Category: Action

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Lurie wants to make ballot arguments too expensive for small campaigns

By Tim Redmond : 48hills – excerpt

EXCLUSIVE: Dramatic increase in fees would help big-money and undermine grassroots groups. It goes before the supes Wednesday.

Mayor Daniel Lurie is moving to increase by a factor of five the cost of putting an argument in the ballot handbook, undermining the most affordable way for grassroots campaigns to reach voters.

Under his legislation, which no local news media has covered, the cost of an argument would increase from $200 and $2 a word to $1,000 and $10 a word by 2030. That would mean a 200-word ballot argument that now costs $600 would cost $3,000.

Five ballot arguments, a modest number for a lot of campaigns, would cost $15,000—more than many community-based campaigns could afford.

That would give big-money operations even more clout in San Francisco.

The measure comes before the Budget and Appropriations Committee Wednesday/17 at 1:30 pm… (more)

At the June GA meeting CSFN members voted to approve a letter objecting to this action. The letter sent to the Budget and Appropriations Committee. re: Ordinances 260603 & 260604.
CSFN Oppose Ballot Fee Increase

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A week of budget protests as Lurie’s brutal cuts hit everyone except the cops

By Tim Redmond : 48hills – excerpt

Games at City Hall are never ending as are the protests against them. If you are lucky the odds are tilting your way. Photo by zrants.

Plus: Letting big institutions off the planning hook—and yet another bizarre prosecution from DA Brooke Jenkins. That’s The Agenda for June 14-19

The Board of Supes Budget and Appropriations Committee will continue hearings on the mayor’s budget proposal this week—and City Hall will be filled with protesters. The People’s Budget Coalition plans a series of creative actions; here’s a rundown:… (see the schedule here)…

A full Civic Center spectacle will show what San Francisco looks like when the city funds communities instead of cuts. Community organizations, workers and residents will fill Civic Center Plaza with cultural performances, drag, dance, music, poetry, art-making, popular education, resource sharing, picnic blankets, banners, accessibility areas, pieces of the AIDS Quilt, and political theater calling on City Hall to restore the cuts. 10am, in front of City Hall… (more)

 

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Signature gatherers are out in force across S.F. Here’s why this year feels different

By Rachel Swan, Sara DiNatale : sfchronicle (audio)

In some parts of San Francisco, it’s virtually impossible to exit a grocery store without getting ambushed by people waving clipboards.

They are a familiar sight each election season, collecting signatures to put policy ideas before voters, lecturing anyone who will listen on why we need to fund buses or libraries, tax the rich and cut through the red tape. We’ve all heard versions of these speeches before, and we generally tolerate them, accepting ballot initiatives as an expression of the popular will. But this year the signature gatherers showed an unusual ferocity that crescendoed last week, when the state hit a suggested deadline for measures to qualify for November.

And still the gatherers refused to pack up. Now the focus has shifted to local and regional campaigns, including roughly a dozen would-be ballot measures circulating in San Francisco. People who wrap up petition drives in Southern California cities caravan to the Bay Area and quickly memorize scripts about the importance of bailing out BART and Muni, streamlining city contracts in San Francisco, and the proposed expansion of Mayor Daniel Lurie’s executive power. Voters can’t catch a break… (more)

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As S.F. pivots to mandatory drug treatment, DPH cuts counselor training at City College

by XUEER LU : Missionlocal – excerpt

End of free mental health training part of shift in CA towards housing, treating worst addiction cases

At his inauguration, Mayor Daniel Lurie promised to dedicate his time in office to tackling the city’s drug use and mental health crisis, even in the face of the city’s looming budget deficit.

In practice, cuts to programs that help tackle that crisis are coming anyway. Among them: City College’s Community Mental Health Certificate Program, a one of a kind 18-month program, training frontline mental health workers to use their lived experience for peer counseling with a chance to be licensed by the state.

The city’s Department of Public Health recently announced that its funding will end after its current five-year $2.15-million contract comes to an end. If it can’t find funding elsewhere, its last class will graduate in June 2027… (more)

Let me get this straight. SF just spent 14 million dollars on 25 sobering up chairs, but they are cutting 2.15 million to educate mental health workers. What are they going to do? Strap troubled people into the chairs? How long will they sit quietly while coming down? Who is running this outfit?

 

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Please Help the landowner of the four undeveloped lots at 1230 – 1240 Twin Peaks Blvd. donate his property

The lot owner would like to donate the property to either the city, the RPD and/or a nature conservatory.  He does not want to sell the property and have it developed for housing units.  He has asked the surrounding neighborhood, Midtown Terrace Home Owners Association (MTHOA) to take the lead in helping him donate his property.  To sign the “Donate the Land” petition contact: Midtownterrace.org

If the property were to be donated, it would remain in its natural state and probably be planted with California native plants.  The landowner would also donate $50,000 towards property maintenance.

This property is at the gateway of the Panorama Drive side of Twin Peaks Blvd.  If the donated lots were kept in a natural state, they would greatly compliment the entrance of the new Promenade that is being built on the top of Twin Peaks.

Twin Peaks is the second-highest natural point in San Francisco (922+ feet), surpassed only by Mount Davidson.  Unofficially the number two (2) tourist destination by volume, Twin Peaks is a premier, world-famous attraction renowned for offering the best 360-degree, panoramic views of the City and Bay.

TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE:If the landowner cannot donate his property, it will be sold to a developer. This will lead to prolonged construction, an unattractive building, public safety issues, parking problems, traffic congestion, noise, quality of life concerns for surrounding residents and increases in crime. Please Contact: MidtownTerrace.org and Myrna Melgar 415-554-6516 or MelgarStaff@sfgov.org

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S.F. supervisors, past and present, arrested at SFO anti-ICE protest

By  Marina Newman : missionlocal – excerpt

Board President Rafael Mandelman and congressional candidate Supervisor Connie Chan among those arrested at May Day protest.

San Francisco city officials, including Board President Rafael Mandelman and Supervisor Connie Chan, and a California state senator were arrested at San Francisco International Airport on Friday during a May Day protest against conditions for airport workers and federal immigration agents’ presence in airports across the country.

The airport workers’ union picketed for higher wages and fully funded healthcare. Activist groups who joined the protest on Friday decried Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s presence at airports…

Chan, Mandelman and other city and state officials, including state Sen. Josh Becker and former supervisor Jane Kim, blocked the street to the international terminal, holding a banner in support of the union…

At 1 p.m., approximately one hour after Chan and other city officials were arrested, the San Francisco Police Department released a statement saying that there are “no arrests or reports of injuries at this time.”…(more)

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Break up PG&E?

By Sam Maslin : sfchronicle – excerpt

We should first try fixing the California Public Utilities Commission

As we gear up for the 2026 election season, Pacific Gas and Electric Co. is in the crosshairs. Tom Steyer is running for governor and loudly vowing to “break up” the electric utilities. Meanwhile, in the San Francisco congressional race to replace Nancy Pelosi, all three major candidates — Scott Weiner, Saikat Chakrabarti and Connie Chan — support a takeover of the city’s electric system.

Politicians and voters have every right to be upset at PG&E. Rates have gone through the roof as the company has presided over a string of deadly failures and costly outages. But moves to take over the grid should give us pause. San Francisco City Hall, with pressing challenges and its own history of mismanagement, seems ill-equipped to launch an electric utility, and advocates of municipal power are often unrealistic about what would be involved. There are better ways to get the electric system we want.

Here’s the thing: The large investor-owned utilities are already publicly controlled. As state-sanctioned monopolies, they are comprehensively regulated by the California Public Utilities Commission, which has the responsibility to approve their actions. So if we’re unhappy with the utilities, why don’t we just try regulating them better?

We should be asking much more of the five members of the commission, who are appointed by the governor. As a developer of solar and energy storage projects in California, I have seen firsthand how our regulators have failed to produce effective energy policy or to provide even a modest check on the utilities.

The truth is, the commission has not been meeting the moment…

Now’s the time for a fresh start. Leadership is turning over at the commission, and we’ll soon elect a new governor who will appoint new regulators. As voters, we should be asking pointed questions and demanding better results.

Can we unpack the rate increases? How are costs categorized, and do we agree? What returns are utilities receiving on their investments, and are they appropriate? Are there more cost-effective solutions to grid challenges that aren’t being considered? How can we empower communities to develop the next generation of energy assets?…

Let’s organize with our neighbors — using existing groups and forming new ones. Let’s take a hard look at utility profits and, in this era of budget cuts and hard choices, insist that they do belt-tightening just like the rest of us. Let’s increase the pace of energy development and fight for the right to develop local resources to prevent future blackouts, just as PG&E has.

We should be unabashed about these goals with the incoming governor’s administration. We want a transformed utility system and intend to work effectively across the different stakeholders to effect real change. Of course, we can always keep a city takeover in our back pocket…

Ultimately, there isn’t one solution to our energy woes. The grid is a large, multilayered system, and we have to do many things at scale to ensure that we have the energy we need over the coming years. But having regulators who recognize the urgency of the situation is a must, and right now, we don’t.

So we can keep talking about a long-term breakup with PG&E, but let’s recognize that we have the opportunity to demand better outcomes now… (more)

Sam Maslin is CEO of Eddy Energy, a developer of community energy storage projects, and the president of the Noe Valley Democratic Club in San Francisco.

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Keep Crocker Real

 

By Keep Crocker Real released files this week. A lot is at stake. We need to hear your voices. Thursday, February 19, at 10:00am, City Hall, room 416. It’s item 9 on the agenda:

 

 

SYNTHETIC TURF PROGRAM – POLICY AND PROTOCOLS
You can documents on our website: keepcrockerreal.com/files

While you still can consider visiting Hummingbird Farm on February 22, from 11:00am to 2:00pm. where we will hang artwork from our If Nature Could Talk event on the 100+ trees Rec & Park intends to cut down. (We won’t damage the trees.) This is a great way to pay tribute to the historic trees and wildlife that will no longer be around if the “renovation” plan goes through unchanged.

If you want to learn more about the harms of plastic, author Judith Enck’s is giving a talk at the Commonwealth Club titled, The Problem with Plastic on Thursday, February 19 at 5:30pm.

This fight for a better neighborhood park isn’t over yet. We look forward to meeting and working with you soon. keepcrockerreal.com

Calmatters has a number of articles on various attempts made by state legislators to stop the installation of Astroturf. If any of these legislators are still in office, one might contact them to find out how you may help them bring the matter forward again.

Key  Legislative Actions and Trends

  • California SB 676 (2023): Signed into law, this allows cities and counties to restrict or ban the installation of artificial turf on residential properties. It effectively reverses a 2015 law that had prohibited local governments from doing so to encourage water-wise landscaping. This is why Rec and Park is holding hearings on the matter now.
  • California AB 1423 (2023): Proposed legislation that aims to ban the manufacturing and sale of artificial turf containing PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances).
  • Colorado SB24-081 (2024): Prohibits the installation of artificial turf containing intentionally added PFAS on state property starting January 1, 2026.
  • Local Bans: Certain municipalities, such as Boston, have implemented prohibitions on installing new artificial turf in city parks.

Environmental and Health Concerns Driving Legislation

  • Chemical Exposure: Studies have found PFAS, lead, and BPA in artificial turf materials, which can leach into the environment and be ingested or absorbed by users.
  • Microplastics: Turf breaks down into microplastics that wash into water sources.
  • Environmental Impact: Artificial turf creates “heat islands,” reduces biodiversity, and prevents soil aeration
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California’s blockbuster legislation faces rocky rollout

By Sam Dillon : msn – excerpt

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/californias-blockbuster-housing-legislation-faces-rocky-rollout/ar-AA1W4Md0?ocid=socialshare

There is a bit of a disconnect between theory and results with the Wiener bills. Art by sfbluecomics.

Commentary:  How long can you hold a citizenry hostage to a crisis? 

Mass confusion over the meaning and implementation of SB79, which amounts to unlimited growth near mass transit, is sweeping California’s largest cities that are targeted by the one of the most draconian bills ever devised. After turning over the Pacific coastline to developers, and blaming cities for the housing shortage, Senator Wiener, has managed to make almost everyone mad at him. Now it turns out his penchant for writing long, detailed, prescriptive bills is not playing well with the public or city officials who are charged with enforcing what has been described as developer wet dreams.

Give the anger and confusion over SB79 in his district is giving Scott Wiener’s competitors a boost. He is rumored to be considering a delay in implementation of the bill as he seeks support for his new power move to Washington to replace Pelosi. 

In his haste to divide and conquer Wiener has succeeded in dividing both his friends and foes, often referred to as YIMBYS and NIMBYS. Wiener is not enjoying a lot of support from the press either. He relies heavily on the Abundant crowd in Silicon Valley, that his constituents are being hammered by. If you were not recently laid off by a high tech firm, you may have lost your income to Waymo or been evicted from a gentrified neighborhood.

Wiener is fighting a Dead horse that is obvious to everyone but him and people are ready to fight back.

There are some gems in this article that covers a lot of the history of how we got here and where the Wiener of the world want us to go. Here are a couple of pull-quotes from the article: