Election 2005: Interview with Jose Cisneros

What would be your top priorities as treasurer if elected?

1. Aggressive tax collection and wise investments are the best ways to raise money for the City and County of San Francisco. This year we added personnel to the Tax Collection Department, which enabled us to collect more delinquent tax revenue than we anticipated. Overall, the Treasurer’s Office was able to bring in millions more than projected from business taxes and property taxes. Next year, we are looking to continue making improvements to increase our tax collections. The Treasurer’s Office aggressively collects tax revenue and ensures that all tax laws are strictly enforced and that everyone pays their fair share.
   
   
2. One of the most important jobs the Treasurer can do is promote financial literacy and programs.
   
   
3. As Treasurer, I will continue the hugely successful Working Families Tax Credit Program to help lower-income San Franciscans get what they deserve on their tax returns. . Last year San Francisco citizens – and our local economy – lost out on over $12,000,000 in federal earned income tax credits. In January 2005, I launched the Working Families Credit Program, an easy application process to help low-income families secure these funds. The program ensured that qualifying residents signed up for the earned income tax credit as well as our local program that provides a public/private partnership monetary match to the federal program. Over 11,000 applications were submitted, double the number expected. These families have already received more than $15 million in federal money. This is money that they can use to make ends meet, save for the future, and spend in our local economy to create jobs and fuel our economy.
   
   
4. I will also work to expand Bank on San Francisco so we can make San Francisco the most banked City in the Country. The problem of check-cashers is pervasive in San Francisco, and I am taking action. It’s estimated that around 22% of San Franciscans in some communities are unbanked, and as a result, they are paying exorbitant fees at check cashing businesses. I am addressing this issue in several ways. I am working to promote bank accounts to unbanked San Franciscans. Through my Bank on San Francisco campaign, I am negotiating with banks across San Francisco to provide basic low or no-cost accounts to the thousands of recipients of the Working Families Credit. I want to ensure that we provide our Working Families Credit recipients—who are all raising children while making under $36,000 in a very expensive city—with the ability to take their check to a bank, open a low or no-cost account, and start building assets. I am also looking at ways my office can work cooperatively with state agencies to crack down on unlicensed check cashing and payday lending businesses in San Francisco—so we can make sure the state laws are being enforced. Finally, I have met with banks and credit unions and with the Mayor’s Office of Economic and Workforce Development to promote San Francisco neighborhoods that are not traditionally viewed as market opportunities.

Do you have any ideas about new ways The City might increase revenues? How about decreasing expenses without cutting services?
As City officials, I feel that it is necessary to ensure that we are collecting every dollar that is owed to us before we go to the taxpayers and ask them for additional taxes. As I have stated before, we currently have the lowest property tax delinquency rate of all time—something I am very proud of.

Thanks to ranked choice voting, we can vote for candidates in order of preference -- who might you vote for as your second and third choice in this race?
All of my fellow candidates have unique abilities, but I believe that I bring the most experience and qualifications to the office of Treasurer. I will only be voting for myself in the race for Treasurer.

Give our readers what you feel is the best reason they should vote for you:

1. I am the only candidate with experience managing and investing multi-billion dollar budgets.
   
   
2. As Treasurer, our office was able to bring in millions more than projected from business taxes and property taxes resulting in millions of unanticipated revenue for the City, which helped to halve the size of the City’s budget deficit. Next year, we are looking to continue making improvements to increase our tax collections.
   
   
3. I am the only candidate, and the only Treasurer in San Francisco history, that has created social programs in the Treasurer’s office to promote financial justice; the San Francisco Working Families Tax Credit and Bank on San Francisco.

If elected, have you thought about starting a blog, a la Chris Daly? We'd totally read it!
I haven’t considered that. Thanks for the suggestion.

One last question: Can you share with us a favorite "Only in San Francisco" story?
I’m proud to launch ground-breaking financial justice programs that are already serving as models for other U.S. cities.