San Francisco Ballot Breakdown
U.S. Representatives
Most neighborhoods in San Francisco fall into District 12, but some in the south west are part of District 14. Both districts’ representatives are up for reelection this fall. Click here to find out which district you live in!
District 12
Shahid Buttar: Buttar is a progressive candidate who centers the Green New Deal in his climate policy proposals, advocates for housing as a human right and wants to abolish ICE. In July, some of Buttar’s former staff came forward with unsubstantiated claims of sexual harassment. Since then, Buttar has denied these allegations; some women revoked their accusations against him and some parts of the Bay Area progressive circles believe the accusations were an orchestrated smear campaign. Buttar’s policy visions align with the future Sunrise is working for, but our organization condemns any sort of sexual harassment. Buttar is endorsed by The People for Bernie, Our Revolution East Bay, Cornel West and Linda Sarsour, among others.
Nancy Pelosi (incumbent): Pelosi, the current house speaker and D12 representative since 1987, is a moderate and powerful Democrat and her policies do not align with Sunrise’s goals, principles and movement. She has repeatedly withheld support for the Green New Deal. Pelosi is endorsed by the California Democratic Party, San Francisco Labor Council, Planned Parenthood, the Sierra Club and many others.
District 14
Jackie Speier: Twelve-year incumbent Jackie Speier has worked to improve energy legislation with the Clean Air Rebate Act of 2009, the Home Star Act and the American Clean Energy and Security Act. She also voted to impeach President Trump in December 2019, has pushed for stricter gun laws and supports abortion rights. Speier also wants to end fossil fuel company subsidies and has opposed pipeline projects.
Ran Patel: Financial executive Ran Patel refers to himself as a fiscally moderate conservative and is a member of the Republican Party. He is an advocate for “legal immigration and safe borders,” is against rent control, and has explicitly cited his anti-Socialist beliefs. When it comes to the environment, he takes a market-first approach to climate change and mentions needing to “work with countries that have weak environmental controls, to reduce their carbon footprint.”
State Senate
District 11
Jackie Fielder (endorsed by Sunrise Bay Area): Jackie Fielder is an indigenous queer environmentalist, and a radical and frontline activist. She is a strong proponent of public banks that would administer programs to support investment in marginalized and historically disenfranchised communities. She will push hard to defund the police, promote and expand public welfare, make moves to tax the wealthy, put an end to fracking and increase Indigenous land sovereignty. She has demonstrated that she keeps to her values as she has rejected direct contributions from fossil fuel companies, rideshare companies, billionaires, and other “the 1%” entities. The Green New Deal is a top priority for her plans in office. She is also endorsed by the United Educators of San Francisco, California Progressive Alliance, the Affordable Housing Alliance and others.
Scott Wiener: Wiener is also progressive but more of an establishment Democrat, who has served as District 11’s state senator since 2016. He also supports the Green New Deal and has authored a number of bills addressing climate change and the state’s housing crisis. It is worth noting that he rejected state voluntary spending limits, resulting in his personal statement not being printed in the San Francisco Voter Information Pamphlet. Wiener is endorsed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the Human Rights Campaign, and many other elected officials, Democratic organizations, and unions.
State Assembly
District 17
David Chiu (incumbent): Chiu’s accomplishments so far include holding for-profit colleges accountable, defending immigrant worker protections, securing billions of dollars for affordable housing and the homelessness crisis and enacting renter protections during COVID. He is endorsed by the California Democratic Party, the Sierra Club and other organizations and elected officials.
Chiu’s challenger Starchild has not filled out their profile,but got fifty-six votes in the Super-Tuesday jungle primary.
District 19
John McDonnell: A member of the Republican Party, McDonnell is a tax attorney whose main issues are property crime and poor educational outcomes. Significantly clashing with Sunrise’s goals, he is opposed to green energy.
Phil Ting (incumbent): Though he is not a Green New Deal champion, Ting is a relatively reliable vote for progressive policies. He has expanded urban agriculture and helped restore Bay Area wetlands, helped homeowners invest in water and energy efficient technology, increased the number of students who receive Cal Grants to help pay for college and increased healthy food access for individuals on food stamps through farmers’ market programs.
Measure RR
This tax measure will appear on ballots in San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.
Proposition RR increases the sales tax in San Francisco, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties by 0.125% to generate about $108 million annually, creating reliable funding for Caltrain services over the next 30 years. The sales tax increase would not apply to essential needs such as groceries and medicine. Because around 70% of funding for rail services is solely from fare prices, Caltrain is at risk of shutting down due to COVID-19. Maintaining and improving Caltrain services to reduce pollution and decrease traffic to help fight climate change is difficult with no consistent budgeting. Low-income and working class families need reliable and affordable public transportation, especially when restrictions ease with COVID-19 and commuting rapidly increases on our roadways.
Concerns with Proposition RR relate to the 30 year commitment as well as the complicated county dynamics within the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board (JPB). Broad language within the proposition gives a theoretical “successor agency” control over the tax money generated in the future. It will disproportionately affect low income and working class people immediately because it is a regressive tax, and direct benefits toward these communities will take years to implement.
Notable supporters include Senator Dianne Feinstein, San Francisco Mayor London Breed and the Sierra Club.
Our recommendation: SURE.*
*No official endorsement.
San Francisco Board of Supervisors
Because San Francisco is both a city and a county, it has a Board of Supervisors but no City Council. The city is broken up into 11 districts, and supervisors are elected by the constituents in their respective districts. You can find out which one you live in using the same tool as above.
District 1
Connie Chan: Chan’s climate goals closely align with Sunrise’s GND goals, as she plans to develop a neighborhood climate resiliency plan, build sustainable neighborhoods, and develop a green workforce. She is a strong advocate for the preservation and production of 100% affordable housing in her district. Additionally, 65% of D1 constituents are renters and Chan will support strong tenant protections. She is strong on police reform and accountability, and is the only candidate in the race who said she would not support an increase in hiring to SFPD. Chan is endorsed by Sen. Kamala Harris, District Attorney Chesa Boudin, Bay Area Rising Action and many other local politicians, current supervisors and progressive organizations.
Sherman D’Silva: D’Silva’s main initiatives include creating safer and cleaner streets in the Richmon district, as well as implementing anti-graffiti and anti-crime initiatives. He states that he isn’t for or against rent control and his only policy proposal regarding SFPD is to enforce mandatory body cameras. D’Silva also wants to reserve entry-level city jobs for individuals transitioning out of houselessness or incarceration.
Amanda Inocencio: Inocencio is a lawyer who is advocating for cleaner streets, anti-crime initiatives and is against unhoused individuals living on the district’s sidewalks. She also mentions the city’s budget deficit and high cost of living as pressing problems in an article advertisement she placed in the Richmond review. Her policy proposals, however, are difficult to find as her website has not been updated beyond a “launching soon” message.
David Lee: Lee’s priorities include strengthening tenant protections, building more affordable housing and creating more housing options for unhoused people. He also wants to bring BART to the Richmond district, expand the Healthy SF insurance program’s coverage of Richmond residents, and increase diverse representation in local politics.
Andrew Majalya: Majayla lists affordable housing, clean streets and public safety as the issues most important to him if elected supervisor. He does not have a candidate website and did not elaborate on how to approach these issues in the candidate surveys he filled out.
Marjan Philhour: Born and raised in the Richmond, Philhour is a small business owner who wants to address the lack of affordable housing and houseless services, as well as increasingly dirty streets and rising unemployment rates her neighborhood is facing. When it comes to the environment, she wants to build transit-oriented housing and expand public transit infrastructure, and streamline climate-friendly policies. Philhour is endorsed by Mayor London Breed, YIMBY Action, San Francisco Renters Alliance and many others.
District 3
Aaron Peskin (incumbent): Currently serving his fourth term, Peskin has been stalling on ordinances to address climate change including opposition to the Caltrain tax and the new construction gas ban ordinance. He has helped create new and save old affordable housing, worked to protect tenants and advocated for small businesses during COVID-19. Peskin has endorsements from most of the current supervisors including Dean Preston, Matt Haney and Hillary Ronen, as well as Mayor London Breed and Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Sierra Club and the Affordable Housing Alliance are among the organizations that have endorsed him as well.
Danny Sauter: The executive director of the nonprofit Neighborhood Centers Together, Sauter says he is running to be a true voice of the North Beach and Chinatown neighborhoods. He wants to improve public transit in District 3 and expand bike lanes, look for areas to build more affordable housing and shift funding from police to communities most impacted by police violence. Regarding the gas ban, he said “I support removing natural gas in new construction and putting a competitive timeline together to phase it out from existing buildings, too. […] I do believe we should have narrow exceptions, for culturally-sensitive and dependent uses (such as a Chinese restaurant), but it’s an area we can make a lot of progress in over the next 5 years.” The Chinese American Democratic Club, YIMBY and the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition have endorsed Sauter.
Two more candidates, Stephen Schwartz and Spencer Simonsen, are also running but neither are considered to be very competitive challengers to Peskin.
District 5
Dean Preston (incumbent and endorsed by Sunrise Bay Area): Dean Preston has more than established himself as a very strong progressive on the board and is deserving of our support for making bold stances on tenants rights and policing. As part of a Green New Deal, Preston is a strong supporter of advancing our public transit service and infrastructure to encourage both a cultural and modal shift toward sustainable transportation systems that put an end to pollution from automobiles. He wants to see San Francisco build 10,000 affordable housing units in the next 10 years. He also wants to make Muni free by 2025 and create city-owned social housing on public land. He helped lead the fight to save rent control in 2008, formed California’s only statewide tenant rights organization, and wrote San Francisco’s groundbreaking law to provide a right to counsel for all tenants facing eviction.
Vallie Brown: Brown briefly served as District 5’s supervisor from 2018 to 2019 and was Mayor London Breed’s legislative aide when Breed served as the District 5 supervisor from 2013–16. Brown helped create CleanPowerSF and wants to create progressive solutions to the affordable housing crisis. She is endorsed by Mayor London Breed, YIMBY Action, Planned Parenthood and others.
Daniel Landry: Anti-establishment progressive challenger Landry endorses the Green New Deal, supports a moratorium on evictions & mortgage payments due to COVID-19 and wants to end mass incarceration, among other things. His stances align with Sunrise’s but our endorsement goes to Preston as his stances also align with ours and he has proven to be an effective progressive legislator. Landry is endorsed by the SF League of Pissed Off Voters and the San Francisco Green Party.
The fourth candidate, Nomvula O’Meara does not appear to be actively campaigning.
District 7
Joel Engardio: This is Engardio’s third run for the D7 seat. He is an award winning journalist and neighborhood advocate. He is running as a moderate. He is the founder of Stop Crime SF, whose mission is to “ensure the police, prosecutors, and judges do their jobs at the highest standard to keep everyone safe.” He’s earned endorsements from the United Democratic Club, the SF Realtors Association, State Senator Scott Wiener and Nancy Tung.
Myrna Melgar: Melgar is an urban planner and former president of the SF Planning Commission; she stepped down from that role to run for the District 7 seat. Originally from El Salvador, if she won, she would be the first woman to represent District 7 on the board and the first Latina since Susan Leal in 1994. Melgar’s campaign prioritizes the development of affordable housing in West Portal, Ingleside & Lake Merced. In addition to housing development, her campaign is focused on small business development and expansion of public transportation. She supports public safety alternatives to the police, and has the potential to be a swing vote on defunding the police initiatives. Current District 7 Supervisor and president of the BOS, Norman Yee, has reached his term limit and endorses Melgar to take his place, as do most of the other current supervisors. Melgar also has endorsements from the SF Democratic Party, Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club, San Francisco Black Residents, SF League of Conservation Voters, and more.
Vilaska Nguyen: Nguyen is a public defender and comedian in San Francisco. He’s campaigning on the platform of “Families First”. He is campaigning on a tough on crime platform, but claims he is strong on criminal justice reform, and is prioritizing fixing the broken criminal justice system, which causes displacement and homelessness. He says he is advocating for a more equitable San Francisco. Nguyen has endorsements from the Sierra Club, SF Berniecrats, SF Tenants Union, Supervisors Dean Preston & Matt Haney, District Attorney Chesa Boudin and more.
Four other candidates, Stephen Martin-Pinto, Ben Matranga, Emily Murase, and Kenneth Piper are also running, but the race is currently considered to be a three-way tie between Engardio, Melgar and Nguyen.
District 9
Hillary Ronen (incumbent): Ronen is running unopposed this election cycle.
District 11
John Avalos: Challenger and former District 11 supervisor, Avalos aligns with many of Sunrise’s principles and the five Green New Deal goals. His campaign platform focuses on a just recovery from the pandemic for all workers, climate justice, housing affordability, workers’ rights, criminal justice reform, and gender equity. Avalos is endorsed by Sierra Club, SF Rising Action Fund, SEIU Local 1021, and SF Tenants Union, as well as SF League of Pissed Off Voters.
Asha Safai (incumbent): Safai has led a swift effort to address COVID-19, providing essential workers with PPE, opening SFUSD meal sites and passing an emergency ordinance to give employees in San Francisco paid sick leave. During his time as supervisor, Safai has also created 600 new units of housing, 64 percent of which are affordable, and opened a job center in District 11. He is endorsed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, San Francisco Labor Council, many unions, Planned Parenthood and others.
Marcelo Colussi has very little information published for his campaign and seems to have very little political activity; most searches for his name come up with an SF Realtor company.
San Francisco Board of Education
Individuals can vote for up to four candidates.
Matt Alexander: Alexander is a former teacher who helped found the June Jordan School for Equity (JJSE) and was principal there for 10 years. JJSE enrolls many low-income Black and Latinx students but has worse literacy, math results, and graduation rates for these students than state averages. However about 60% of Black and Latinx JJSE students are eligible to attend UCs and/or CSUs, which is a higher rate than the state average. Alexander is currently an organizer with Faith In Action Bay Area, a grass-roots Christian social justice organization. He is endorsed by the United Educators of San Francisco, San Francisco Rising, and the SF League of Pissed Off Voters, as well as many current supervisors and local politicians.
Andrew Alston: Alston is a teacher whose campaign centers on the providing equitable access to education for all underserved students. He is focused on bridging the learning gap and needs access gap for distance learning during the pandemic. He hopes to help develop a safe transition and reopening plan for the entire SFUSD School District.
Kevine Boggess: A San Francisco native, Boggess is the Policy Director for Coleman Advocates for Children and Youth, which has been working on racial equity issues and organizing parents and students in SFUSD for over 30 years. The organization is currently focusing on the school district’s discipline policies. Boggess has also worked on equity issues with the United Educators of San Francisco and is endorsed by them, as well as the San Francisco Tenants Union, most current BOE members and city supervisors, and many other organizations and individuals.
Alida Fisher: Fisher is an active parent on several community boards. Her focus is on special education and she has significant credentials as an activist and community leader in this area. She is endorsed by State Senate candidate Jackie Fielder, District 11 Supervisor candidate John Avalos, and District 7 Supervisor candidate Myrna Melgar, as well as the SF League of Pissed Off Voters and many other progressive organizations.
Paul Kangas: Little online information available. Kangas’ statement in the official voter pamphlet includes his belief that vaccines cause individuals to lose the ability to read and write, and he advocates for opening all schools now.
Jenny Lam (incumbent): Lam was appointed to the school board by Mayor London Breed and won a special election last year to retain her seat. She also serves as Breed’s education adviser. Lam has worked with Alison Collins to get SFPD out of SF schools, reallocated school funding in a more equitable way and increased students’ access to social workers and nurses within their schools. She is endorsed by United Educators of San Francisco, Breed, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and most current city supervisors.
Genevieve Lawrence: Lawrence is a teacher in San Mateo whose priorities include providing additional support to underserved students, increasing teacher pay, and improving transparency and accountability on the Board of Education.
Michelle Parker: Parker is an active parent on several committees who advocates for state funding through the Second District PTA. She founded the SF Parent PAC, which generally supports moderate electoral candidates, including herself. Parker has a reputation for representing the interests of wealthier white parents within the district. She is endorsed by Mayor London Breed, supervisors Rafael Mandelman, Ahsha Safai and Catherine Stefani, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Senator Dianne Feinstein.
Nick Rothman: Rothman has managed the CCSF Trade Skills Departments for five years and his campaign focuses on the need for effective transitions from high school to vocational training and trades.
Mark Sanchez (incumbent): Public school teacher and current SF Board of Education president Sanchez is the only teacher on the board. He has worked to avoid budget cuts and to create affordable housing for teachers. Other priorities of his include implementing quality preschool for everyone and reducing high stakes testing. He is endorsed by the United Educators of San Francisco, the San Francisco Green Party, Board of Education Commissioner Jenny Lam and many educators and parents within the school district.
Community College Board
Individuals can vote for up to four candidates.
Dominic Ashe: Former union member and current futures trader, Ashe’s main focus is on addressing the College Board budget deficits and rectifying what he views as fiscal mismanagement.
Aliya Chisti: Chisti’s campaign focus is on breaking down cost barriers for students while also developing programs to guarantee graduate employment. She hopes to create more transparency to the public and student body regarding City College administrative operations and activity. She has a strong focus on community well-being and holds core values in equity and inclusivity. She is endorsed by the United Educators of San Francisco, San Francisco Green Party, SF League of Pissed Off Voters and many others.
Marie Hurabiell: Huriabell is an experienced education board official who served on the Georgetown University Board of Regents in the past. She has a passion for public service and assisting marginalized groups and communities. Her campaign platform is centered around duty and strict governance and anti-nepotism. She also hopes to address issues of budget accountability. Hurabiell has declined all endorsements in an effort to be a more independent representative if elected.
Anita Martinez: Martinez is a retired teacher who worked at City College for 28 years. If elected, she intends to focus on fiscal integrity, strong student services, a comprehensive curriculum with strong vocational training, promoting campus diversity, and implementing more environmentally conscious and sustainable practices in terms of operations, maintenance, and construction on campus. Martinez’s endorsements include the United Educators of San Francisco, the SF League of Pissed Off Voters, Bay Rising Action and a number of local Democratic clubs, as well as District Attorney Chesa Boudin and State Senate candidate Jackie Fielder.
Victor Olivieri: Olivieri, a college professor and first-generation college graduate, has four top priorities if elected: to expand Free City to cover all education throughout the San Francisco community, to expand the Workforce Education and Recovery Fund, build new facilities and student and faculty housing, and change state funding to ensure there is sustainable funding for all students. Olivieri is endorsed by Mayor London Breed, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and GrowSF, among others.
Geramye Teeter: Teeter is an explicit supporter and ally of Black Lives Matter and his campaign platform states he will ensure that taxpayer funds are allocated for creating, maintaining, and revitalizing career training programs. He also intends to implement fiscal policy that will resolve the chronic budget deficit. Teeter also works in sustainable management and is running on a Green New Deal platform.
Tom Temprano (incumbent): During his current term on the board, Temprano has helped ensure that SF City College’s accreditation was reaffirmed for the next seven years, secured full funding for the Free City program for the next 10 years, negotiated salary increases for faculty and staff salaries and helped pass an $845 million bond to rebuild classrooms. He also fought for new avenues of support for undocumented and LGBTQ students. Temprano is endorsed by the Sierra Club, the SF Tenants Union, and the League of Pissed Off Voters, among others.
Jeanette Quick: Quick’s campaign is focused on establishing financial stability for CCSF and she promises to end decades of financial mismanagement, increase private and public sources of capital and hire a new chancellor with expertise in balancing budgets. She wants to work closely with the faculty unions and student representatives and will aim to develop a job pipeline with local tech companies.
Shanell Williams (incumbent): First elected to the board in 2016, Williams has a history of advocacy for SF City College. Prior to her election, she was co-founder and a lead organizer for the Save City College Coalition during the accreditation crisis. If re-elected, she hopes to expand the Free City program, make community college education more available to marginalized and disenfranchised communities and wants to disarm campus police officers. One of her core values is social equity, and she hopes to improve access to the campuses by providing free public transit passes to students. She is endorsed by the Sierra Club, California Equity, many local Democratic clubs and other organizations and leaders.
Alan Wong: Wong is an education policy advisor in San Francisco City Hall and in his position, he helped secure a decade of Free College for San Francisco residents and expand City College into the Sunset District. He wants to increase job training, mandate fiscal oversight and close the achievement and opportunity gap for Black and Latinx students. Wong is endorsed by AFT Local 2121, San Francisco Tenants Union, and most of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, among others.
Han Zou: Zou is a pro-education activist who wants to bring his experience working with immigrant families to the table in the pandemic and post-pandemic economy. He hopes to create a path for those most affected by the pandemic to learn new skills through City College that will enable them to change careers. Zou is endorsed by ADT Local 2121, San Francisco Tenants Union, District Attorney Chesa Boudin and others.
BART Board of Directors
Depending on where in San Francisco you live, you may be represented by BART district 7, 8 or 9. Click here to find out.
District 7
Lateefah Simon (incumbent): First elected to the board in 2016, Simon was elected to serve as president of the BART Board in 2020. She is a champion of reform for the BART Police Department and has challenged the paradigm of the powerful BART Police Union. Simon is an advocate for civil rights, racial justice, and juvenile justice who centers her work around core values of equity, accessibility, and public safety for all. Though Sunrise did not vote on an endorsement in this race, Simon’s values and initiatives more closely align with the fifth Green New Deal principle of promoting justice. She is endorsed by Bay Rising Action, Berkeley Progressive Alliance, the Sierra Club and many other organizations and elected officials.
Sharon Kidd: Kidd is running on a platform to ensure BART is clean, reliable and safe. She wants to ensure public accountability on policing, but she is backed by the police union and according to the San Francisco Chronicle she “described a platform that would largely preserve traditional law enforcement, adding police officers to quell crime and keeping ambassadors to make trains more welcoming.”
District 9
Bevan Dufty (incumbent): Dufty, who has previously served as the District 8 supervisor and chair of the SF County Transportation Authority, is a strong advocate for transit-oriented development. He is also currently the Director of Housing Opportunity, Partnerships and Engagement (HOPE) for the city & county of San Francisco. Dufty is endorsed by BART Board President Lateefah Simon, the Sierra Club, San Francisco Young Democrats and others.
Patrick Mortiere: Mortiere works in Sacramento for a nonprofit but lives in San Francisco. He seeks to improve multimodal and active transportation (bus, bike & pedestrian) access to BART and lower BART’s reliance on fare revenue to operate; he hopes to work with the State Government in Sacramento to assist BART in its future endeavors. Mortiere is backed by the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition.
Michael Petrelis: Petrelis is an LGBTQ rights and AIDS activist. He does not appear to have an active campaign website.
David Young: Young is campaigning to revitalize BART, but his approach largely has to do with decreasing the number of unhoused folks who spend time on the trains and in the stations, in part by installing taller and more secure fare gates. He also wants to crack down on drug usage on BART and ban anyone caught using or selling drugs from BART. These policy proposals do not align with Sunrise’s values or goals.
San Francisco Propositions
PROPOSITION A — Health and Homelessness, Parks, and Streets Bond
This proposition for $487.5 million in bond money would provide $207 million for permanent and transitional housing facilities, shelters, and facilities for mental health and addiction recovery services; $239 million to be put toward parks, open space and recreation facilities; and $41.5 million for things like improving streets and curb ramps. Prop A supporters include Mayor London Breed and the entire Board of Supervisors and they argue that beyond these services, Prop A will also create thousands of new jobs to help the city recover economically. The proposition would not raise taxes. Other supporters include San Francisco Democrats, Boys & Girls Clubs of San Francisco, Black Women Organized for Political Action and the San Francisco Parks Alliance. Opponents include the Libertarian Party and the San Francisco Taxpayers Association.
Our recommendation: YEP.*
*No official endorsement.
PROPOSITION B — Department of Sanitation and Streets, Sanitation and Streets Commission, and Public Works Commission
If passed, Prop B would amend the city Charter to create a Department of Sanitation and Streets, which would be overseen by a Sanitation and Streets Commission. It would also establish a Public Works Commission to oversee the existing Department of Public Works. The Department of Sanitation would alleviate the DPW of some of its responsibilities and provide street sweeping and sidewalk cleaning, graffiti removal and restroom maintenance among other services. These changes are estimated to cost the city about $2.5–6 million annually. Proponents, including the San Francisco Labor Council and many San Francisco Supervisors, argue this change is necessary because San Francisco is one of the only major U.S. cities without a Department of Sanitation and that correlates directly to unsanitary streets. Opponents, including the San Francisco GOP, argue that it is expensive and further bureaucratizes the path toward cleaning the city.
Our recommendation: YEP.*
*No official endorsement.
PROPOSITION C — Removing Citizenship Requirements for Members of City Bodies
A Yes vote on this proposition will make it possible for non-citizen San Francisco residents to serve on city advisory and governance boards. This will allow a wider range of voices to advise City Hall on public policy issues like housing, education, and health-care. The Green New Deal calls for justice for migrant communities and this measure can help move us toward that goal.
Our recommendation: YEP.*
*No official endorsement.
PROPOSITION D — Sheriff Oversight
Under existing law the Sheriff’s Department (SD) is a state constitutional office with duties and power under state law. Though the SF Board of Supervisors may have duties to supervise the SD, state law prohibits the Board of Supervisors from interfering with the SD’s “independent constitutional and statutorily designated investigative and prosecutorial functions.” Prop D would establish a Sheriff’s Dept. Oversight Board (SDOB) and a Sheriff’s Dept. Office of Inspector General (OIG). The new board and office would review and investigate the operations of the SD as well as complaints against the SD. The SDOB and OIG would be able to hold hearings and subpoena witnesses and documents as well as mandate cooperation from other city departments. The estimated combined cost of establishing the board and office is between $2.4 to $2.9 million annually. Prop D is a step toward policing reform in SF as it creates new investigative and judicial tools to expose corruption and uphold accountability. Opponents of Prop D state that it simply adds more bureaucracy and is a waste of money. SF League of Pissed Off Voters and Indivisible SF endorse a YES vote on Prop D.
Our recommendation: YEP.*
*No official endorsement.
PROPOSITION E — Police Staffing
Under the current city charter and existing law, the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) must maintain at least 1,971 full-duty police officers. Prop E would revoke this mandatory minimum from the charter. It would also establish the need for the Police Chief and Police Commission to produce and provide annual, public staffing reports to justify the need for the amount of full-duty police officers. Prop E would open the door toward defunding the police through reducing the number of officers on the force, as well as creating an avenue for increased fiscal transparency and accountability when it comes to the police budget. Sunrise did not vote on endorsing this proposition, but does support defunding the police. A YES vote on Prop E is endorsed by SF League of Pissed Off Voters and Indivisible SF, and almost the entire Board of Supervisors.
Our recommendation: YEP.*
*No official endorsement.
PROPOSITION F — Business Tax Overhaul for Revenue
Prop F would increase taxes on tech companies and financial service firms, and establish a fairer business tax system by eliminating the payroll tax but increasing the gross receipts and administrative tax rates in phases and increase the business registration fee. The funding from these changes would go toward social improvement initiatives and services, including $700 million for early childhood care, education, homelessness initiatives and other city services. It would also help maintain baseline funding for the Municipal Transportation Fund, the Park, Recreation and Open Space Fund, the Housing Trust Fund and others. The prop would also expand small business tax exemptions. The SF League of Pissed Off Voters and Indivisible SF support a YES vote on Prop F.
Our recommendation: YEP.*
*No official endorsement.
PROPOSITION G — Youth Voting in Local Elections
This proposition would amend the city charter to allow San Francisco residents who are citizens to begin voting at the age of 16. This initiative aligns with the fifth principle of the Green New Deal, which includes preventing the oppression of youth. SF League of Pissed Off Voters and Indivisible SF support a YES vote.
Our recommendation: YEP.*
*No official endorsement.
PROPOSITION H — Neighborhood Commercial Districts and City Permitting
Prop H would partially deregulate the permitting process for small businesses in commercial districts and would streamline the process of having a use permit approved from a year to a month. It allows outdoor operations on sidewalks and parklets for small businesses and flexibility for allowed uses per business permits. The overhead costs of permitting for businesses would go down, but the city would need to hire more staff and dedicate more funding to meet the new costs of accelerated permitting. The SF Controller analysis stated that the costs increases to the City would be minimal to moderate. Indivisible SF declined to endorse on a decision, and SF League of Pissed Off Voters endorsed a NO vote.
Our recommendation: NAH.*
*No official endorsement.
PROPOSITION I — Real Estate Transfer Tax
Sunrise endorses a YES vote on Prop I!
This proposal will increase the Real Property Transfer tax rate on properties worth over $10 million, and will use that revenue for emergency rent relief and affordable housing for residents of San Francisco. Transfers of properties worth between $10,000,000 and $24,999,999 would be taxed at 5.5%, up from 2.75%; transfers of those worth at least $25,000,000 would be taxed at 6%, up from 3%. The city controller estimates this tax change would create an average revenue of $196 million. Sunrise concurs with Indivisible SF’s evaluation that this additional tax revenue can be used to invest in communities which are most impacted by the pandemic, and has voted to endorse a YES vote on this proposition. Other supporters include City Lights Books, the Sierra Club and the San Francisco Tenants Union.
PROPOSITION J — Parcel Tax for San Francisco Unified School District
Prop J would generate tax revenues of approximately $48.1M annually to be dedicated to teacher salaries, staffing, and other purposes with SFUSD. It sunsets an existing parcel tax of $320 per parcel, voted on and approved in 2018 as Measure G, and replaces it with a $288 per parcel tax. The goal is to retain good teachers, provide them with a living wage, and invest in modernizing and maintaining the school facilities, which would include investments in digital tools and equipment for distance learning. Opponents of Prop J state that it is unfair that all land parcels are taxed the same regardless of zoning or land use. The reason for replacing one parcel tax with another is that the $320 tax is tied up in litigation and unable to be used to fund schools. According to Indivisible SF, Mayor Breed is hoping to use this proposition to get around the current legal battle and fund schools more immediately. Indivisible SF and the SF League of Pissed Off Voters endorse a YES vote, as do the San Francisco Board of Education and the United Educators of San Francisco.
Our recommendation: YEP.*
*No official endorsement.
PROPOSITION K — Affordable Housing Authorization
Sunrise endorses a YES vote on Prop K!
Proposition K would authorize the city to own and construct, acquire or rehabilitate up to 10,000 residential units of affordable housing. This would meaningfully alleviate the existing, and now exacerbated, housing crisis in the midst of the pandemic. Sunrise endorses a Yes on this proposition, as do the Coalition on Homelessness, Housing Rights Committee and San Francisco Democratic Party, among others.
PROPOSITION L — Business Tax Based on Comparison of Top Executive’s Pay to Employees’ Pay
Prop L would create an additional tax on businesses in SF based on each business’s Executive Pay Ratio, beginning in 2022. If the highest-paid managerial employee makes more than 100 times the median compensation it pays employees, the tax would be enacted on the business. Further, the tax rates would escalate by 0.1% as the Executive Pay Ratio increases from 100:1 to 200:1 etc., capping at 0.6% for 600:1 and above. This ordinance is a step in the right direction for fair and just compensation across all industries as well as taxing big businesses appropriately. However, big companies could end up using contractors instead of employees and/or start outsourcing the work. The San Francisco Labor Council, most city supervisors, District Attorney Chesa Boudin, and many local unions are among those endorsing a YES vote on Prop L.
Our recommendation: YEP.*
*No official endorsement.
Sunrise Bay Area Guide
Oakland Guide
Berkeley Guide
This guide was written and edited by:
David Berney-Needleman
Gershon Bialer
Phoebe Bisnoff
Naomi Flagg
Malcolm Flint
Laretta Johnson
Massimo Lambert-Mullen
Jimmy Le
Jordan Lowe
Molly Morabito
Garrett Nichols
Charlotte O’Keefe Stralka
Ahlad Reddy
Sasan Saadat
Jamie Sheasley
Adam Singer
Noah Tenney
Melina Tessier
Elliott Wong
