here so early in the morning. and, i've got to tell you, we're here early because the fire commission has a meeting at 9:0:00 a.m., so this is the best time. nothing is more important to me in the city than public safety. and as a former fire commissioner, i've worked closely with the department on issues impacting our city. as a former supervisor, i saw how critical the department is in responding to fires and emergencies in the district. and as mayor, i see every day the important role that the department plays in keeping our city safe. and i know how critical this department is when a disaster strikes. we have some amazing men

and women who go out every single day to protect our residents and to do the hard work. they run towards the danger. these men and women deserve a leader who has seen what they've seen, who have fought those same fires. who knows what all of them are going through on a day-to-day basis. and i am pleased to announce that i have chosen a leader for the department that has done all of that and more. it is my honor to announce that the next fire chief for the city and county of san francisco will be deputy chief janine nicholson. [applause] [applause] >> chief nicholson is a

dedicated public servant and a tremendous leader and has put her heart into san francisco and the fire department. she has been a firefighter, a paramedic, a lieutenant, a captain, a battalion chief and deputy chief. she will be the second woman to lead this department after chief joanne hayes white, and the first lgbt fire chief in our city's history. [applause] >> she has survived being burned in a fire in 2009. she has survived breast cancer. she has been on the frontline fighting fires, and she has saved lives as a paramedic. she has done the complicated work as a deputy chief to manage multiple divisions. this woman is tough. this woman is resilient.

this woman is a leader. and i am confident that she will lead the department on day one. before bring up deputy chief nicholson to the podium, i want to take this opportunity to recognize our current fire chief, joanne hayes white for her years of service to the city and county of san francisco. [applause] >> thank you, chief, for not only your work as chief over the years, but also your support during this really challenging transition. and i also would like to thank all of the members of our fire commission. we actually have a quorum here today. the number of interviews that they had to do is the number of interviews i never would want to do for any position. but they were absolutely

amazing. president nicoshi, and commissioners, thank you so much for your commitment and the countless hours you spent to help us make the right choice for our next fire chief. i also want to thank so many of the men and women in the department, again, for your role, for your patience, and all of the work that you continue to do to make sure that our department is one of the best in the country. and, i see that tom o'connor is here. i didn't know you would be here? did you fly back from l.a. -- or d.c.? you didn't leave? i want to thank tom o'connor for being here, who was the executive director of the local 798 union. i know sean buford is in d.c. and couldn't be with us. i see sherman tilman with

the black firefighters -- so many people who played a role in helping to make this selection. and the former fire commissioner, thank you so much for being here. this was a very difficult decision to make, and i also want to thank all of the candidates who applied, as well as so many candidates who put countless hours into just really doing the work so that we could vet everyone and make the right decision here. thank you to our elected officials who are here, including the only supervisor who showed up this morning, supervisor walton. [applause] >> treasurer jose, and our city attorney, dennis. we have so many incredible leaders in our city. and now as we move forward to address what we know are serious challenges that we face as a city

with public safety, i know we're going to be in good hands with our next fire chief. ladies and gentlemen, deputy chief janine nicholson. fla[applause] >> good morning, san francisco. i warned the mayor this morning that i'm a hugger, and she didn't want a hug. just give me the stiff arm. i'm good with that. i can respect boundaries. so good morning, everyone. first of all, i'd like to thank mayor breed for this incredible, incredible opportunity and honor. thank you so much. thank you chief hayes white for bringing me into your command staff. and thank you to all of my colleagues, all of you. i am excited to work for the breed administration, which is one of bold new ideas. i am honored to be able to

continue to serve the citizens of san francisco. i am extremely humbled to lead this department and all of our firefighters, e.m.t.s, paramedics, investigators, inspectors, and civilians. one of the things i love about the fire department is that it is always a team effort. i appreciate the hard work you do every single day. 24/7, 365. you are my family. i love this city and this department, and i love being of service. i vow to work hard, to continue to carry out the mission and vision of the san francisco fire department, and to keep moving us forward in a positive way.

thank you, all. and, mayor breed, again, with humility and determination, i accept. now let's get back to work. [applause] >> short and sweet, just the way we like it in the morning. i also want to take this opportunity to recognize our police chief, bill scott, who is here, and our sheriff, vicki hennessey. thank you both for joining us this morning. at this time, i would like to give our chief, joanne hayes white, an opportunity to say a few words. >> thank you, mayor breed. good morning, everyone. this will be even shorter and much sweeter. i'm thrilled to be here. i wanted to acknowledge mayor breed for her emphasis always and prioritization of public safety of first responders and the critical role that they play in our city. so thank you for that. and i'm also here to offer

my heartiest congratulations to janine nicholson. she has worked diligently in over 25 years with the san francisco fire department. she gets the importance of teamwork, which is what we're all about. within our department and working with other city agencies. and i was really proud last year to promote her to deputy chief of of administration, where i think on top of her excellent career, she got a taste of what it is like to work and juggle different priorities. and you shined in that role. so i wholeheartedly endorse mayor breed's selection. and i wanted to acknowledge the fire commission and the panel that worked to select our new fire chief. we both guarantee, chief nicholson and i, a very smooth transition. i'm here working and i'll finish strong. i know nothing different. the next five to se six weeks will be a period of transition.

chief nicholson and i will be working shoulder to shoulder to make sure this city is protected and safe. and that's what we commit to, and that's what the city deserves. thank you very much. and also to the command staff, everybody stand up that is here, that actually works in the fire department. tom sherman, olivia -- this is part of the team. thank you very much. deputy chief gonzales over there. and thank you to chief scott and sheriff hennessey and other department heads that are here as well. good morning, and have a great day. >> thank you, chief. and the folks who actually, again, did a lot of the heavy lifting, with the countless numbers of interviews was our fire commission, starting with president king cleveland -- when king cleveland served as president, and steve nicoshio carrying on that legacy. i wanted to ask our president of the san

francisco fire commissioner, steve, to say a few words, please. [applause] >> thank you very much, mayor breed. we, on behalf of the fire commission, and cleveland commissioner, and covington commission, and commissioner hartiman, express our support. congratulations, chief nicholson. at this point, as well, we want to thank and appreciate the 15 years of service that joanne hayes white has served this great city. we are looking forward to working together to accomplish what we need to do. we are the fire department, we save lives, we respond to emergencies. we ensure that the buildings in san francisco are safe, and we make sure that our duties and staff are well-kept. thank you very much, mayor

breed, for this. congratulations, and as we say, let's get working. thank you. [applause] >> all right. that concludes our press conference. there will be a swearing in at a later date. you all will be invited. i'm really excited about this, along with so many other incredible things happening in san francisco. thank you all for taking your morning to be here. and, again, congratulations to our new fire chief. and we will be happy to take questions on the side from the press. that concludes the press conference today. thank you. [gavel] >> meet willing come to order. good morning everyone. welcome to the april 1, 2019

meeting of the rules committee. i'm supervisor hillary ronen chair of the committee. seated to my right is vice chair supervisor shamann walton and to my left is supervisor gordon mar. our clerk is victor young. like to thank jim smith from s.f. gov to looking the meeting. >> items will appear on the april 9th board of supervisors agenda. >> supervisor ronen: please read item number one. [agenda item read] >> supervisor ronen: wonderful. there is an appointment by our nomination by supervisor valley

brown for allegra fortunati. hi. welcome. thanks for being here. >> good morning. i'm allegra fortunati. i resided in district 5 for 25 years. thank you for hearing my application for reappointment to the aging advisory council. i have served on the council since october 2016 fulfilling the term of office of a prior district 5 representative followed by a three-year term of my own. i served about about years. i serve as secretary to the counsel. i was installed senior senator from san francisco to the california senior legislature. i retired from the university of california. i continue to work part time for the san francisco long-term care

omnibus program. i cover several assisted living facilities and residential facilities for elderly. primarily i work with the adult residential facilities. haven't for adults with disabilities and those with mental health issues. i worked with city and county departments that address issues regarding older adults and adults with disabilities. most recently participating in the assisted living work group representing the omnibus program. also with sever c.b.o.s. i believe the work i do offers a unique perspective. on an fragmented system where too many fall through the cracks particularly those with low income. i'm also a member of several organizations including san francisco village which focuses on keeping older adults in their homes as long as possible and

hopefully avoiding institutionalization. within that organization, i co-lead a solo age circle. older adults without family who must bill their own support and advocacy system. for a couple of terms i served on the san francisco civil grand jury and enjoyed the opportunity to be engaged and continue my efforts and ideas to improving san francisco government and services. i wanted to don't that experience by serving on the council. i'm hoping you will renew my application to the aging advisory council so that it may become a better advocate for our diverse population of older adults and adults with disabilities. i believe having an active participant from district 5 on this council is vital. district 5 is on the the lowest income seniors and adults can disabilities in the city. it has a second largest

percentage adults with disabilities. i'm interested visiting and hearing from all programs that serve this community and from hearing from the community about the quality of services and care they receive in order to find areas of improvement and fill in the gaps. i hope you will support my application. thank you. >> supervisor ronen: wonderful, thank you so much. hell of qualification. is there any questions? thank you so much. really appreciate it. i will now open this item for public comment. anyone wants to speak. now is your chance. seeing none. public comment is closed. i want to thank you so much for being willing to serve in this capacity especially given your incredible history and knowledge and work. really appreciate that. i'll be reaching out to you on your expertise especially around

aging adults and mental health. thank you so much for coming before this committee. is there a motion? >> supervisor walton: i move to forward ms. allegra fortunati for on commission aging advisory council to the full board with recommendation. >> supervisor ronen: that motion passes. thank you so much. please read item number two. [agenda item read] >> supervisor ronen: it's so exciting that we have such a qualified pool of applicants for this commission. i would love to call you in order and which you're listed on the agenda and they believ ask p

your remarks around three or four minutes if at all possible. i did have one overarching question that you like to address in your remarks would be greatly appreciated. i'll read that now. the veteran affairs council is charged advising board of supervisors and mayor on issues concerning the veteran community. i wanted to know how you see the role of san francisco legislators? what should we be paying attention to and working on in regard to economic development, healthcare and social service programs as they relate to veterans. within that framework, what do see as the most urgent issues that you would want to tackle and work with us on and what your ideas are for doing that?

kind of a broad question. i love to hear your thoughts on that. i don't know if there's any other overaveragin overarching t my colleagues like to address. no, that's great. if we can first hear from douglas bullard. >> he is unable to attend the meeting. he's still interested. he did have a family emergency. >> supervisor ronen: great, thank you so much. is hanley chan here? >> i was born and raised in san francisco. i was in chinatown north beach and moved down to sunset.

that's where i went to elementary school, high school in san francisco. got my associated degree in state college at san francisco. i got my b.a. in new college of california where i'm mentor my student advisor very well-known. legendary harry britt. if you watching man, love you. i served in the united states navy as aviation in 1999. i served in the california national guard as a army tanker in 2004. i currently appointed to the u.s. selected service board as district appeals board member appointed by president obama. volunteerism is in my blood. i like giving back to the

community. i want to serve this commission to solve the homeless crises and veterans and i want to understand how to navigate. i understand how to navigate city services because i was once homeless myself. i understand the need and wants of veterans out there, especially government system where the bureaucracy is very big. i want to combat mental health issue. i'm working with the executive director of the penal tool health project. basically i'm working with them now. those are two biggest concerns for veterans, homelessness and housing for veterans and mental

health issues. that's it. you have any questions? >> supervisor ronen: thank you so much. next is david chasteen. >> thank you for all your service on this commission. >> thank you supervisor ronen. as you know, i was recently elected to be the president of the commission. although my term has expired. we'll see. i wanted to say in my short time so far as vice president and serving as member on the commission, i think you probably seen this other commissions, we have a lot of responsibility in terms of mandate. we have lot of people responsible for. not a lot of power with which to do that. which is not necessarily a problem. one of the things that you asked, we can do to address

those issues, i think one of the things i learned in nonprofit space is, the very largest nonprofit, couldn't fund v.a. operations for a week. a slight change in government policy has a much bigger impact than any small group of nonprofit folks. what you like about the commission that you see there, us at our best, we are a policy group who can pull from our lived experience and many cases professional experience. we have lot of people who are professional who worked in the space far long time. there are lot of resources to address issues around homelessness and economic opportunity for folks who are transitioning and economic disparity and housing and mental health. i think the best thing the commission can do is focus on

that job of advising the board of supervisors and mayor on policy. i think best done that means returning annual report which countrwasn't completed into a rl document that provides goals for the commission which is good and not hard to do and reach goals. that's what i like the commission going forward. in means bringing in people who can do that work of policy. last thing i wanted to do here, the executive committee had a look at our -- we focused lot on recruiting and inclusive recruiting. we got some good results. of these excellent candidates in addition to myself and commissioner olivieri, we wanted to highlight george chewning, 17

martin-pinto as stand outs on the application today. >> supervisor ronen: i'm wondering since you served already one term on the commission, what are the avenues? i've been here for a while. i had a ton of opportunity to work directly with the veteran commission. when you have policy suggestions, how have you worked with members of the board of supervisors or the mayor's office to enact those policies? >> it's interesting. i done some lobbying around veteran issues d.c. before i came to san francisco. one of the things i like about the commission, you all know, there are lots of lobbyist for corporations and people who stand to make money. there are very rarely lobbyist

for good policy. when you find those people they are kind of great. usually nonprofits. what i found is where we've been most effective is those and the commissioners who have personal relationship with supervisors and their staff and mayoral staff and you can say hey, here the thing we see. it might not be that hard to fix would it take legislation to work better? it's talking to people and making connections. i love living in big city like san francisco. it's lot easier to make the connections. >> supervisor ronen: have you worked with any supervisor or anyone from the mayor's office to do that? >> yes. we've done some of that. supervisor safai recommended we

do a report annually. we trying to figure out how to best comply with sunshine request pipelike m. -- are we doing the best we can. what are the outcomes? one the things i want to do is subcommittees where i can take teams of three and do that work and come back. they can talk to each other and coordinate and do good work and come back and report to the commission so we can get it on the record and still comply with the law in terms of transparency. supervisor safai recommended biannual report is a great idea.

our veteran population is centred downtown in the hospitals way out in west side of town. sometimes folks, especially if they're dealing with mental health issues have difficult getting on the bus and getting out there. those are couple of examples of kind of easier kinds of things that we've been talking to supervisors about getting through. >> supervisor ronen: supervisor walton has a question. >> supervisor walton: since you brought up, yos recommended four individual who are also nominees. can you touch on why you chose those four? >> i would of those four, in particular we're looking for

folks who either have experience on public policy or have experience in navigating larger systems that affect outcomes for veterans. most of these folks either work at companies in the bay area that have impact on outcomes and communications or have experience working in local government, state government and federal government on policy issues. i want to turn my commissioners into if it's hearings and it's reporting out, that means you got to be someone who can dig and someone who can write and actually do that lobbying work. the folks i highlighted are people who have that experience. >> supervisor ronen: next if we can hear from george chewning.

>> good morning. i'm george chewning. thank you for taking the time to consider my application for the v.a. commission. i'm u.s. army veteran. i received my commission federal west point and served officer for five years. after leaving the service i joined a veteran nonprofit in washington d.c. as a legislative director. i lobbied for passage of bill allowing for construction of the national monument for the post 9/11 conflicts. i moved to san francisco to be closer to family and friends. i wish to continue my service to my community and veterans. i'm pursuing my master in leadership from the university of san francisco to develop the skills i need for my second service. i want to be a commissioner to advise the board of supervisors and mayor on veteran issues and advocate for legislation that will benefit veterans, their families and their community. thank you for your time.

>> supervisor ronen: what do you think we should be working on board of supervisors to help address issue of underemployment? are there types of training programs that we should be investing in and sort of advertising to the veteran community? >> i think one of the avenues is helpful developing public private partnerships. there are companies in the community that offer different boot camps and different workshops for veterans to address unemployment. having that public support behind those and helping get out the word using the v.a. commission to spread that and communicate that, i think it's a great avenue. >> supervisor ronen: thank you. next is christy collins.

is taurean diaz-coleman present? raymond gobberg present? hello, good morning. >> good morning. thank you so much for allowing me an opportunity to introduce myself. air force veteran four years, active duty service currently reservist serving defense down in mountain view. when i moved to san francisco about five years ago from chicago i immediately saw opportunity to engage in the veteran community. it was all on my own drawn by my service and david chasteen network and bringing in people.

my activities included v.a., vets in tech and then i started coming to the commission meetings as a participant. that's when i interest came to join as a full time commissioner if i had the opportunity. really why do i think i can provide value? previous speaker mentioned something that's really a common theme in my background which is partnerships. building partnerships understanding how to bring diverse group of people together who have different backgrounds. on active duty i was public affairs officer, served in new mexico. building relationships between local civic governments. new york city, i did the same thing. out here in my professional life, i'm a tech sector. as i mentioned, defense innovation unit is a term to know