San Francisco transit workers got an unexpected holiday bonus, of sorts, after winning back a contested $8 million in health care payouts that the city initially refused to give because it was trying to cut its 2011 budget. Mayor Ed Lee said Tuesday that he agreed with the decision by the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency to relinquish the funds to the Transport Workers Union 250-A.
Category: City Hall
Posted inCity Hall, Homelessness, Law & Justice, News, Social Justice
Legal advocates give San Francisco low marks for penalizing homeless people
A national homeless advocacy organization says San Francisco continues to make criminals out its homeless population. The National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty reported recently that the city and several other communities across the country penalize homeless people for behaviors related to their lack of housing. The Washington, D.C.-based group studied 234 U.S. jurisdictions, finding that San Francisco places prohibitions on 10 of 14 behaviors. Another local advocacy group recently graded San Francisco with a “D” for its policing efforts, but city representatives say alternative justice experiments are working.
Posted inCity Hall, Transportation
Muni chief optimistic despite projected budget shortfall
Muni is projecting close to an $80 million budget deficit by 2013-2014. The agency released its preliminary budget report Monday. Despite the shortfall, Muni wants to change the minds of riders and drivers who are skeptical that the service can be reliable and on time. The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, which oversees Muni, has drafted goals for the next six years that Muni chief Ed Reiskin calls “ambitious.”
Posted inCity Hall, Elections, News, Public Safety
Lee and Gascón continue as mayor and D.A.; Mirkarimi new sheriff in town
Incumbent Ed Lee was elected as San Francisco’s mayor following Tuesday’s ballot, in the first truly competitive race for the office using ranked-choice voting, according to unofficial results announced late Wednesday. George Gascón, who like Lee was appointed to his position during the previous administration, was sent back to the office for a full term, while Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi became the first sheriff elected in 31 years, preliminary results show.
Posted inCity Hall, Elections, Social Justice
Effort to recall Oakland mayor faces uphill battle
Mayor Jean Quan is facing the toughest fight in her tenure as CEO of Oakland – a recall effort. But whether the recall movement will gain traction and usher Quan out of office is far from clear. Although the recall effort has received extensive media coverage, and there were plenty of folks marching with “Recall Quan” signs at the city’s hugely popular general strike Nov. 2, the quest to replace the mayor will be a long process that could carry on well into mid-2012.
Posted inCity Hall, Elections, News
Voters’ guide to S.F. mayoral candidates
The 2011 Nonpartisan Voter Guide is a succinct, printable listing of S.F. mayoral candidate positions and quotes on more than two-dozen key policy issues and ballot initiatives, including pensions, taxes, transportation and homelessness. The research and survey were conducted by University of California’s Hastings College of the Law and the San Francisco Public Press. The voter guide was produced by Newsdesk.org.
Posted inCity Hall, Government & Politics, Transportation
Get drivers out of their cars and onto transit: mayoral candidate Leland Yee on Muni
Can S.F.’s next mayor save Muni? – Part 8
State Senator Leland Yee is running for San Francisco mayor and said his main goal for Muni is to get drivers out of cars and onto buses and trains. He wants to add 100,00 new riders by 2020. Yee said in order to do this, Muni needs to update its technology for with more real-time data and focus on how the transit agency is spending its budget. He said the agency should be focused on fixing broken Muni vehicles.
Posted inCity Hall, Transportation
City must hit the reset button on transit: mayoral candidate Phil Ting on Muni
Can S.F.’s next mayor save Muni? – Part 7
Assessor-Recorder and San Francisco mayoral candidate Phil Ting wants Muni riders to join him in “resetting” Muni. He is behind the online community known as Reset SF, where residents get a chance to share their ideas with Ting on improving city government transparency. One of the central topics of Reset SF is Muni and how to improve service and reliability.
Posted inCity Hall, Transportation
Central Subway costs have gotten out of control: mayoral candidate Dennis Herrera on Muni
Can S.F.’s next mayor save Muni? – Part 6
One of the leading voices against the Central Subway project has been City Attorney and San Francisco mayoral candidate Dennis Herrera. Herrera said that he supported the project at the initial cost of $650 million, but now cost projections have reached $1.6 billion.
Posted inCity Hall, Transportation
Giving transit workers a boost will help improve the system: mayoral candidate Bevan Dufty on Muni
Can S.F.’s next mayor save Muni? – Part 5
Former supervisor and San Francisco mayoral candidate Bevan Dufty is standing up for the Muni operators. Dufty said he knows what Muni drivers go through each and every day and he wants to help them if he comes mayor. His plan is to offer life coaches to Muni operators and other city employees working on the front lines.