of some of the most vulnerable workers who are actually serving the public every day. It is an important step. I hope you take that tomorrow. Thanks. Thank you so much. Any other speakers . You have two questions remaining. Next speaker, please. Caller this is emily abraham. From the San Francisco chamber of commerce. On behalf of the San Francisco chamber of commerce, i would like to note that we are proudly supportive of this resolution. We sincerely thank supervisor mar to work with his efforts to work with the San Francisco chamber of commerce and offering clarifications on specifics of the ordinance and we thank supervisor stefani for her support and we appreciate the clarity around the hours and voluntary paid leave credit [inaudible] mandate. And also clarification that [inaudible] will not occur and compensation for companies that however unlimited leave qualify. Thank you for your support and efforts during this Public Health crisis. Thank you. Next speaker, please. You have one question remaining. Hello, my name is chris wright. Im the executive director of the committee on jobs and association that represent the citys largest private sector employers. Much of [inaudible] has been focused on our citys Small Businesses who are struggling. That said, every employer is suffering in this global catastrophe and each face serious threats of [inaudible]. Since the mayors stay in place order, many of our members have been closed to outright stop operations many of our own members are covered by government mandate and subsidy [inaudible]. The city clearly recognized that additional Employee Benefits are credited to their obligations under this new measure. Prohibiting businesses from offsetting existing benefits would effectively penalizing employers with general policis in place. Additionally the requirement for changing pay stubbs [inaudible] in light of the leave of this ordinance. And prior to the alleged [inaudible] of reasonable, timely and likely more effective notice, including electronic notice to their eligible employees. I want to echo the other concerns raised by the chamber of commerce letter come friday afternoon. The main issues are complex and they deal with multilayers. As such, we respectfully act for an additional week to review the language and to improve the [inaudible] clarity. Were commited to the goals of the legislation to working with the sponsors to achieve that, which is why wed like to make sure that it is done right. Thank you for your time and consideration. Thank you very much. Any other speaker . You have one question remaining. Caller hi. Good morning. My name is angelica. Im with [inaudible] south of Community Action network. We want to thank supervisor mar for moving forward with this legislation and really hope that the committee will move this forward. Its a very important legislation. As we take care of all the workers in San Francisco this legislation this cover 200,000 workers in San Francisco and we really think this legislation is much needed. Thank you. Thank you. Again, other speakers . You have zero questions remaining. Thank you for all the public speakers and if there are no other speakers in line, we will close Public Comment. Im making sure there are no other speakers. Ok. Thank you. Mr. Clerk, can you please have a role roll call vote. Supervisor mar made a motion to look at the file. I believe theres no objection to that motion. Is that true . Actually, im sorry, chair ronen. I actually had it is a little complicated what im proposing to do here. Theres actually five motions that i want to make. Got it. Sorry. Go ahead. Ok. Actually, before i do that t i did want to acknowledge the comment by supervisor stefani and also that were reinforced by chris wright from the committee on [inaudible]. Acknowledging the fact that Many Employers in San Francisco have already stepped up and voluntarily provided additional paid leave to their employees in this time of crisis. So that certainly has happened. And we definitely dome want to penalize employers that have already stepped up so that is why one of the amendments that is included today is making sure that those employers get credit for the additional paid leave that theyve already voluntarily provided towards the 80 hours that is required under the ordinance, as long as the paid leave that has been provided is comparable to whats specified in the ordinance and i wanted to acknowledge the different folks weve worked on in this important legislation. Starting with deputy City Attorney matt pearson and Matt Goldberg as well as our early cosponsor, supervisor haney, jobs of justice San Francisco, the San Francisco labor council, sieu, United Service workers west and Legal Aid Network and San Francisco chamber of commerce. Again, i have a series of motions that id like to make that will allow us to move the nonsubstantive amendments to ward as soon as possible and then also come deal with the would be substantive amendment regarding allowing Health Care Providers to ask that public Health Emergency leave, when theyre quarantined or sick. So, the first motion is id like to move that to adopt the amendment before us, except for references to 5b included therein. Can you please take a roll call vote on that motion . On the motion to amend . Supervisor stefani. Aye. Stefani, aye. Supervisor mar . Aye. Mar, aye. Chair ronen. Aye. Motion passs to amend the ordinance. And i move to duplicate the file as amended. I need to send the original file as amended as a Committee Report to the april 7 meeting of the board. Roll call . On the motion to refer to the board of Committee Report . Supervisor stefani. Aye. Stefani, aye. Supervisor mar. Chair ronen. Aye. The motion passes. And next, i would like to move to amend the duplicated file with the remaining amendments that references to 5c. We need a role call for that. Yes. That motion to amend. Supervisor stefani. [roll call] the motion to amend has passed. And then finally i move to continue the duplicated file as further amended to the monday, april 13 meeting of the rules committee. Roll call. On that motion, supervisor stefani. Aye. [roll call] those are the five motions you wanted to make, correct . Correct. Thank you so much. So mr. Cook, are there any other items on todays agenda . Before i state, id like to summarize that the original motion has been amended and refered to the board as a Committee Report. The duplicated file has been continued to the april 13 meeting and that completes the agenda for today. Thank you so much. Then the meeting is adjourned. Thank you, guys. Thank you. Thank you. Take care. Thanks. Announcer youre watching coping with covid19. Todays special guest is dr. Steven getnick. Hi, im chris man us and youre watching coping with covid19. Today my guest is the director of the Behavior Therapy Center of San Francisco and Professor Emeritus in counseling psychology at the university of San Francisco. Doctor, welcome to the show. Thank you. Lets talk about managing anxieties during this pandemic. What types of issues are people facing at the moment . There are a number of issues and i really want to point out that this is affecting everyone and has come on very quickly. So it is normal. If you are not experiencing some anxiety, something is a touch off because this affects us all. I think some of the main ones are our health and worried about getting the virus and our developing serious complications. I think for a lot of people who are single, living alone, in isolation, has been very difficult. I think being in close quarters with people who we normally have some space from now are together 24 7. Thats produced a lot of stress and anxiety. That loss of connection with others. We already addressed. And having kids home. For a lot of people. Yes, absolutely. What are the other problems that they might have . I think without that dynamic, the good things are not a problem. It is the difficulties we have. And when were together 24 7, again its like hooking everything up to an amplifier. So, what kind of problems could be created from working home from home, perhaps for the first time in your career . A lot of people are not used to working at home and a working at home just isnt the same. For one thing, there is a lack of social interaction. Some people find that that affects them greatly. Some people are actually finding theyre getting more work done at home without distractions from work. The lack of structure is probably the most common. We see it here with work at the office. People are kind of watching. We know that our schedule is, suddenly youre at home and you are on your own. Absolutely. If those are some of the issues people are facing, what are some of the techniques people can use to overcome their anxiety . Caller i think there are many. One of the first is how managing and keeping track of your thinking, we think and talk to ourselves a lot. Thats normal. We have a dialogue with ourselves often and we need to monitor that a bit. People tend to ruminate versus problemsolve. That is they tend to worry about all the things that might go wrong. And what i suggest is, look, there are things that can go wrong, but ruminating about the worstcase scenario is not going to be very productive. Sit down, figure out what the things are that you have to deal with and try to problemsolve. I think any of the selfcontrol techniques for anxiety can be helpful. And there are dozens of them. The common ones are meditation, relaxation techniques, yoga, for example and another is diaphragmattic breathing. If you google that, you can learn diaphragmattic breathing in about 10 minutes online. Its incredibly simple and it is a really nice way to reduce anxiety in the moment. Selfcontrol procedures, exercise. Whether if youre fortunate enough to have equipment at home, thats great. If youre not, get outside and go for a walk, keep your safe distance, of course. But you need to be active. Thats helpful. I think people marry be dealing with information overload at the moment. How do you suggest people manage that . I was just going to say that. I think it is really important to kind of limit the information you get. Not in terms of accuracy. I think in terms of accuracy, you want to identify a few sites where people are coming with evidencebased information and scientific information so you can form yourself well. Once youve informed yourself, you need to not be watching all day long. Ive talked to people who are mesmerized from the tv and a it keeps that anxiety going so you need to limit your viewing for sure. This can be stress for people who have economic concerns and worried about their family and friends and loved ones who are essential workers. What would you suggest they do to help manage anxiety and stress . There is a number of things. One of major ones for depression is behavioral activation. Simply, it really means that people will tend to not be depressed as a number of reinforcing activities to engage in. Whether it is hobbies, you read, you listen to music, you crochet, you whatever. These kinds of things are very important so you want to make sure that youre engaging in activities that literally make you feel better as opposed to sitting around ruminating, worrying about the worstcase scenarios that might happen. What about trying to do some selfdevelopment . Yeah. Its a very interesting time. Ive talked to a couple of my own clients who are finding, in a very positive way, that this isolation, while at first can generate a lot of anxiety, particularly if youre just not good at living alone. For a number of people, its giving them a chance to sit back and really think about what is important in their lives, what are the priorities. I think that maybe if there is any Silver Lining in this epidemic, its really forcing all of us to kind of rethink whats really important. Indeed. You know, though, at the same time, there are people who are feeling very lonely at home. How would you encourage them to overcome that . You get online. Facetime, skype, zoom, like what were doing right now. You can stay connected. Its very possible. Most connections are important. We are social critters and we need that connection. I think for people who dont have those options, pull up photos, take a look at pictures of family. You need to stay connected. And its very important. And finally, do you have any suggestions that are specifically for families . Yeah. Well, again, i think one of the interesting things thats come about from all of this, is i talked to families on video is theyre obviously spending more time together. While its a bit awkward, particularly for parents who are in the house working a lot. Its a chance to really deepen relationships and spend more good, quality time together. I think parents really need to step back and kind of plan their day a little bit. Not micro manage it, but have some ideas. Can the family play games together . A lot of people i talked to, theyre even together as a family for the first time. So i think there are a number of things that people can do. I think it is qulaouzful for the families to take five, 10 minutes and say how did the day go . I talked to someone in the phone book before we started who said they noticed what time of day all their anxiety kind of comes together and they start sniping at each other. Now theyre taking a few minutes at tend of the day to say, ok, how are we doing . I think they need modeling good behavior, something you can do within the family, too, to try to thats right. I think thats relevant. Very relevant to how children are going to do. Most of the research from crises, particularly things we cant control showed that children do as well as their parents do. So i think it is important for parents to think about how theyre react aing and they stay calm because whatever they do is modeling, coping for their children. So, that can be very useful. It can also be problematic. When we talked earlier, you mentioned that acknowledging that your kids are afraid is important. Yes. I think that ties to your last question. I think modeling you know, its not incompatible with saying, yeah, you know, mom or dad is a little nervous, too. It means a lot of stuff is going on, but were going to be ok. Were going to stay together. We have our time together. Were going to be safe. Well fill in the blank. So you can do both. You can reassure but in a realistic way that once the kids know its normal to be anxious in these times. Thank you for coming ton show, doctor. I really appreciate the time youve given us. Youre welcome. Thank you for having me. And that is it for this episode. Well be back with more covid19 related information shortly. You have been coping with covid19. Thank you for watching. Mayor breed is joined by the director of Public Health, grant colfax. The director of the department of Human Services, trent noor. Todays numbers for the number of people who are infected by covid19 here in San Francisco are at 1,340. Sadly, we have had 22 people who lost their lives to the virus. As a reminder, you can find the full dashboard of information at datasf. Org covid19. There is a lot of great information on the number of people who have been infected by zip code, race, and other information that members of the public expressed interest in. As a city, we have mobilized to combat this Public Health crisis. Weve been focusing on our frontline responders, our healthcare workers, and our essential employees and what they need to protect themselves. These are the people who are of course our healthcare professionals, our first responders, and people who are actually our essential city workforce. The folks who are driving the muni buses, the people who are managing traffic. The people who are providing the Grocery Store clerks and others who continue to support the city as we deal with these real challenges. I want to be clear that from the very beginning we knew that it was important to ensure that we were protecting the people that we expected to show up to work in their various capacities. The sad reality is what weve had to deal with around a lack of coordination on the federal level around p. P. E. Has made it really very challenging. Today i want to talk just a little bit about those challenges and what weve faced as we continue to provide the resources necessary to try and protect our workforce, but i want to start by and i want to start by thanking the city administrator naomi kelly and her team and the office of contract administration. Because of their efforts, we have been able to purchase 15 million pieces of p. P. E. Thats the n95 masks, general masks, the gowns, and the other personal protective equipment necessary to keep people safe as they work and as they support our population of people who sadly may be hospitalized due to covid19. The gloves, the gowns, the surgical masks, and those the face shields. And weve received donations from our give to s. F. Program and we truly appreciate the contributions. Our governor, the state, has provided us with 1 million pieces of p. P. E. So we have really been very diligent about getting access to p. P. E. To make sure, as i said, our frontline workers are protected and people have what they need to provide essential services to the city. You hear the conversations that take place not only here in San Francisco but all over the state. The fact that we have declared a state of emergency even in San Francisco as of february 25 of this year, the fact that we have been struggling to get access to p. P. E. Even before then and this has been at the forefront of every conversation that every city has had, expressing a strong need for this personal protective equipment. Yet again, and this is no excuse, but the challenges we continue to face as a result of a coordinated response from our federal government has really put us all at a disadvantage. In fact, i want to talk a little bit about some of the challenges that weve had. Weve had issues of our orders being relocated by suppliers in china. For example, we had isolation gowns that were on their way to San Francisco and they were diverted to france. Weve had situations when things that weve ordered that have gone through customs were compensated by fema to be diverted to other locations. Because again we know that everyone is dealing with a very serious challenge. Even when weve been fortunate enough in some cases to see p. P. E. Get through customs, weve had situations where those items have been taken and put out on the market for the highest bidder, putting cities against cities and states against states. It has been really, ive got to tell you, one of the most frustrating things to deal with. The fact that during the height of this pandemic were still having a conversation about p. P. E. Is it really does blow my mind and it is nothing that has been more frustrating. Because when we talk about the need to get back to opening up our cities and our country, one of the most important things we need is to make sure that people have what they need to protect themselves. That we have p. P. E. And that we have swabs and testing kits so that were able to test more people. So we are i want you to know that we are working tirelessly on this. We are pushing for Creative Solutions to get what we need. In fact, ucsf through their generosity in providing San Francisco general some additional equipment has been amazing. And Dignity Health and having access to their suppliers. Weve all locally here in the Hospital Community have been working together to get everything that we need because we know how critical all of this is now as we go through this and as we have this shelterinplace order. But what happens when we start to look at ways and solutions to get our cities back on track and to get our cities open, its going to be necessary even then because its going to take us a while before we get a vaccine, which means testing and p. P. E. And having not only sufficient supply, but access to get sufficient supply will be critical to the future of this city. We wont give up. We will continue to do what we can to access the equipment and supplies that we need. Dr. Colfax talked about our efforts to expand testing, which is something that we will continue to ramp up. As he mentioned on wednesday, the bottleneck we face right now is often due to the lack of the basic swabs and not necessarily the testing capacity. So we just wanted to make sure that as you hear about some of these challenges that youre aware of why they are challenges. I know it seems as though it should be a lot simpler. We have the money to purchase the p. P. E. Why cant we purchase the p. P. E. . The fact is it is clearly complicated. You hear mayors and governors talk about this on a regular basis. We are getting as creative as we can to get what we need to support our city. In many instances, we have been fortunate beneficiary of the generosity of flex port and facebook and sell force and others who continue to be incredible partners in helping to advocate for and get access to p. P. E. To help our cities move forward. So i want to thank them. I want to just talk a bit dr. Colfax will get into the testing and the p. P. E. And some of the things we need to do that are critical to Public Health. Also in addition to the Public Health crisis that we are in the midst of, there is another crisis that has emerged and that is the economic crisis. The fact is this has been a long time for people who have no other means of access to money. This is a long time to be out of work and to figure out what were going to do. Its one of the reasons we felt it was important, despite whats happening with access to unemployment, to have Resources Available so that people can get food through give to sf and to provide support for our Small Business community. In fact, weve been able to add another 1 million to the Flexible Grant Program that we started a couple of months ago to provide some initial assistance to our Small Businesses. And we will continue to raise private dollars and look for other resources to help support our Small Business community. As we think about the future and what this means, we set up a Recovery Task force a couple of weeks ago. They are going to be convening today to talk specifically about where do we go once we reopen. Even as we look at whats happening with other states that are opening now. As far as im concerned, we dont want to move that quickly. We want to make sure that we have systems in place to protect people. This is going to require an approach where we are working hand in hand with our Public Health professionals. When we look at various industries and we analyze what could be done in order to protect people to allow those industries to move forward, we want to make sure that we are thoughtful in our recommendations, but we are also getting the support and the clearance from our Public Health experts to move in that direction. We know that this weekend is coming up. Today is a Beautiful Day in San Francisco. This weekend is going to be a beautiful weekend in San Francisco. And i want to really take this opportunity to caution people about wanting to get back to things that are more familiar. I know your kids want to play with their friends. I know you want to see your friends. I know so many of you want to have interactions with one another in person rather than over the phone or online. I want to just say that we hear about San Francisco and how great San Francisco is doing all over the world and were being used as an example of how to manage this situation right. But i want to just remind you, we have 1,340 people who have tested positive with the virus. It is estimated that about 12 of the people weve tested overall have the virus, which means that theres a possibility clearly that there are others who are asymptomatic in our community that have the virus and have the ability to infect other people. What we dont want to see on nice days, on days like this, out in the communities and infecting other people. They dont have a mask and not social distancing and going back to the habits that are familiar and engaging with one another and not socially distancing and getting comfortable and complacent. And then a week from now we wonder why our numbers from shot up from 1,340 to 2,000 or more with even more deaths. This is what is at stake. As good as it might seem, the situation were in now, the numbers are still going up. The number in i. C. U. Have gone up. The number of people who are who have passed away continues to rise. That means that now more than ever we cant give us and we have to move forward. I know as i say, i know i say every time we have a press conference i know its hard. I know its hard, which is why its important that as we are talking and convening in our economic Recovery Task force, we are developing ways to make recommendations to the department of Public Health of things that we could potentially make available to the public. So next week well have some more announcements about that, but the goal is we definitely want to work with our Public Health experts and our various industries to figure out are there things we can do. Because the reality is and people are asking about this, will the Public Health order get extended. The likelihood that that will happen is very likely. What that means is another few weeks or even a month of asking you all to comply and to remain at home as you continue to follow the social distancing orders that we put forth. But what it also means is an opportunity for us with our economic Recovery Task force to start to explore ways in which we can make some things available that are currently unavailable to all of us. So it is a process. Because how we reopen is going to be important to ensuring that we do it responsibly so we dont go backwards. We also have to make sure that we have enough of the p. P. E. And the testing necessary so that if we do decide to allow a particular industry or something to become available that were able to deal with that, that we put the appropriate requirements into place of social distancing and we also have the appropriate p. P. E. So that theyre able to protect themselves. And, more importantly, we have the testing and we have the capacity in our hospitals necessary to deal with a surge at any time. Its a process. Its a process that requires patience. Its a process that requires resources. So i want to thank the people in San Francisco especially for just supporting the process and being responsible and helping us through this pandemic because it is important that as many of us as we possibly can, that we comply with this order and that we continue to do our very best to stay at home, go out and get fresh air if we need it, and keep our distance from people when were outside. The mask does not mean that you can come closer to people. It means were asking you to wear a mask to protect yourself and to protect other people, but were still asking you to keep a distance of 6. The mask does not take the place of social distancing. I also just want to say i also heard of a number of situations where people have been walking and theyre not wearing a mask and theyre just outside walking and theyve had people make comments and threatening comments in some particular instances. I want to be clear. We are not asking or requires that people wear masks when theyre out walking their dogs or taking a walk or theyre doing their jogging or maybe riding their bike. Were asking when you are at the Grocery Store or in line at the Grocery Store or at the gas station or in line at the gas station, at the pharmacy or in line at the pharmacy. Any facility where you are in contact for the most part in line with other people, thats when were asking you to wear a mask. I also want you to reiterate if youre not a police officer, please dont ask like you are a police officer. We have Police Officers to police our streets. What we dont want to have happen is the continued animosity towards someone who appears to not be following the directive and an altercation occurs and tension occurs and it goes worse. More than ever, we need people to be understanding and nicer to one another. We need goodness and we need kindness. We need you to focus on you. We need people to focus on the fact that they and their family should be complying with wearing a mask or keeping their distance. We dont need people to police other people because that could turn into an even worse situati situation. We understand it might be frustrating to see someone violating the rules, but again i guarantee you if you are following the rules and doing everything that you can, you are setting the example. Others will follow and well be better off for it. I appreciate if we all continue to do our very best, we all continue to put some goodness and positive energy out there in the universe. This is challenging for all of us. It is difficult for all of us. None of us is immune from the physical and emotional impacts that this is taking on our city. I want us to remember that and do the very best we can as we weather this storm. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding. If there is any information youre looking for, please feel free to check out our website, sfgov. Org. Or call 311 if you have any concerns or need help or support or food. Please call us. We really are in this together. What impacts one person in our Community Impacts all of us. Thats why its so critical. We have been in this situation for some time now. Now is not the time to give up. Now is the time to rollup our sleeves and just keep it moving and do the very best we can because what we want to do is look back on this pandemic and be proud of what weve been able to do here in San Francisco to protect and to save lives. Thank you again for your cooperation. At this time, i would like to introduce our director of the department of Public Health, dr. Grant colfax. Thank you, mayor breed. Good afternoon. Im dr. Grant colfax, director of Public Health for San Francisco. I would like to express my gratitude and thanks to the mayor for her leadership and the work shes done with regard to to ensuring that our frontline workers, our teams throughout the Health Department, and the patients who we care for has had access always to the necessary personal protective equipment, the p. P. E. , according to c. Dc. Guidelines for them to be safe and for our patients and their families to be as safe as possible. The p. P. E. Continues to be an issue. Our supplies have sometimes gotten quite low, given the challenges across the city, across the region, across the nation. Its taken tremendous amount of work. I just want to express gratitude again for ensuring that people have consistently and had and always have had the p. P. E. That they need that is necessary and in accordance with the science, the data, and the facts. Today i want to provide you with the facts and the effects of the coronavirus in our community. Even as we continue to make progress as we flatten the curve, we continue to see impacts on our most vulnerable population. The story here in San Francisco, the data and facts condition to tell the story here in San Francisco and will always guide our response. Today there are 1,340 San Francisco residents with confirmed cases of coronavirus. Of these, 134, or about 10 , are people experiencing homelessness or living in s. R. O. S. That is, unfortunately, a large proportion. We also know, as we have said from the beginning, that older people and people with Underlying Health conditions are more vulnerable to covid19 and are at greater risks for bad outcomes, including unfortunately, death. Of the people who have died of the coronavirus, 21 of them were over 60 years old and all 22 had Underlying Health conditions. This is consistent for what we know about who is most at risk. So even as we expand testing, add capacity to our healthcare system, and watch the number of hospitalized patients closely, we know that many members of our community remain at risk of significant harm from the coronavirus. And as we move forward in our response and look at the next steps in terms of reopening, we will continue to protect those most vulnerable populations. We simply must do so. One of my chief concerns and a top priority for the Health Department is mitigating the outbreaks that are occurring in the Homeless Population, longterm care facilities, and other congregate living settings. This is a challenge not only within San Francisco, but across the region and indeed across the nation. In San Francisco, we will continue to work diligently on these settings where the virus presents the greatest threat. In the last few weeks, we have responded to several outbreaks. These are unfortunately, but also unfortunately not surprising. Outbreaks are part of the pattern of this pandemic and they are happening in every place where the coronavirus is spreading in the country and again here in our community. The virus looks for opportunities where people are gathered together. For example, across california there are 258 Skilled Nursing facilities that have reported one or more coronavirus cases among residents or staff. Here in San Francisco, the department of health staff called every Skilled Nursing facility in the city several times a week to check on the covid status of residents and staff. We hold weekly calls with them to provide education on infection control, prevention, and outbreak preparedness. From the start we have published guidelines for longterm and residential facilities that are uptodate with c. D. C. s and the states latest information. We want to support these institutions to be as prepared as possible. When there are outbreaks in congregate settings, we take immediate action based on evidence and c. D. C. And state guidelines. In San Francisco there have been outbreaks at laguna hospital as well as other facilities. We have responded in each situation based on the evidence. We have supported the organizations with contact investigations, testing, and screening. We have provided masks and other personal protective equipment as required. We have imposed quarantines and, in some cases, temporarily closed facilities for deep cleaning and evaluation. We have moved residents to hotels or medical care settings dependant on their needs. All of this work has been done in collaboration with local, state, and federal partners. And in particular, our partnership with the state is highly relevant with the longterm care facilities in the city because the state has overnight on their licensing and responsibility for inspecting them to ensure that they are complying with state guidelines. And i would like to point out that we have outbreaks that have been minimized due to advance planning and quick responses. At laguna honda hospital we asked for experts from the Disease Control center and the state to come in early to support our response. The c. D. C. Remains on site and continues to help and advise our efforts. To date we have had 19 positive cases at laguna honda hospital, 15 among staff and four among residents. And laguna honda hospital is one of the largest, if not the largest, Skilled Nursing facility in the nation with over 750 residents. Is of the four residents who tested positive for covid19, all are in good condition. We have not had a new resident case since april 7, which is an indication that our aggressive efforts undertaken with c. D. C. Guidance, to isolate, quarantine, test, and screen for now have been effective. The c. D. C. Recommendations we recommended at laguna honda are now being and will continue to be applied to protect staff and residents at other nursing home facilities across the city. In our jail system we took aggressive steps to protect inmates and staff. We expanded Jail Health Services to include testing and quarantine of all new bookings that are housed in jails. This allowed us to identify two asymptomatic and related cases of coronavirus to date. This practice combined with enforcing social distancing protocols and masking of all staff has likely prevented an outbreak so far. The two confirmed cases will be released and there are no known cases of covid19 at this time in the county jail. Now, of course this could change and the situation in laguna honda could change rapidly as well, but my point is that we are establishing very specific protocols and taking very specific action and being flexible in our response based on responding to the very specific circumstances under which these outbreaks in vulnerable populations occur. We will continue in partnership with other city departments, Community Members, and other stakeholders that oversee and in some cases run these institutions. Most recently, on wednesday this week, we confirmed a second case of coronavirus at the Division Circle navigation center. Three weeks after the first case was reported there. We are currently conducting a contact investigation, as we do for cases we discover. At this point, it is unlikely that the two cases are linked, given what we know about the virus. Testing of the 59 remaining guests and staff is underway. At Division Circle we moved swiftly and after the first case, in partnership with h. S. A. And h. S. H. To relocate Vulnerable People out of the center and to isolation and quarantine and shelter in place, hotels. So the population there has been reducing lowering the risks. These examples reflect why it is so important to prioritize vulnerable populations in these settings from the start, people over the age of 60, people with comorbid conditions. Here are some of the steps that we have taken to protect vulnerable populations. You know about the efforts to mitigate the spread of the virus, to slow the spread of the virus in the community. Canceling large gatherings, requiring face coverings, and issuing the stayathome order. These actions are about protecting vulnerable populations as well as of course our entire community. We have also issued health orde orders restricting people from visiting longterm care facilities and residential facilities. We have required cleaning of s. R. O. S. We have worked in partnership with the Human Services agency and the department of homelessness and Supportive Housing to increase social distancing and other precautions and shelters and to move people into hotels. Outreach teams continue to go out every day to communicate with people who are living on the streets and to provide them with resources and information. For people experiencing homelessness, living in s. R. O. S, or in crowded conditions, we are fortunate to have options like isolation Quarantine Hotels to relocate people safely. As of today, thanks to the partnerships with the other department, 864 people who are over 60 or who have chronic illnesses or Underlying Health conditions have been moved to hotels. And it is very important to realize that in all of these settings we have been able to test everyone who has shown symptoms, all close contacts of confirmed cases. And when mask testing was warranted, we have been able to carry that out. I am proud of this work and grateful to the staff of truly, compassionate, worldclass experts who have been working around the clock since january to accomplish these efforts. And yet, i know and we know that outbreaks are likely to continue as long as the virus is here in our community. I want to ensure you that we are doing everything we can to reduce the spread of the virus, protect vulnerable populations, and healthcare workers and first responders. We need all san franciscans to keep doing everything you can to protect them as well. That means, again, stay home, cover your face, practice physical distancing. You are not just protecting yourself. You are contributing to the Overall Health of the community in making it a safer place for people who are most vulnerable to the virus. You are literally saving lives. And i want to reassure you that we are planning for the future. Our ability as a community to return to a new normal will rely on everyone continuing to do their part. It will rely on a system to respond to outbreaks, increase testing, have adequate personal protective equipment, and have Contact Tracing to slow the spread of the virus. In San Francisco, i know we can do this and we must do this together. I thank you all for your ongoing hard work and effort to keep San Francisco safe and to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Thank you. Director abigail stewartkhan of the department of homelessness and housing will now make some remarks. Hello. Providing safe places for people experienci experiencing homelessness to isolate, quarantine, or shelter in place is a top priority for the department of homeless and Supportive Housing, the department of Public Health, and the entire city. Additionally, the city is working to expand testing citywide with a focus on vulnerable communities, as dr. Colfax just shared in detail, including people experiencing homelessness. As we expand testing capacity, we know that we will need more places for people experiencing homelessness who test positive for covid19 to go to isolate, receive care, and to recover. So that end, h. S. H. , in connection with our partners, are opening new facilities. Youve heard about this. To date weve opened five shelterinplace hotels as well as multiple Quarantine Hotels with more planned rapidly. This has been incredibly hard and incredibly a critical expansion. I want to share a story of a voicemail i received from a colleague of someone who moved from the streets to the inside and said he hadnt been near a bed in over many years and that he was going to sleep for 24 hours to try to recover and not get sick with covid. He offered thanks to my colleague and all of San Francisco for this place to be safe. Additionally, were expanding congregate capacity to meet this need. We opened s. M. C. South as postcovid congregate shelters for people experiencing homelessness who have tested positive for covid19 and no longer need medical attention and have cleared their isolation period. This week as dr. Colfax reminded us, a second case of covid19 was confirmed at the Division Circle center. We had already completed shelter equilibrium, meaning the vulnerable individuals had been moved into our shelter in place sites. Through thorough and immediate contact investigation has led us to test all remaining guests and staff and all guests of the center are being transferred to isolation and Quarantine Hotels. Given that this shelter will very soon be empty, it will be reopened as a shelter for people experiencing homelessness who have tested positive for covid19, but who do not require hospitalization. As we expand testing, we anticipate we will have more people who are asymptomatic and living with covid and who will need a resource like this one. In its revised capacity, Division Circle will function similarly to existing isolation and quarantine sites, with onsite department of Public Health support, 24hour staffing and security, meals, and social services. The shelters and hotels do not increase risks for the surrounding community and neighbors, both because we know that many are positive in all of San Francisco and because guests are educated and supported on how to best care for themselves and will remain in isolation in care for the course of their illness. The mayor, the department of Public Health, the Police Department, and all of the city have and continue to implore every san franciscan to practice precautions, such as staying at home, physical distancing, covering your face and nose, and washing your hands. These are important for all of us. Thank you to the partners that have made these expansions possible to open hotels and congregate facilities, including the department of Public Health, Human Services agency, the Emergency Operations center, and all of the exceptional nonprofits who are stepping up to provide that support. Thank you. We will now have remarks from chief William Scott of the San Francisco Police Department. Thank you, director stewartkhan. Good afternoon, everyone. As always, i will start my remarks by thanking our mayor london breed for her leadership and dr. Grant colfax. Their leadership has been instrumental in getting us through this challenging time. I want to again thank the people of San Francisco as well. It was for gratifying for this 4 20 people stayed home and did not come to the parks to celebrate 4 20. I want to thank everyone for working with us on that and your efforts are actually making a difference and saving lives. We are seeing that the vast majority of the public is committed to stopping the spread of covid19. We have had people and businesses who have been warned continuing to flout the order. To date we have 17 citations that have been issued by San Francisco Police Officers. That breakdown is eight businesses and nine individuals. Weve admonished 73 people where incident reports have been taken and, as i have stated previously, there have been hundreds upon hundreds of informal warnings. For the most part, i want to thank the people of San Francisco for complying by and large when officers interact with them. From the outset of the original Public Health order in midmarch, the San Francisco Police Department has made it clear that our focus is voluntary compliance. Enforcement has been an option of last resort and that has been ultimately largely successful in those times when we have had to do that to get compliance. We will continue to use a progressive compliance pathway which starts with education, asking for voluntary compliance, warning, and citations if and when necessary. You can use the covid19 website on our web page to learn about our enforcement protocols, our Department Policies and notices are posted on our website. The purpose of the Public Health order is not to arrest or cite, but its about promoting the health and welfare of our communities and our cities by preventing the spread of the virus. As ive said before, we are here to help. We want to get through this situation in a way that does not make this situation worse for the people of our city. As the mayor said and i will reiterate it, we all have a personal responsibility to help stop the spread of this virus. The people we are working with is Human Rights Commission under the leadership of executive director sheryl davis. The h. R. C. Is providing Community Stakeholders with face coverings thanks to the mayors gift to s. F. Campaign. We are out with commissioner davis and Community Stakeholders issuing face coverings today as we speak. We were out in the Bayview Community yesterday. We want people to know we understand how difficult this is and there are people in our city who are having a very difficult time most people are having a difficult time through this. There are people who dont have access to face coverings. We want to do everything we can as a city to help those who need help. Thats why were out helping, to make sure people have what they need to stay safe and healthy. This is enabling the city to help those vulnerable populations and will go a long way towards preventing the spread of covid19. We see today is a Beautiful Day and the weather is nice and we expect that to continue into the weekend. We know there are people who want to exercise and get fresh air and enjoy the nice weather. If you are going to leave your homes, please follow the advice of the Public Health officials. Maintain a distance of at least 6. Wear face coverings when youre waiting in line or shopping as the mayor has emphasized and dr. Colfax and his colleagues have emphasized. As the weekend progressing, youre probably going to see a large group of people out. Be respectful and mindful and do the rest for the people you love. Our volunteers are working with our work program. We will be out in the parks promoting the educational information and reminding people to keep the distance of 6 and wear your face coverings. Again, our goal is to help and gain voluntary compliance. Now i want to shift to crime. No update from our wednesday press briefing. Weve had an increase in 18 by Violent Crimes. Weve had a 31 decrease in property crimes over last week. That was a decrease of 154 fewer property crimes. Weve had a 25 decrease in our total part 1 crimes, which is a decrease of 142 total part 1 crimes. Weve had some burglaries and vandalisms as i have reported, and we want the public to be sure we are still out there. We have made several arrests on burglaries in our city. We want to thank the Attorneys Office to add the charges of burglary and vandalism during this time of a state of emergency. Despite our drop in overall part 1 crimes, i want to highlight that we are taking this issue very seriously. And i also want to highlight and remind people about driving. The california Highway Patrol has reported that theyve seen an 87 jump in violations of people driving more than 100 mph. That is completely unacceptable. We want to remind people that this pandemic does not give anyone the license to drive in a reckless and dangerous manner. Please slow down. We know that the streets are easier, but please slow down. We have not had any focus on the deaths since this pandemic started and we want to keep it that way. Personal responsibility, as the mayor stated, we all have a personal responsibility to do what is needed, that means driving at lower speeds. Those folks who are conducting their travel in a safe way, we thank you and hope everyone else does the same. The slow Streets Program has also been rolled out. Please done down. You have to share the roads with pedestrians, bicyclists, and people who are going to be out enjoying the weather and trying to get fresh air and exercise. So please again slow down. As a reminder, we also want to encourage everyone to report crimes. If you see a Violent Crime in progress, please call 911. If the crime has already been committed or its a property crime or a crime you dont need an Immediate Response you can call 4155530123 or you can also call 311 or utilize our sfpd website to make a police report. Also, i want to reemphasize the message about scams and not having the public falling for scams. Unfortunately during this very difficult time there are people who will take advantage of the situation and take advantage of you. Normally they focus on vulnerable populations such as our elderly. We know that the federal trade Commission Says they have received four times the complaints about Identity Fraud this past mant than the three months prior. The f. B. I. Has seen scams online selling things that dont exist. This can take the form of robo calls and people coming to your door. People claiming to be with the centers for Disease Control and our own department of Public Health. Nobody will be coming to your house from our department or the centers for Disease Control and asking to get into your house. Please dont let them in. If you get an individual like that knocking at your door or ringing your doorbell and you think that is suspicious, please call 911. We will respond. Weve heard of this before and we dont want people victimized. People that you know and love, know that the scammers are out there. Please beware. If you believe you have been a victim or are experiencing an online scam, you can call or email the federal train station commission. Their number is 8773824357. I want, i want to wish everyone a great weekend. As a reminder, please social distance, stay 6 away, wear your masks, and lets stay the course. Thank you. Thank you, chief scott. We will begin the qanda portion with questions february dr. Grant colfax. Question our first question is from christian captain. Can the San Francisco department of Public Health provide more details about the four deaths at central garden . Answer so the state is leading that investigation. As i had mentioned earlier, we are working very closely with Central Gardens and the similar institutions across the city, ensuring that they have the most uptodate information, that they have their resources, including p. P. E. , the training materials. I cant comment specifically on those four deaths. Question we understand the California Department of Public Health is spearheading the issue, but is San Francisco launching an investigation . And are other longterm care facilities facing similar risks . Answer so longterm care facilities across the country, including here in San Francisco, are facing risks. As we have said from the beginning of our response, this population is particularly vulnerable. We saw that in the outbreak in the nursing home in washington state, in kirkland. I think the important piece here is we need to ensure were following the best guidance possible with regard to c. D. C. And the state. In terms of how we protect residents and staff, we have Infectious Disease experts consulting with us and with other Nursing Homes with regard to doing the best we can to prevent and slow the spread of the virus in these Nursing Homes. There are vulnerabilities here. We are taking Lessons Learned from the outbreak at laguna honda and the input and expertise from the c. D. C. To apply those lessons to ensure the nurses have every opportunity and the resources they need to apply those guidelines to protect their institutions. Question are all residents at casa casada being tested and how many will be moved into hotels . Answer so as of everyone there has been moved to or has been offered an alternative place to stay, and that includes isolation and quarantine at various sites, depending on their conditions and needs. As of april 23rd, 71 residents and staff were tested. 22 residents and two staff had tested positive. So the bottom line is we have offered testing to everyone. We have offered alternative sites to everyone. People who have tested positive have been offered isolation and quarantine sites if they have not been able to find alternatives to isolation and quarantine. Question how quickly does d. P. H. Notify s. R. O. S of cases . Answer so we notify the person as quickly as possible in a way that maintains the privacy of that individual. We notify the s. R. O. Owners or managers that there is a case. We obviously have to be very thoughtful as how thats done to protect the confidentiality of the case. But we are in Constant Contact with s. R. O. S. We have a task force making sure that they have the information they need, that theyre applying cleaning policies to their hotels. If people who need testing and have access to timely testing. And if they need isolation and quarantine rooms are not able to do it in their current living situations, that they are offered hotel rooms. Question the numbers for laguna honda have not risen for some time. Is it safe to say that laguna honda is out of the woods . Answer i would not say that. I thought this was good news that we havent had a detective error for some time. But this is the largest if not one of the largest nursing facilities in the United States with over 750 residents. We have staff there working to take the best care of our San Francisco residents who need the best care. We are being vigilant and have extra staff to assist us. We are ting we can and hope not only hope, but taking the actions necessary to slow the spread of covid19 in laguna honda as in elsewhere. I dont think we can say conclusively that we are out of the woods. Question have any of the residents been moved out facility . Answer of those diagnosed with covid19, there are several residents that have been moved out. Im pleased to say they have returned to laguna honda and are in good condition. Question are deaths at longterm care facilities, such as at Central Gardens, included in San Franciscos overall covid19 death count . Yes, they are. How many total people have died in longterm care facilities . Answer we have 113 cases in longterm care facilities. I dont have the number of at the times specific to those areas at this time. I also want to correct one pace is the resident has an address near the facility. Question casa casada is criticizing the city for moving slowly on testing cases at their s. R. O. S. Is the government now testing everyone in these environments and making more measures . Answer we are testing people with any symptom or if they are a close contact of a covid case, articles regardless of their symptoms. Were not at universal testing yet, but were increasing our ability to test more people. I understand people are very concerned, as i am, and people are fearful and scared. Its a scary time. Basically, the data are that on april 13 the Health Department confirmed the first case of covid19 at a in a residence of casa casada. On april 15, after a case investigation, a second resident tested positive. Based on that and further investigations, we performed testing on site of all residents on april 19. We moved all residents and have closed the facility for cleaning. So we were responsive. We were following the investigation as we do across the city when there are outbr k outbreaks like this and we were as responsive as we could be. Thank you. Our next questions are for director stewartkhan. Question regarding plans for the citys unsheltered Homeless Population and possible safe places for them to go, two weeks ago today we were told that details on those plans would be provided in the coming days. What happened to that planning and those forthcoming details . Answer thanks for the opportunity to revisit again all of the steps taken around the unsheltered population and to speak to the potential for safe sleeping sites in San Francisco. So as i shared on wednesday and so i will be briefed today, immediately as this outbreak became evident, the healthy streets Outreach Center caused the removal of any tents and pivoted immediately to providing education, access to care and services, and resources for People Living unsheltered in our community. We are aware that many of the policies that have been taking to help People Living in congregate settings have made things even more challenging for People Living unsheltered. That is a difficult reality that we are facing. Those of us out and about in the community see there are many highly vulnerable individuals. We continue to take those steps he here. We are working on all of the steps for very specific and impacted neighborhoods, such as the tenderloin, the bayview, and the mission communities, where we see more density of People Living unsheltered. We need to care and balance People Living unsheltered and the basic needs for everyone living unsheltered in those communities. Safe sleeping is still absolutely part of the conversation. Im not sure what the timeline was that youre talking about, but i know its under deep discussion by many. The issue here is one of resources, and not necessarily financial resources, but rather that the very people who can help support safe sleeping sites are the same people who can open hotels. It doesnt happen one and then the other or one faster than the other. We need to look at all options for people experiencing homelessness. Right now we are focused on moving people unsheltered directly into hotel rooms, which is the safest place for them to be when they are vulnerable to covid. And we are simultaneously evaluating safe sleeping sites across the. R city. Thank you, director. That concludes our questions for todays press conference. [ ]