San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
More on Campaign 2018
Online: The Chronicle breaks down all the races in the November election: www.sfchronicle.com/voter-guide
Insight: All of The Chronicle’s endorsements. Bay Area: Top goals for S.F. supervisors.
Each of the 11 members of San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors has priorities for the fall legislative season, and they’re as varied as banning workplace cafeterias, restricting takeout containers and regulating 3-D-printed guns. ¶ But binding many supervisors’ agendas together is a common focus on problems that have long defied attempts to solve them — initiatives that seek to move more homeless people off the streets and create more affordable places for residents to live.
The big question is how much they can get done before the end of the year.
The Chronicle asked each supervisor about their legislative goals for the rest of the year, and many of their responses reflected Mayor London Breed’s agenda: Open more of the one-stop homeless shelters called Navigation Centers, increase resources for the mentally ill and streamline the process of getting more housing units on the market.
Such congruency between the board and the mayor isn’t surprising after an election, said Jason McDaniel, a political science professor at San Francisco State University.
“That is a sign of the mayor’s agenda influencing
the (supervisors’) agenda ... and the board accommodating and finding areas where they can move forward,” he said. “You don’t want to attack someone who is popular. Or legislate in ways that heighten conflicts.”
It was a different story this time last year when the board was deeply split between the moderate and progressive factions and had few flagship achievements. Then the board faced a series of disruptions, including the unexpected death of Mayor Ed Lee and the ensuing scramble to replace him. Nearly a year later, the dust has yet to settle completely.
Five seats — Districts Two, Four, Six, Eight and 10 — will be contested in the November election. That means new members will need time to settle in and set their own priorities. And since board President Malia Cohen is termed out, there will be a new leader who can shake up committee assignments.
“Structurally, I don’t see how much more can happen,” David Latterman, a veteran political consultant, said of the next few months. “You have several lame ducks and a new board president . ... Why bother starting some initiative now when you don’t know how (the rest of the year) is going to play out?”
But McDaniel said he expects a “healthier environment” and “more cooperation” on the board, given that a new mayor is at the helm. He also said a lot of the tension could be gone for now because budget season, a time when supervisors clamor for funds to fulfill their own agendas, is over.
Or maybe, he said, the board and the mayor are just in a honeymoon phase.
“There will be conflict, there is no doubt about it,” he said.
Here is some of what the supervisors said San Francisco residents can expect from them over the next few months:
Trisha Thadani is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: tthadani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @TrishaThadani