an organization within pullman advocates. i think students having to make some much money to get to school is ridiculous. students cannot pay to get on the bus to get to school. the excuse of not having money to get to school should not be there. every student should go to school no matter what. that money should not be excuse, especially when you go to a public school for free education. san francisco has one of the best muni systems in the country. everyone praises our bus system, but it comes at the price of our citizens. we struggle to pay to get on these buses, whether it be not having 75 cents or not having $20. i have people from my organization here.

we believe that since this is a youth issue, it is not for the adults to come out and say what they feel. we need the user's voice to tell you how this is affecting them. adults just back up. thank you. [applause] supervisor campos: before you speak, and when to call a few more cards. the ellington, judy hwang, calvin trang, ernest stortz from power, cheryl chan, jesus perez. >> i am the district for youth commissioner. i go to school in the sunset. most students do not work. since right now there are no such things as neighborhood schools anymore, we all have to

bus to school. school buses in high schools are being cut right now. i hope a youth fast pass can be implemented. even though it is not for all youth in san francisco, i believe this is a great start. thank you. >> i am a youth commissioner as well as a student at balboa high school. i believe the voice of youth should matter and does matter in the democratic process of san francisco government. the duty of the commission, according to the city charter, is to meet the needs of san francisco youth and look for possible policy changes to meet those. that is why we are here today on valentine's day. i have met with mr. chu from the san francisco unified school district.

i understand the hardship about how to implement this. as a youth commissioner, i would love to work with the board of supervisors, sfmta, sfusc, and community organizations to make this happen. >> my name is judy. i am here to speak about the youth passes. >> my name is rosa. i go to washington high school. >> i go to lincoln high school. we are youth leaders from chinatown [unintelligible] i take three buses to sunset district. it takes one hour to get to

school. i need to be in school by 7:30 am my family does not have a car. public transportation is important to us. the main importance for us is that muni is there. you must have a pass. but the rate to keep increasing. just make 20, 2009, increased 100%, from $10 to $20. it caused economic hardship for families. furthermore, the school district cut transport on the school bus. please encourage munich and the school district to follow through on the city's promise to provide transportation to low- income youth. thank you. supervisor campos: thank you

very much. next speaker. >> good evening and happy valentine's day. my name is roger cue. i go to galileo high school. i am part of the youth organization aaa. every morning, i ride the 8x. i live on the other side of town. it takes about an hour. me and my brother both attend galileo high school. every month, we have to pay $20 just for a youth pass. i have known that this youth lifeline has been already there. the money is already there. i was wondering why you guys have not used it yet. we could be saving this money

for other things to help pay the bills. thank you. [applause] supervisor campos: thank you. next speaker. >> my name is kevin trang. i am part of the campaign academy, part of chinatown's muni development center. i am in a family of four, living in visitation valley and attending galileo high school. i ride the abx and 45 to my school. i am not qualified for free lunches, but i have many friends who qualify for free lunches. they live across the city and every month it is hard for them to pay for their fast passes. since there is only $1.50 million that was supposed to be used for the lifeline this year, i was wondering why in has not been used.

i would like this money to be used for free passes this year. there are currently three months left for this year. i would like to urge you to pass this this year to create the youth lifeline passes. i wish you a nice day. supervisor campos: i am good to call a few more cards. martino, maria luz-torre, jorge tohama. >> good afternoon, supervisors. i am a volunteer for power. although i am here to ask that you pass the resolution for fast passes, i would also like to ask

that you consider how public transportation supports the economy of the city of san francisco. free bus passes are unimportant steps, but only -- are an important step, but only the first step. many cities offer free transportation to all of their residents. please consider how it supports the economy of san francisco. three fast passes are a first step. thank you. supervisor campos: thank you very much. next speaker, please. >> my name is jesus perez. i am from south of market. i hope you guys pass this and help the youth. thank you. [applause] >> my name is cheryl chan.

i go to lowell high school and support the student advisory council. we understand there are many students in the district who cannot afford to pay $20 a month to take the bus. i have one friend, who lives across the city, can she cannot afford her bus pass, so every day after school, she waits at school for 3.5 hours so she can wait for her mom to come and pick corrupt, because she has no other way to get home, a -- and pick her up. it is important to everyone has an equal chance for transportation. thank you. >> gweneth start days -- buenos

tardes. [speaking spanish]

>> my name is jorge. i am a member of power. i have children who are tin years old and 12 years old, and it is also difficult for them to transport themselves around the city, and we have a hard time to give them money to go around the city and go to rec centers and have different experiences. when i was younger in trying to survive, the youth are having a hard time surviving. sometimes, the transfer has expired. they are given tickets on the

buses, not only on the buses but outside the buses, so i am seeing that the youth are suffering, and that is why i am asking for the passes, especially for students and for parents who are trying to support their families. >> speaking spanish -- [speaking spanaisish]

>> i think it would please people in city hall to see a are you feel secure, be secure in their transportation, because they are the future, it and it is an investment in their studies, -- to see our youth pecan -- used to feel secure -- youth feel secure. supervisor avalos: next speaker, please. >> i am with children and youth, but basically, i am here today because i am the parent of two teenagers who will have to take the bus to and from school, and this kind of relates to what i am one to speak about today, and it is the issue of safety of our children and decriminalization

of our children on muni. children of young people who got citations, and that is a $250 ticket. not having a fast test or not being able to afford it but also being criminalize for having an expired ticket or having forgotten your ticket. my son and i, we had to go to juvenile court because of a $250 ticket. he is not alone. last year, many people got citations, and it is safety for him, because he would have to walk miles because he would not get me. -- dittmer u.d. -- get muni. i think it is not fair that children cannot go on buses. everything but the parents and

said so far. but one other thing we have to pay attention to is the criminalization of our children. when our son was in court, he had to do community service, and he had to hear a speaker who was an ex-convict. it is because it is part of the bill. and he said he is their peak as he lost his 50 cents tickets, and everybody laughed, because they were shoplifting or something. [bell] this would address a lot of safety issues for our children. he would be here, but i just dropped him off. thank you. supervisor avalos: the thank you. next speaker, please. i have no more cards, so if somebody else wants to speak, please line up.

>> ][speaking spanish] could coleman -- >> good afternoon, members, supervisors. my name is -- and i am here to

ask for your support for the fast passes. i am the mother of two children with asthma. we would not only use the fast pass to go to school for my children, but my children have to go to the hospital 10 times during the month for appointments or emergencies, and there is just no other way for me other than walking or taking the muni for to the funds to take a taxi, so if there is an emergency or an attack, that is what we do. we know you have supported many things that the community cares about. we're also concerned sometimes about some of the choices that are made about funding, so do the right thing today in and help us with the fast pest.

-- fast pass. thank you, and good afternoon. >> good afternoon. i am with a collaborative. the young people spoke so eloquently about how important the transportation is for their needs and how much time they spend on their every single day to make a better life for themselves, so what i am going to touch about is how great the city we live in, a look we are to live in a city like san francisco the operas in so many -- that offers so many opportunities it. a lot of our families, i would say 100% in some areas, do not have cars, so public transportation is the only way

to go to the academy of science, to spend the day at ocean beach, where to go for a walk in golden gate park. this is, for us, a key issue, because we're able to provide that great city that we all fought so hard to maintain for the young people and the next generation when we provide these. it is not just access for school and bettering their opportunities and attendance, all very, very important things. some items were touched on, safety and security issues, but we're building a city for the young people, and we need to make that accessible to them, and that is really, really important, and therefore, we think you for your support.going forward. thank you. 2 supervisor avalos: thank you. next speaker, please. >> my name is -- i am a member

of the parent advisory council. i am also the member of another group. i am here to support free transportation for students. education is a right, and getting to school should be, as well. there is an issue of safety, but each time a child does not show up due to lack of money, the school district loses so much money. multiplied that by so many students each day, and this should be the incentive to provide free transportation to all of our students in san francisco. san francisco is one of the biggest city in the united states. i am asking you to please be the voice of our children. thank you.

supervisor mar: thank you. next speaker. >> [speaking foreign language] >> good afternoon, supervisors. i am the member of a group, and i am here to support this. i have three children who go to school, and this resolution will really help my family in order to go to school and to the kids

doctor's appointments without me having to worry about how to get there. i am looking for a job right now, so this would really help my family. thank you. supervisor mar: thank you. >> good afternoon, supervisors. my name is angela irca. i am here to speak on behalf of the three a hundred families that we help each month to get a pass from the school district. this resolution would help the families that are getting these but also the ones that are not able to. right now, the free bus passes -- the number to supplier families are limited, and some have to double up. when you're talking about some families who are not able to access that program who live south of market, so we hope that

this resolution moves forward. it will really help the families not only get their children to school, but there are so many aspects of using the muni, and they would not have to worry about getting their families to other parts of their daily lives. we hope this means forward. thank you. supervisor mar: thank you. next speaker. >> i am with the youth commission. we are here to ask this to go forward and hope to the calendar tomorrow for the full board meeting. we hope that this committee and the full board tomorrow and i do the presentation from staff, it was really encouraging. we want to show the young people

some love. not just the board but in part for city staff for various departments and the school district about why the commission has been advocating for this for over a year. the initial resolution that the commission adopted actually happens february 1, 2010. last year, asking about delays, and our steadfast commitment to the fast pass, charging the board of supervisors and the mayor on behalf of our young people. this makes manifest the need for affordable fussed passes. in the 2008-2009 school year,

west and 60,000 schoolchildren qualified for the reduced free lunch. there was the great recession of 2008 that has definitely subsided. public agencies like the m.t.a. are going to be facing projected budget deficits in the years to come. families are facing the same thing going forward in the years to come. the numbers will go up. it will be higher. it is also worth noting, some of the young commissioners, some of the public comment by organizers from other community, organizers, there is a demonstrative need from young people who go to parochial schools. proportionally, more go to these types of schools. proportionally. this is not to say the all of these people are sitting pretty, so, perhaps, going for, there

will be a way for the city to partner to make that happen. but i think it is worth mentioning that in a survey we conducted of over 40 hundred 50 public high school students, the vast majority of them procure all high-school students, more selective cheaper buses and trains. they would like to improve muni other than the other options they were presented with. i would like to thank the office of supervisor camps, -- campos, is deaf, and others. we have worked really hard to make this happen, and we really hope that, in fact, on april 1, they will get a fast passes. please go ahead and urge the mta board to show the low-income young people some love.

thank you. happy valentine's day. supervisor mar: thank you. next speaker. >> hi. my name is lorielle, and i am also a member of power. i am here to ask of the resolution but. it is something we can do in april. " 12,000 kids. everything else that they have to do because they do not have the money to afford the cust -- pass. what it means to be young people who do not have 75 cents to pay the bus.

you know what is going to happen, right? $75 from your family because you do not hunt of 75 cents. they want their friends to come to the library, but they don't have 75 cents. i am hungry, and maybe i have to pay this, it and i do not have 75 cents, even the small amount of money. that would be my fair -- fare. they have this feeling many, many days of their life. they live in a city with nice views