The San Francisco Board of Supervisors budget committee reached an agreement Thursday to restore some funding for social services to Mayor Gavin Newsom’s proposed $6.5 billion budget.
“This budget restores the most critical city services in our communities,” budget committee chair John Avalos said in a prepared statement.
The budget package, to be forwarded now to the full board for review, restores about $40 million dollars to city services and programs, according to Avalos.
About $6.5 million will be restored to youth and family services; $2 million to adult and aging services; $1.5 million to job creation and employment services; and $3.5 million to mental and behavioral health services, Avalos said.
“It doesn’t save every program, but it represents a cooperative effort between budget stakeholders that balances the budget responsibly–without disproportionately burdening our city’s most vulnerable,” he said.
“We’re pleased the Board of Supervisors took another step in the budget process,” Newsom spokesman Tony Winnicker said today. “But clearly some questions remain about where the money is going to come from.”
San Francisco is trying to resolve a $483 million budget deficit projected for the coming fiscal year.
Winnicker added that the mayor remained confident he and his staff would be able to work with the board “to sign a balanced budget that protects vital services, without new taxes, by the end of the month.
“And that’s what matters,” he said, “Not a lot of cities in California can make that statement right now.”
As part of its budget package, the budget committee also rejected the privatization of city services such as jail health services, custodial and security services, according to Avalos’ office.
Earlier, supervisors additionally rejected a proposal in Newsom’s budget to set a one-time fee for property owners to convert their apartments into condominiums that would have raised an estimated $8 million.
The full board will vote on whether to adopt the budget on July 20. If approved, a second vote would come the following week, and the budget would then need to be signed by Newsom.
