accelerate over time because that is the nature of the trades and the nature of california's population. with regards to the provision of a work force and our commitment, we have the advantage of unions of having national networks for workers. we have a consistent level of training across the country for our apprenticeship training. we have the ability to go on line and make phone calls -- to go online and make phone calls. believe me, for a lot of trades, they are happy to come work at the higher wages they find in san francisco than they would find in omaha or in lubbock, texas. with regard to the threshold question, in those pla's where we have had a threshold, they have had the possibility of geographically distinct work, so you do not have workers working

under profoundly different standards side by side. in the school district, they have threshold, but that is so you can set aside the best schools over there as exempt from the pla. we insist, and i think anybody who looks at the school district will know that the pla does not exclude non-union contractors -- [bell rings] i could keep going if you let me go. >> i was not suggesting that we have a threshold. it is just a frequently asked question. i was not suggesting that we have one. >> where we have had public sector pla's that have non-union participation, it has not excluded small businesses. there are specific things you could do -- [bell rings] anyway, you're sort available for questions.

>> thank you. -- anyway, i am available for questions. >> thank you. >> thank you. market representative local 22. going on 31 years. i cannot believe it. i do want to commend maria ayerdi for a job well done. i know dealing with these construction workers on pla -- i commend you. they have proven that they do work. a couple of good points have been brought on the apprenticeships program. it so happens that local 22 recently sat down -- we had a very good conversation with school superintendent carlos garcia, and he was like,it was'g

baby steps right now in implementing that. it is very important. even people say, why are we doing high school? i said, ok. it is a lot of work, but we can do it. again, it is baby steps. not everybody -- no, you can go to college. they do not want to go to college but that is it. i did it for two years. that was it for me. it is possible. we're looking at it. again, it is going to be baby steps. i am looking forward to that, and it is very important. i also want to stress, you know, on the apprenticeship program, my boss, mike brown, when he mentioned, you know, what is key to this split on the a condition is, like, we have our nine-week boot camp training. we stress the importance of safety. safety, safety, safety.

and i am the market representative, and i deal with a lot of these contractors they said, you know, why join the union? well, you know what, we have the training. the training and the safety. that is key. that is important. tell me what you have. we do not have anything. let's sit down. one, two, three, and we explain it to them. i see. ok, and they come over. that is the key to this, safety. very important. again, thank you very much. supervisor kim: thank you. >> good morning, madam chair and esteemed colleagues. i am with painters and allied trades, district council 16, local union 913 of dry wall painters and finishers.

the district council covers painters, dry wall finishers, glaser's, and for lawyers. all of our collective bargaining agreements with sub contractors required 20% of the hours to be performed by apprentices. i stand in front of you in support of this pla and encourage you to get this project done so we have no interruptions in the workforce and we get this fantastic project finished on time and on budget with the highly skilled craftsmen and women who belong to our trade and getting paid a decent wage with health care and attention. thank you for your time. supervisor kim: thank you. is there any other public comment? >> there is one more. supervisor kim: if there is any more public comment, please line up. >> good morning. on behalf of the labor local 61, over 3000 members in the city and county of san francisco, on

the apprentice, i do not think we have any problem. we have more than 99% of the new emperor this is coming through. there san francisco residents. thank you to maria for working it out to do this pla. i think it is going to agree to a lot of work for all the san franciscans. thank you. supervisor kim: thank you. >> at this time, public comment is now closed. >> we will move into your next item, approving the minutes of the september 8 meeting. >> so moved. >> we have a first. is there is second? >> i will second. supervisor kim: thank you. we will do a roll-call vote.

>> with that, first and second. director harper. dr. lloyd had another engagement and left. director metcalf. the next one. and madam chair. with that, the minutes are approved. that does conclude your agenda for today. supervisor kim: thank you. are there any announcements? the meeting is adjourned.

>> good afternoon had welcome to the city operations and neighborhood services committee meeting. i would like to announce our sfgtv staff, thank you for your work. also, i would like him to walk in the audience who is here today. please call item number 1. >> item 1, resolution urging government agencies to work together to develop a free muni fast trpass for san francisco

youth. >> i have been a long time muni rider with lots of fond memories. when my wife and i got married, we took the muni to our wedding. it was an unforgettable ride. we are still on it, i think. supporting transportation for youth is vitally important for the city and something that i have personally seen many affect -- seen affect many families. the school trollopdraws from ant of san francisco. there are those that go from many distances. we have seen a 43% cut in our

school buses. 25 yellow buses to serve all san francisco youth by 2013. it is clear that this city is making decisions that is working against our young people and the quality of their education. the need to address student access to transportation is more urgent than ever. the san francisco miscible transportation agency, the mta, and the school district implemented the lifeline program has a distribution for low income students with limited out reach for this program, the demand for this far exceeded the supply. the economic crisis is affecting the increase in fares,

especially those for latinos, and african-americans. unemployment reached 9.3%. the children on free and reduced lunched has jumped from 54% to 61%. oi have been hearing from parens who are struggling financially to get their children to school. in two years, the cost of the fast pass increase by 110%. this translates into our youth not able to get to their after- school programs, internships, libraries. the indicators are clear,

transportation must be addressed and access to transportation is more urgent than ever. with the proposal, all san franciscans between the ages of 5 and 17 would be remind -- would be eligible for a free bus pass that can be used 24/7. they can get to work, doctors' appointments. they would be able to take advantage of libraries, museums, parks. this is about fairness and equal access to opportunity. muni is like aso to the jury system in san francisco. we will be able to understand the ridership patterns and where resources need to be invested. we will be looking for a long- term sustainable source of funding. i will now ask supervisor campos to explain about the program's

visibility and the cost benefit of providing free muni to youth in san francisco. [applause] >> thank you, mr. chairman. i want to thank my colleagues for allowing me to sit in on the committee and to all of the members of the public, and especially our young people who have come out to be here today. i also want to a knowledge to work of sheila who is in the back of the room. let's give her a big round of applause for all of the work on this. we will hear from the head of our new transportation agency. >> thank you for being here and for making yourself available

since even before you started to talk about this issue. from my perspective, there are many reasons why this is a good idea but i want to highlight a couple of points that for me really go to the heart of why this makes sense for the city and county of san francisco. one of this and that the mayor has been talking about since he assumed this position was how we need to make san francisco a more livable city for families. this is something at the heart of what we are trying to do, making public transit more accessible. this is true when it comes to families that are struggling because of the current state of our economy. supervisor avalos talked about some of the numbers but that really is the driving -- what is

driving this piece of legislation. how do we make san francisco more livable for families? since we talked about this idea, i have heard from some many parents, so many families who tell me that this is something that we really need. that is the first thing. the second thing is really about making this commitment to being a transit first city. by making public transit accessible to young people, you are essentially investing in the creation of the future generation of riders. the reality is that no transit system, whether it is in san francisco or any part of the country can be sustained unless

you have ridership. this is about creating the future ridership. those are the two are overarching points that i think are very important. connected to that is also the issue that when you have more people riding public transit, taking public transit, you are helping to make sure that we protect our environment and that is something that is very important. all of these points are connected. in thinking about this issue, we wanted to make sure that this was done in a thoughtful, responsible way because we are mindful that we live in tough economic times and we are talking about an agency that has had challenges. it is not likely said overnight that we want to have free muni for all of the youth, let's do it.

we have been working for a number of months and i don't know how many meetings we have had this has been a very extensive process. we have had dozens of meetings talking about what it would make to make this happen. -- what it would take to make this act. for this to happen, it has to be fiscally responsible. we cannot say that we want this to happen, we have to find the funding and resources to make it reality. my office asks the office of legislative analyst to do a study said that we have an objective analysis of what it would take to actually make this a reality and that report has come out and we will hear later on from the budget and legislative analyst about some of the numbers. what we know is that the numbers that have been identified our

numbers that are possible. it is not surprising that other cities are already doing something like this. san francisco has been leading the way on other fronts, why would they be part of that leadership across the country? i think it is important to put this into the context that we have new leadership and i have been very pressed with how they have really hit the ground running. those challenges provide an opportunity coupled with this effort to figure out how to make this happened but to make it happen in a way that creates a better system. in many respects, this addresses

some of the larger issues that the mta is facing. what this resolution does, and i want to be clear, is that it calls upon all of the relevant agencies within the city to work clabber to flee within those agencies and with the community to explore how we make this happen and it does so in a way that makes sure that finding is identified and to make sure that the funding is there an it is implemented in a way that does not hurt the system but in fact improves this service. that is what this is about. we have in our careful examination identified sources of funding. this must be a joint effort and not only within the city and county of san francisco, but

we're also talking about san francisco unified school district, also private schools so that all of the local institutions are part of the solution. we also have to think regionally. it is important for the region as a whole. half of the ridership is here in san francisco. the regional agency that oversees transportation funding and it is charged with the responsibility of having better planning, this is also a part of the equation and discussion and there are possible sources of funding which could be utilized for this effort. i look forward to hearing from the youth, especially from the public. i look forward to a more in-

depth discussion with my colleagues. again, this is something that is doable and we should be able to make this a reality. the last piece that is important and something i have spoken to the mayor about and he has raised this possibility, the possibility of private funding. there are those making investments in our community, education. they could also be a part of the solution. i believe that that is probably supervisor mar, if you want to. >> thank you. i wanted to start with a personal note. with the numerous rallies and efforts to educate the supervisors and people in city hall about this campaign, one of the slogans ranks true to me because this is my daughter's

school bus. this affects me as a family man to make sure that my daughter gets to school on time and can access those resources. where is this movement coming from? i really think the head of the mta for being here as well. we are listening and responsive to parents and new leaders coming out of this movement. we have been hearing every day from the beginning of this year for the need for more muni to make our transit policy. this is very clear that the

demand for many neighborhoods and people that really need it exceeds the supply that has been out there from the city and the school district. groups from every corner of the city with young people in the lead are organizing and making demands on this issue to many of our offices. i want to say there are a number of organizations involved and i will name some of them. pardon me if i for get some of the organizations. this is a growing coalition that includes our, the chinatown community development center, the jamestown community center, the senior action network, the more public transit coalition that was a broad coalition that came together. they have been doing this since

early 2011. i agree with the supervisor and thank him for his leadership with this important ordinance, he would be eligible for a free pass that can be used 24 hours a day, seven days a week which will help everyone get to school. i think that there is the effort that it brings everyone together. also to get to work if they work and anywhere they need to go. part of the duty is that this is insuring that there is increased access but also encouraging young people to participate in all aspects of civic life and also to be new

leaders for the communities. this is about equal access to opportunity. i want to make one point that there is growing support for many different entities, not only grassroots efforts, but also internally. the recent passage by the commission of a strongly worded resolution shows a strong effort and priority for the use commission. the student advisory council passed a resolution in support and i believe that the board of education is considering a resolution and my guess is that they will be supporting it at the upcoming meetings.

i applaud the coalition of and support for this effort and thank you for immobilizing it. i look forward to hearing the testimony. >> thank you. i would like to ask mr. riskin to come up here. one of the things we have talked about as we are talking about not only add to find the funds that would pay for any revenue loss if we were to implement this but also any strain on the system. we're also working on other issues in terms of creating efficiencies, efficiencies that are needed independent of this effort, efficiencies that if they are addressed which would not only help with the overall service but also create or free

up some funds for this effort and certainly we have talked about the issue of the work orders. there is a report coming out that we will be hearing about in the near future. also the issue of overtime. muni is the largest department in terms of the amount of overtime that is incurred. again, thank you very much and thank you for all the time and energy you have put into this. >> thank you and good afternoon chair person of a los -- to chair person avalos. it is good to see a grass-roots system emerge. some might prefer other modes

of transportation and that is something i will get to. i think this is a good public discussion for us to have. i think this speech to the importance of muni in our city and trying to realize that transit first policy established back in 1973. i think it is great we're having this discussion. it would be very easy for any of you to sit up there and say, make this free. what's not to like? it looks good. >> supervisor campos has undertaken this initiative and a very thoughtful way into not just issued an unfunded mandate but you really think through the different issues to work with

the stakeholders to identify funding. this makes for a real policy discussion which is one we would want to have. >> i appreciate the approach and i have one comment i would like to make and that is to ban the blue angels from flying over our airspace. >> my realm of responsibility is ground transportation. those flights are affecting our budget. >> a few points i would want to make reference in the opening comments. the state of affairs for muni and the mta are that we are looking at a $23 million shortfall