the closed session as it appears to be in the open session. i will say as i said last year. you have thousands of members which is a huge organization. not all live here in san francisco and have the opportunity to attend these meetings and have access to the information. it's not that easy to come from a different country and speak another language and follow all the rules. actually i have a comment also on your customer service. i believe on your website it says that you have a very high standard of customer service. our experience shows something else. we worked with my father last year in the office, we couldn't figure out who was the director. reporter told us who is the director. my father just has two sentences to say. he has traveled a long way.

he's still healthy. he's age 84. he came a long way from europe to san francisco just to say two sentences. >> yes. your time is up. >> you give me opportunity to say two or three sentences. i am deeply disappointed because my salary is $650. they took from my salary for health service 60 percent. this is shameful, unbelievable. if somebody explained in europe, i will do this. i have this opportunity. my question is if someone --

big salary, not small like mine. they took 60 percent, he will be dissatisfied and will complain like me. i'm sure this person will complain 10 times more than myself. >> thank you. this has been in appeal and has been aired out before. >> thank you for giving me the opportunity. >> thank you. >> any other comment on this item? no other comments. all right. item no. 17. >> city clerk: item 17. action item vote on whether to hold closed session for voter appeal. >> we'll be going into closed session soon. i will need a notion. >> so moved. >> all right. do i have a second? >> second. >> it's been moved and seconded. all in favor say,

"aye". >> aye. >> i guess i should have public comment on this one too. any public comment? no public comment. all right. we'll be in closed session. >> >> all right. item no. 19. >> city clerk: item 19 vote on whether or not to disclose information from the closed session. >> i move we do not disclose any information held in closed session. >> i second the motion. >> any public comment on this item. >> all in favor say, "aye". >> aye. >> opposed? it's unanimous. >> item no. 20. >> city clerk: item 20. action item possible report on action taken in closed session. >> any motion on this? >> because we voted on 19 not

to disclose we just pass on 20. >> all right. >> item no. 20 is not really necessary. okay. we can scratch 20. very good, thank you. well, that's our last item on the agenda. if there is no objection, this meeting is adjourned. [ meeting is adjourned ] >> thank you madam chairwoman for running a very efficient meeting. [ meeting is adjourned ]

♪ >> thank you for coming to the talent dance performance and talent show. [ applause ] >> today's performance and talent show. ♪

>> public recreation has every bit of the talent and every bit of the heart and soul of anything that any families are paying ten times for. >> you were awesome.

gavel] >> good evening and welcome to the regular meeting of the san francisco ethics commission. we'll begin by taking the roll. vice-chair renne? >> present. >> commissioner? >> here. >> commissioner andrews? >> here.

>> commissioner keane? >> here. >> the executive director has an announcement. >> i just want to take a moment to welcome the new deputy director jesse minarde. he brings a wealth of experience to this position and we're delighted to have him. he has experience as both a business attorney and political attorney. he worked at the political practices division in sacramento. [speaker not understood]. he's a graduate of hastings college of law and has a master's degree from harvard's school of kennedy government. a long list of accomplishments. as i said, fortunate to have him. welcome. >> welcome, mr. minarde. we're fortunate to have you and look forward to working with you. the first item on the agenda are minutes of the board of directors meeting of march 20, 2013~ [speaker not understood].

>> commissioners, my name is harlan kelly and i am the general manager of the san francisco public utilities commission. thank you for allowing me to come before you. i have a previously scheduled engagement, so, i'm going to have to dash off right after my comments. but i want to talk about an item that you have, item 5 on your agenda. ~ first of all, due to personal and confidential rules, i'm not here to talk about any specific as it relates to any disciplinary actions related to ms. ellis that were taken in august of 2013. however, i want the commission to know and understand that all actions were based on exhaustive and independent puc investigation where we carefully weighed the facts and the mitigating circumstances.

recently, in january 2014 with your commission and the fppc, reached a joint settlement agreement with ms. ellis. your investigation did not present any new information or contradict any information related to the puc investigation. i cannot revisit disciplinary actions that i took nor i see any reason to do so. i believe appropriate actions were taken on all fronts and this matter is concluded. i hope that the commission, as i do, that this is simply time to move on and thank you for hearing me. [cheering and applauding] >> good afternoon, commissioners. supervisor john avalos. i am here to speak on the same

matter as well. i know that the ethics commission has already made its determination on the individual who is being discussed today. it seems like that has already been settled. i was a bit concerned to see it come up all over again, especially because i know that what penalty had been applied against the person in question has actually, i think is great and it will be [speaker not understood] to the justice being carried out. i also have worked with ms. ellis for, you know, a number of years, well before she was on the public utilities commission. and i know that she has been one who has been working diligently to support a lot of working class communities of color that often don't get the attention they need to get in the area, in particular in san francisco where i have jurisdiction. and in terms of my district,

she has really been making sure that the public utilities commission can be responsive in ways to the public beyond its mission, ways that really interact with the community, make sure that there is a greater opportunity for the community. she's been working with us on youth development, on employment work force development projects and most recently agricultural project is actually going to make a huge difference in the neighborhood around nutrition and access to food and people's participation in the neighborhood. to me, these are great values that the city hopes for, and to see someone who i think is doing some good work and really reaching out to communities of color in san francisco is pretty frightening to me because i think we should be making sure folks like this are able to continue to work in the city and to make sure that the interaction with our communities are much greater. thank you. [cheering and applauding]

>> commissioners, when the constituents of san francisco elected you all, they elected you all so that y'all could pay attention to due process. right from the inception, after what the director stated, the statements pertaining to the director stated should be general in nature. but out of the goodness of your heart, you commissioners committed [speaker not understood] manager and the supervisor, accommodated them to make some statements, which in my suggested opinion,

infringes on the real agenda item. i served my country, serving two genres. i worked for the united states, united states army and presidio, san francisco. i worked for the national park service. and before i retired, i worked for the united states park police. i understand fully conflict of interest. when we san franciscans created this commission, we created a commission where our commissioners are diverse commissioners, as i see it, you seated, that you all would adjudicate all matters in the proper manner.

high standards, very high standards. and as you know he, on this matter we are one or two in the audience who participated in -- on the relevant and pertinent deliberations. we did. you commissioners today will be bombarded with statements where those stating what they're going to state will not have the empirical data, the real facts. but we are lucky, very lucky that we have some astute commissioners who can discern and that their heart is in the right place. this is about morals. this is about ethics. this is about standards.

this is not about selling out the community and our values. thank you very much. good afternoon. my name is dr. espinola jackson and i was here before when this was -- decision was done, but you had followed the state. and there was not a conversation concerning it. i would like to say that i live in bayview hunters point and the reason why this had came to your attention is because of the fact files had been diverted from bayview hunters point to oakland, california, for people to be hired to come and do work in my community and not the people that live in bayview hunters point ~. funds are being dwindled every place, but not in the community. and i came forward and i stated -- i came to see if you was going to do due diligence because if i had committed what had occurred, you would put me in jail. and i have great concerns about

the fact that people don't know the facts and don't have the facts and can come up here and say how great someone is when in my community we had to do mitigation to get a college built in my community. and what has occurred? everything that's been going on has been trying to take a which the college, make the college an office building, and not an educational system. and who is behind it? juliet ellis ~. every time i turn around, and i have asked the director and if he he was still here, to keep her out of my community because i don't need her there. she has not did anything for bayview hunters point. and even the funds that's supposed to be coming to bayview hunters point, over $2 billion, we haven't seen a dime. money is being diverted to other areas. if people want to do something for the community, why don't you come into the community and fight for the people in the community? because we are the ones that are being -- getting sick and dying every day out there because of the sewage plant and

because of the shipyard. so, let's don't get carried away about who is going to have a job because she's supposed to be black. it ain't about what color you are. it's about whether you're doing the job you're supposed to be doing. thank you very much. you know, i thought i could wait until this agenda item came and i no longer can because it's so hard to be in a room full of hypocracy. i want to introduce myself. i am phaedra, i used to run the organization green for all that juliet had a relationship with. what i find so offensive about this conversation is before juliet went to the public utilities commission it said in her bioincluding on the bioon the puc website that she was on the board of green for all ~. so, it's a little bit shocking what's going on in the city of san francisco and people find it shocking. i also want to just be clear part of why juliet had any

conflict is because being the earnest person she is, she identified it before anyone else did. so, this is a woman who said, like, i want to be clear, i think i made a mistake and i need to let people know. and green for all is an organization committed to really addressing issues of people of color and making sure there is opportunity. and what i find offensive is i want to be clear because i know that you all don't say that. but just so people know, juliet ellis is a thousand dollars. just so you know the fine in proportion to what she did, she took leadership while i was on maternity leave. so, i had a challenging pregnancy and, so, i just want to be clear so there is no more questions about what this was or how it happened. i also just want to be very clear that as someone who grew up of bayview hunters point, that there aren't many people who get master's degree, who find themselves and then say, let me figure out how to make my community better. let me figure out how to make my community stronger. and what i find so shocking is what i know most about san

francisco is you have a sheriff who got arrested for beating his wife and i don't see him before this ethics commission and i didn't see resolutions like this. so, when you call -- (applause) -- upon a woman of color who went to san francisco state, the hypocracy of this commission is outrageous. and i just want to be clear that to go after a woman who only spent her professional life so that this commission can have them self-in the newspaper for a resolution, let's be clear. she already has an agreement with the city and county of san francisco and this commission. after having an agreement that i assume was voted on by you all, you've decided to bring it back so you can take additional public action. it is outrageous. it is unconscionable. and to do that, a woman who spent her life with only the highest level of integrity, with the lowest compensation is shameful, embarrassing, and i really feel as though this is a disgrace. not just to you, but the people who actually need the services that she's committed her life to. [cheering and applauding]

mr. chairman and members of the commission, i'm aim os brown and i'm president of the national association for the advancement of colored people in the city and county of san francisco. ~ amos and more importantly i've served as senior pastor of the historic third baptist church for 38 years. i rise to bid you to consider that lang aston hughes once said, i square to the lord i still can't see why democracy means everybody but me. this commission has gone through a democratic process, has done an investigation, and the majority vote was that this

matter would be dropped. and i wonder what lens some might be looking through to see a different view rather than democracy. i have parishionerses who live in bayview hunters point, honorable persons who served this city well. and they are vitally concerned about what's going on regarding this matter. it is excessive. it is pushing an issue that's a red herring, they appear to think, and i would plead with you today, let's major in major things and not minor things and go on with what this commission is supposed to be doing to make sure that you're doing justly, loving mercy, and walking

humbly with whatever might be your supreme being or principle. [cheering and applauding] yes, my name is charlie walker and i listened to what people say. i didn't by chance think about but one thing. and most of the time people come and talk to y'all, they start referring to us as people of color. you know, let's face it. this is a black/whitish you. that's all it is. (applause) and you know, regardless of what we do in this country, it always go back to that. slavery has not left us in memory. and it doesn't matter whether you have black people on these boards or what. it's things that keep popping

up. san francisco is notorious for this. i was overseas 31 months going out of an airplane, in three explosions. i'm a disabled american veteran. and when i came back, they said anythingers couldn't get in the teamsters because i'm an engineer ~. how do you think i felt? how do you think we feel that every time we look up, every time the mean and ugly face of racism peeps up? and that's all we're talking about. i don't know who brought this issue back up again. we thought it was settled. it ain't settled. my only thing for any of you is this. is that, you know, jewish people, i imagine, when hitler was on the reign, they thought it was just the drunks and the dope addicts. it was all right until he knocked or their door.

so, you guys got to understand this. this is -- san francisco needs some policy changes. it's absolutely no reason for us to have to come down here about an issue that's already been decided. why are we here? and i didn't mind coming down here because my senior pastor, my very close friend, called my house and said, you got to go. well, i'm here. and all i can say to all of you is let sleeping dogs lie. let that young lady -- i'm not territorial. a black person in san francisco is a black person in oakland. i don't care about all of the territory, where they live. only thing i care about is being treated like an american and like i thought i was when i was fighting for this country. and i was over there 31 months so y'all could sit on that board in peace. (applause)

hi, my name is jessica [speaker not understood] and during my previous employment at the sfpuc i interacted on a regular base with juliet ellis. [speaker not understood] i urge you to reject the proposed resolution. i urge you to reject this resolution not only because juliet is an amazing person, interpersonal leader particularly to young women like myself, but also passing this resolution would be contrary to the mission and code of ethics of this ethics commission. first, juliet embodies the progressive ideas of san francisco and exemplifies leadership. i am proud to call her a mentor. in fact, i would say that her current job is a perfect fit for her and very few people could do the incredible job that she does. in my time working with her i was able to see directly how her progressive mind-set made the sfpuc better at community relations and really think about its impact on the community. her leadership in this area is no small feat and is surprisingly rare among large utilities which is why.

sfpuc has become a model for utilities across the country. this is a direct result of juliet being in this position and removing her would be devastating to the future of the sfpuc as well as the future of san francisco residents. second, the resolution states that article 2 of the bylaws mandates that "the mission of the ethics commission is to practice and promote the highest standards of ethical behavior in government. the remaining portion of the sentence as it appears in your bylaws which is not quoted in the resolution states, "and to pro he moat a work environment that values health, wellness and diversity. removing juliet, a strong woman of color which should be noted as relatively rare in the utilities field would certainly not promote this mission -- promote this mission of diversity and would likely run contrary to it. with this resolution also fails to mention is this ethics commission through your own code of ethics also commits itself to one encouraging and promoting integrity in government by education and example, two, fairly and

objectively enforcing the city's ethics laws and regulations, and three, treating all staff members of the public and colleagues with courtesy, respect, objectivity, and fairness. regarding the first point, promoting integrity and government by education and example does not mean making an example of a few leaders for a one-time violation. i am here today because the actions being considered by this commission seem extraordinarily punitive and unnecessary. removing juliet from her position especially after settlement agreements were previously entered into between her and this commission questions the objectivity of this commission. this resolution also seems to have seen that leaders cannot learn from their mistakes while in office and the only way to promote integrity in government is to remove them from this position. i would stress there are 78 other ways to promote this integrity without drastically impacting someone's career ~, the future of the sfpuc and the future of san francisco. again i strongly urge you to support juliet he will sis reject the proposed resolution.

[cheering and applauding] >> thank you. anybody who wishes to speak will have the opportunity. i will note that we are taking up ms. ellis' matter in agenda item 5. so, you'll also have a chance then. please. my name is eric larson. i'm juliet ellis' husband. i feel compelled to be here today to provide a personal point of view regarding juliet. i've known juliet over 20 years and i know her to be honest, above all else, kind and generous. in fact, she's one of the most honest people i know. so, it's been very painful for her personally as well as our family to deal with this ongoing saga. let's be clear. we're not here because of a slight bureaucratic miss step. we're here because certain persons have deliberately orchestrated a series of defaming events designed to

smear juliet's good name and reputation. we have endured these trials with the faith that these were challenges that were to be overcome and learned from. so, juliet has mostly suffered in silence. but today juliet's community has stepped forward to say, we've had enough already. we'll not stand aside any more. i want to thank everybody for coming out and supporting juliet. we know her and hopefully justice will prevail. thank you. (applause) good afternoon. my name is benisha thompson and for 3-1/2 years i worked as the associate director for finance and administration at urban habitat under the leadership of juliet ellis. i consider juliet a mentor and a friend. when this matter broke in the news a year ago this month, my first reaction was, there must be a mistake, not juliet.