Were you one of the roughly 185,000 people that, according to the SF Department of Elections, voted in San Francisco yesterday? If so, when you entered the voting booth you were presented with a host of state and local propositions that could potentially have a huge impact on everything from police accountability to affordable housing. Let's take a look at the results.
Proposition A — Public Health and Safety Bond (Passed)
Passing with just shy of 80 percent of the vote, local measure A means San Francisco will issue $350 million in general obligation bonds with the multifaceted goal of making seismic improvements to both SFFD buildings and homeless service centers, and building an ambulance deployment center. This measure easily cleared the two-thirds majority of votes threshold it needed to pass.
Proposition B — Park, Recreation and Open Space Fund (Passed)
San Franciscans loves their parks, and despite recent apparent missteps, it appears they also love the Recreation and Parks Department. Local measure B, which give Rec and Parks "each year a minimum baseline amount from the General Fund," passed with 60 percent of the vote and means more money for the department. The Chron informs us that the measure amounts to a $3 million increase, per year over the next ten years, on top of Rec and Parks' current $64 million budget.
Proposition C — Affordable Housing Requirements (Passed)
Prop C was a local measure designed to "increase affordable housing requirements for private developers of new market-rate housing projects of 25 or more units." With the current requirement at 12 percent, the passing of the measure with over 67 percent of the vote means the amount of affordable housing developers will be forced to build into their units has more than doubled. What's more, the measure removes the requirement from the City Charter and places it in the control of the SF Board of Supervisors — meaning they can now pass ordinances to adjust the percent of affordable housing required in future developments. The measure was written by Supervisors Aaron Peskin and Jane Kim, and according to the Chronicle ups the 25 percent number to 33 percent if the affordable units are built at a separate location.
Proposition D — Office of Citizen Complaints Investigations (Passed)
With numerous high-profile police shootings in the city's rear-view mirror, the overwhelming passage of local measure D with 80 percent of the vote is perhaps not a huge surprise. The proposition requires that "the Office of Citizen Complaints investigate any incident occurring within the City in which a San Francisco police officer fires a gun killing or physically injuring someone," and was the work of Supervisor Malia Cohen. The Chronicle observes that prior to the passage of this measure, a complaint had to be filed for there to be an investigation. The police union came out in support of this measure.
Proposition E — Paid Sick Leave (Passed)
This local measure brings San Francisco's paid sick leave policy in line with state policy, "without reducing the Paid Sick Leave Ordinance’s coverage." The passage of E expands the legal uses of paid sick leave for San Francisco employees — it passed with 78 percent of the vote.
Proposition 50 — Suspension of Legislators (Passed)
This state measure passed with almost 84 percent of the vote, and allows the state legislature to suspend fellow members — without pay or benefits.
Proposition AA — San Francisco Bay Clean Water, Pollution Prevention and Habitat Restoration Program (Passed)
The passage of this district measure allows for a parcel tax of $12 per year, with the goal of funding protections for the San Francisco Bay in the form of "reducing trash, pollution and harmful toxins, improving water quality, restoring habitat for fish, birds and wildlife, protecting communities from floods, and increasing shoreline public access." Twenty-five million is expected to be raised annually over the course of the next 20 years.
