. >> chair fewer: good morning, everyone. the meeting will come to order. this is the august 24, 2020 meeting of the budget and appropriations committee. i am chair fewer sandra lee fewer. our clerk is miss linda won, assisted today by several other staff from the clerk's office. i would like to thank corwin cooley from sfgovtv for airing this meeting. madam clerk, do you have any announcements?

>> clerk: yes. committee members will attend the meeting through video conference and participate in the meeting to the same extent as if they were physically present. public comments will be available on each item on this agenda. both channel 26 and sfgtv.org are streaming the number across the screen. each speaker will be allowed two minutes to speak. comments or opportunities to speak during public comment are available during public comment by calling 415-655-0001 and entering meeting i.d., 146-351-5423, then pound twice. you will be entered into the meeting but in listening mode

only. when your item comes up, press star, three to be entered into the queue. you may e-mail myself, the budget and appropriations committee clerk, linda.wong@sf.gov. if you submit public comment via e-mail, it will be forwarded to the supervisors and will be included as part of the official file. finally, public comment interpretations in chinese, spanish, and filipino will be guaranteed from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. members who wish to submit public comment in these

languages should call in during that time. for additional language assistance call the clerk's office at 415-554-5184. now i will pass it onto the interpreters for their language announcements. >> interpreter: good morning. this is going to be the spanish interpretation. [speaking spanish language]

[end of translation] >> interpreter: thank you. [speaking cantonese language]

[end of translation]. >> interpreter: thank you. [speaking tagalog language]

>> interpreter: thank you, madam clerk. that's all for interpretations. >> chair fewer: thank you very much. good morning, everyone. welcome to the final day of recessed meetings from last week and the day dedicated to hearing from the public on the entire budget. we will not hear or discuss any other business today. we expect this to be a long day, as there are many people

who want to share with the committee their needs and priorities for this budget process. today, speakers will have two minutes each. we will be taking a few breaks throughout the day to make sure the remote public comment system is not overwhelmed. we will be taking a break at 1:00, and then, we will be taking breaks every three hours after that. we do have interpretation services in spanish, cantonese, and tagalog. our clerk's office has worked with groups that approached them so that they can do public comment with small groups. we will be alternating with those groups and the public comment line. we have requested the clerk's office to forfeit the time of any callers who use foul, inappropriate, or threatening language before the board. that kind of language will be

be tolerated at the board of supervisors. in terms of process, my office issued a high level spending plan, totaling two years. on wednesday, the committee will gavel down at 10:00 a.m. for the final day of deliberations, and we plan to pass a spending plan out of committee by the end of the day. with that, i think we are ready to begin. madam clerk, you may start to hear people in the queue. thank you. >> clerk: yes,hood am chair, would you like me to call items 1 and 2 on today's agenda, please? >> chair fewer: yes, thank you very much. >> clerk: item 1, budget and appropriations ordinance appropriating all estimated receipts and all estimated expenditures for departments of the city and county of san francisco july 31, 2020 for the

fiscal years ending june 30, 2021 and june 30, 2022. item 2 is annual salary ordinance enumerating positions in the annual budget and proposition ordinance for the fiscal years ending june 30, 2021 and june 30, 2022. if you would like to comment publicly on either of these items, please call 415-655-0001, and then entering

146-351-5423, pressing pound, and pound again. when your item is called, press star, three to be entered into the queue. >> chair fewer: thank you. >> clerk: operations, can you please check to see if there are any public comment in the queue? >> operator: yes. madam clerk, there are currently 56 callers in the queue. >> [inaudible] we have six people who are going to speak on behalf of our organization. at this time, we cannot afford for any budget cuts to homeless services or evictions prevention funding. we need to keep these funding sources in place so that our

community members, those in the tenderloin, those that are suffering racism, those that are suffering from racism and living in poverty are able to get the housing assistance that they need in order to be successful, in order to be productive members of this community nonetheless, so i just peappeal for this funding sources for this to remain in place, and also for more funding for these things, as well. i thank you for this time and i thank you for this opportunity to speak. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> good morning, supervisors. my name is marisa tibbs, and i speak for poverty house. every day, our communities are hurting. we can do that today.

we must invest in the relatish and that works for families and youth, and we must act now. we need shelter programs that have mental and substance abuse order benefits. shelters exist to provide residents with safety and protection. the longer a person is homeless, the more harder it is for them to come out of that, so i urge you to continue the funding and even provide more to this issue, and i thank you for your time. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> good morning, supervisors. my name is tina lisa, and i work for hospitality house. we need flexible housing subsidies to expand housing for families and youth, and we need to keep families housed and

keep families in san francisco. it's so much easier to stay in housing than it is to find housing once you become homeless, so that's extremely important. we must prepare now for the eviction crisis. more than 90% of households in the tenderloin are renters and overwhelming people of color. we must rebuild our job training system and barriers for workers of color, especially youth. we must stand in solidarity with san francisco's plan community. we must do more. we must invest more for those who have suffered more. i've seen so many folks come through hospitality's doors from the black community. even though san francisco -- it's such a disproportionate part of san francisco's black community comes through hospitality doors seeking help, and there's so much more san

francisco can do for this homeless population, so it's so important that we support them. thank you so much for your time. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hi, supervisors. my name is olivia glowacki, and i work with hospitality house in the tenderloin. our lives do matter, and our communities are hurting, and you can do something about that today. now is not the time for austerity budgets. i appeal to you to find the housing budget in whole. as tina lisa said, we must stand in solidarity with san francisco's black community. homelessness is incredibly racialized, and as i said before, now is not the time for cuts in austerity.

the budget is a moral document, and we need to live up to those morals. thank you. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. next per, please. >> hi -- next speaker, please. >> hi. my name is emmett howell, and i'm with the organization for public housing. we need funding to keep families housed and keep families in san francisco. at this time, we are losing housing. families without housing do not have steady [inaudible] we must reveal our job training system and remove barriers for workers of color, especially youth.

thank you. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> yes, that's it for us here. >> clerk: thank you very much. mr. qiu, next speaker, please. >> hi. my name is sarah lund. i live in district 5. i'm calling you to disarm, disband, and defund the san

francisco police department. reduce community interactions with police this year. fire police officers, fire sheriff's deputies and invest in things that keep us safe, like housing and community reparation. thank you. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hello. my name is eliana rubin, and i'm calling to tell you thank you for closing down the jail on bryant street. as we all know, thousands of people in our city are experiencing homelessness and mental health crises during the global pandemic and now

breathing in toxic smoke from these year's record breaking fires. as a native san franciscan, i hold people's health and safety over criminalization. i feel the city could allocate at least $66 million more for the funding for housing, community, and mental health-based services. during this time, not prioritizing housing, mental health services, and substance use treatment programs is literally a death sentence that is primarily impacting black, brown, poor, and trans community members.

so we at lgss are committed to funding human rights and ask that you ensure our community safety by divesting from san francisco police department and invest in our communities to deal with these overlapping crises. thank you very much. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> good morning, supervisors. this is carl kramer from the san francisco living wage coalition. speaking for funding to raise the base rate under the minimum wage ordinance from $16.50 to 17.05 an hour, at some point, the city controller is going to look at whether there's been sufficient wage raises for raising that minimum rate and those who are above that

minimum rate. each department under the legislation is supposed to be sending its calculations. what is that sufficient funding? if there isn't the funding put into the budget, those workers don't get a wage raise. this is a racial justice issue. those who are workers in city funded nonprofit agencies like the homeless shelters, and also parents who are in calworks who are doing city service jobs, if we don't provide funding for them, they aren't going to be able to make ends meet to be able to stay in their jobs or to be able to stay in san francisco. these are also the services that are being provided to black and brown communities in san francisco. if we're talking about that we're going to redirect funding from the police to put it into services to the black and brown

communities, these are the workers who are carrying out these services, and really, you know, if we are going to be able to come out of this economic downturn, the path to economic recovery is by providing more wages, increased wages to the lowest page workers in san francisco that are providing services that the residents of san francisco rely and depend onto be able to live independently in their own homes, to be able to transition from homelessness. we need to make the investment. this is the wrong time to have austerity measures and reducing wages for workers and by allowing workers to keep up with the rate of inflation that

is a cut to services. thank you, supervisors. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> good morning, supervisors. my name is john mccormick, and i'm the housing coordinator [inaudible] and i'm here with a group of six people to ask you to fund our budget ask for $150,000 to fund food security in the tenderloin. we're bracing to lose another 4,000 meals in the next week. we do see that it will make a significant difference in providing some more meals to those in the tenderloin.

the funding would go to help with the tenderloin [inaudible] site that after 6.5 months fighting for the funding that the tenderloin will be receiving, and it will help a lot with the [inaudible] and the last little point here that i'll make is that a majority of our funding will provide 10,000 meals over a six-month period directly to 400 homes per week. that's 400 less people every single day that are vulnerable in the tenderloin going out to get their own meals. so this would definitely reduce the risk of highly vulnerable populations having to go out and get food, there by potentially literally saving lives. so we're calling to support our

budget asking for $150,000 for food security initiatives in the tenderloin, and we have five more speakers. so -- >> hi. my name is naomi, and i'm calling in for the [inaudible] to go to food security efforts in the tenderloin. as john mentioned, with this investment, we'd be able to support food populations that ordinarily face challenges and have faced increased challenges during the pandemic. [inaudible] folks who may have otherwise been able to cook, they don't have access to materials right now, and other folks may not feel comfortable leaving their homes.

by having funding to actually support provision of prepared meals, we're able to support communities who feel save in their homes. this is going to provide [inaudible] for different communities, support communities in providing hot meals, community care, and will also provide more culturally appropriate meals for communities. in addition, by providing this funding, it creates a network in the communities, creating a longer sustained effort in the funding. everyone's taking care of itself for a long time. now we just need funding to continue to do the work. >> clerk: thank you for your

comments. >> good morning, supervisors. my name is gabriella ruiz, and i'm the policy and planning manager at tndc. i'm calling to show our support for the tenderloin community food budget ask for funds during the covid-19 pandemic. as others have stated, the neighborhood has lost thousands of monthly meals due to the cuts from federal funding at sfusd after school meal program sites, so we are making this very small request of $150,000 to provide thousands of meals to hundreds of vulnerable residents living in the neighborhood. with the tenderloin having the second highest rate of covid

cases in san francisco, the approval of this budget ask will help reduce the risk of exposure and quite literally save lives. lastly, sandy fewer, i'd also like to request our support for defunding of the police and redirecting funds to the black community and ability to respond to crisis on our streets. we hope to have your support. thank you. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hello, supervisors. my name is [inaudible], and i live and work in the tenderloin. i'm calling in to support the tenderloin collective food security ask [inaudible] since the shelter in place began, i put in some time with organizations [inaudible] for people needing food.

this budget ask will help us provide the 10,000 meals for over six months to over 400 homes per week. there are at least 400 people who will not have to expose themselves to the virus. this ask saves lives. [inaudible] and the loss of the 8,000 monthly meals due to the loss of federal funding. $150,000 is a drop in the budget relative to the entire city budget but provides the greatest help to the communities. i ask the supervisors to go along with the budget help as it will provide much needed resources for communities like the tenderloin.

[inaudible] crime prevention starts by funding social programs and creating opportunities. thank you very much for your time. >> clerk: thank you very much for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hi, supervisors. my name is kate robinson, and i work with tenderloin community benefit district. today, i'm calling in support of this tenderloin food security collective budget ask of $150,000 for food security initiatives in the tenderloin. food access is the most basic human right, and food insecurity disproportionately affects people of color in san francisco. we must do everything we can to feed our communities. as my colleagues mentioned, the tenderloin has the second highest rate of covid-19 cases in san francisco, and reducing vulnerable population exposure is vital to keeping the tenderloin safe and healthy. our budget ask will provide

10,000 meals for over six months period directly to 400 homes per week. that's 400 less people every week being potentially exposed to covid-19 as they go out to get food. this budget request will literally save lives. i'm also urging you, supervisors, to fund our parks in the tenderloin and fund open space and leadership development for our tenderloin youth. like food insecurity, this is a tenderloin issue. tenderloin residents have a life span that is ten years shorter than their neighborhoods in white affluent neighborhoods. we need investments in our open spaces. please fund our parks. residents only have access to a yield of that open space each. we must invest in food, open spaces, and our youth in the

tenderloin. thank you. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> that's all of our speakers. thank you so much. >> clerk: thank you very much. mr. qiu, please queue in the next speaker. >> good morning, supervisors, staff, city workers, and residents of san francisco. i hope you're having an amazing day like myself or better, regardless of the circumstances that surround us. my name is al [inaudible] just like myself are responsible for completing assessments of commercial and residential properties which contributes to generating over one-third of the revenue for san francisco and its residents and with the passage of prop 15, known as school and communities first, workers like me will be instrumental for valuing san

francisco by assessing businesses that have not paid their fair share [inaudible] for the smooth running of the city which benefits all who live, work, and play in san francisco. so when i heard the mayor was threatening us valuable services of the city through budget cuts, i felt like wow, this is crazy. the crazy is $800 million of those deserved funds of the $1.3 billion we already have could be spend in fiscal year 20-21 if circumstances require. however, the mayor's budget requires only allocating $330 million in reserved funds that have been built on the backs of workers like me.

why is the mayor demanding more from the dedicated workers of san francisco, bringing the total balance of this two-year budget cycle to $1.3 billion? you know, i'm appalled. in previous years, we public employees already endured wage freezes -- >> clerk: your time has expired. thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hi, good morning, supervisors. my name is amy wong, a local 21 member with the san francisco behavioral health center. i hope you guys are doing well. i am a mental health treatment specialist and a bay area

resident for more than 20 years. i risk my health and my family's health serving the bay area. now with the added california fires, the crisis, like the previous caller, i concur that we need the supervisors to support our frontline workers. we need that millions of dollars in federal aid. we help the city build a $1 billion reserve by doing the job of one person, thanks to the vacant budgeted positions. please do not balance the budgets on our backs. we want san francisco to remain a beautiful and healthy city. it is the essential and frontline workers who kept the community alive, well, and together.

there should be no more budget cuts, no layoff. thank you, supervisors. have a great day. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hi. good morning, supervisors. christine [inaudible] i'm the chinese [inaudible] and i will be reading the statements of two parents. i'm a mom of four kids in san francisco. i'm calling to demand that [inaudible] be restored. public school parents need right now, and parents for public school is an organization based in the chinese community [inaudible] while one of the oldest child was about to enroll in school in 2019 [inaudible] without your help, many parents,

including myself, have no idea how to navigate public schools in san francisco. they help parents understand the enrollment process, school system, and answer important questions from parents. this is so important to keep parents involved in public school, and please support chinese parents for public school. and the other, i'm a parent of a student living in chinatown. low-income immigrant workers need help in san francisco. [inaudible] is providing essential resources to the chinese families. as a newcomer parent with

language and social difference, it's difficult to navigate the school system in a new country. my family has seen tremendous support from parents of public school. they use various social media to deliver the important information and provide resources to our community. it serves up to 15,000 parents in the last year. they're so important to us. please keep parents of public schools by funding them. these two comments, thank you for your time. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> my name's david cross, and on behalf of faith in action, i plead with you to find $5

billion in this budget to provide direct rent subsidies to keep san francisco seniors in their homes. over 20,000 seniors are paying over 30% of their incomes in rent, and over 5,000 are paying 70%. many have lived in their homes for decades. most are immigrants and people of color. i'm not one of those at risk, and neither are most of the people in my congregation. we're in luck. the mechanism already exists. the city's dignity housing funding subsidies programs has a track record for people with disabilities. this program has prevented homelessness by identifying currently housed people facing imminent eviction and helping them pay their rents.

we ask you to increase the funding to $5 million to help keep seniors in their homes. the city spends over $3,000 a month to support people living on the street or in shelters when you can keep them in their homes for $400 a month. do the math. a city budget is a financial statement of our moral values as a community. what is it i ask you that we value more than keeping our elders in their homes and off the streets. please, i beg you, find the $5 billion to keep our seniors in their homes. thank you very much. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> good morning, supervisors.

i'm chris altman, and i'm a supervisor for the wastewater services. when this whole stay at home thing started, many of us were reassigned to d.s.w. work, and this was at a time when we didn't know how dangerous covid was, and we directly put our lives at risk in order to feed at-risk elderly and also covid positive san franciscans. so we're still working. we're going in every day, and a lot of us are doing two people's jobs because we've never recovered from the last kind of destaffing. people are still flushing their toilets, and we're working hard, and so i'm urging you guys to adopt a fair budget, to

not cut our staff or our wages and help keep san francisco running during these hard times. thanks. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hi, good morning. my name is sarah. i live and work in district one, and i'm calling to demand yet again that you take action and show san francisco that black lives matter by defunding, disarming, and disbanding the sfpd and sheriff's department. as previous speakers have said, our current budget is our proposed values. i'm sick of the police and sick of the facebook posts and inat that extra hashtags. i want to make damn sure that these public comments today change the course of your public comments tomorrow. it's highly disappointed that the board of supervisors cannot commit to a single officer to be cut, so i have a very simple

suggestion. start with the low hanging fruit. end the school-to-prison pipeline and defund the school officer budget. i so badly want san francisco to lead the way in the defunding movement sweeping the country. a lot of people think that mayor breed's words for taking $120 million and having that money diverted from the police to community meant something, but it's not. it only amounts to $18 million. shame on you, mayor breed. how can you pass this budget after hundreds of thousands of san franciscans expressed their traumatic incidents happening with police. how can you continue to ignore your constituents after

thousands of minutes of public comment asking to fund public services instead of funding police services? take the money and invest it in reparations for black communities. people are begging you for money so they can feed homeless people. how can you cut that -- >> clerk: thank you for your comments. next speaker, please.

>> thank you very much. my name is greer hopkins. i'm speaking on behalf of [inaudible] as well as faith in action bay area. there are 5,000 seniors in this city who are paying more than 70% of their incomes for rent rather than the more realistic 30% they might actually afford. i am going to urge you to fund at least $5 million in the next budget for 2021 to directly subsidize these seniors. with well more than 8,000 and already increasing homeless, it seems unconscionable to

increase that number by kicking out people who have lived in their homes for decades. financial considerations for this once-great city seems to be falling apart at the seams also represent a moral value in social justice concerns. please reflect on the possibility that one of these most vulnerable senior residents may be your relative or elder friend in the future. please make the moral decision to keep these seniors in their homes and subsidize them and place this $5 million for senior subsidies within the 20-21 budget. thank you for doing the right thing during these difficult times. >> clerk: thank you for your

comments. next speaker, please. >> good morning, and thank all of you supervisors for the time and accessibility during the ongoing health crisis. i would like to request that videos one, two, and three be played after i conclude my time. my name is juan garcia. i am the senior project accordator for the s.f. housing collaborative. today, you will see and hear the real life stories of s.f. families struggling to balance the difficulties living under covid, housing conditions, and limits to essential resources. these videos and stories are not the exceptions, but the extreme commonality. after me, you will have the opportunity to see and hear from a few of the hundreds of

families living in s.r.o.s, counting on you to lessen the burden and constraints of 180 square feet. listen to their stories as they and their children live day-to-day in these spaces. over the past year, we have had the opportunity to help about 15 families move to apartments, well beyond the unimaginable cramped spaces of s.r.o. units to deep rental subsidies. with your help, we ask permission to help an additional 17 families with deep rental subsidies. we ask you for an additional $600,000 to allow us to move forward. thank you for your time, and i yield the rest of my time for our group, beginning with videos one, two, and three. thank you.

[speaking cantonese language]

>> interpreter, if you can jump in. >> interpreter: okay. i will try to summarize it. so this is our single home for two children. one is six years old, and another is six months old. and what she really wanted is she want our boss to get more funding for sro families, and she want to show you guys their bad living conditions right now. her family and her children normally how bad it is. they only can live in this kind of bad conditions, and they

will live there and work there. but the conditions are really bad. it's also hard for the children [inaudible] and they even have no space to -- to wash their -- they even have no space to wash their clothes because they don't have any space to store any washing machine, and she also [inaudible] to the kids to cooking, as well. that space is really bad, and she want to express that. thank you.

operation operation can we play video two, please. [speaking cantonese language]

>> interpreter: hi, everyone. i'm immigrant, living in san francisco for almost eight years, and i have lived in s.r.o. for almost seven years,

and i have two children. one is a daughter, and another one is a son, but my daughter, because -- live in s.r.o.s for almost seven years, and she has mental health, and she's a little bit [inaudible], and she doesn't really like to talk to teachers or other people, like, the catholics or something like that. and her son had asthma because of living in s.r.o.s and because of s.r.o.s air condition is really bad, as well. but with housing choice programs, they can move to big housing. and right now, her daughter and her son gets much more better,

and they really want to talk to the other people, and their living conditions get improved, as well. and really thank you about that and hope the supervisors can continue to support this program. thank you. >> play video three, please. [speaking cantonese language]

>> interpreter: hi, everyone. i live in s.r.o.s for almost six years, and right now because of covid-19 pandemic, the housing program help our family to move to a better living conditions, and i am so thankful for that, but i still

want to share horrible living conditions in s.r.o.s. we are a family of five, and when we were living in s.r.o.s, we had shared the kitchen, shared the bathroom, and it seems like we don't have any space to install fridge or other type of big applications, as well. and we are living -- everything is inside. we live in a bed, and the air quality in s.r.o.s is really, really bad. and i really feel so grateful right now that our living conditions are really improved, and i hope that the board of supervisors can really support this program. thank you. >> we're now going to hear from amy guy.

[speaking cantonese language]

>> interpreter: hello, board of supervisors of my name is amy guy. i'm from ccdc. i hope that you can still support s.r.o. housing programs. [speaking cantonese language] [end of translation]. >> interpreter: i hope that board of supervisors can help families living in s.r.o.s move

to better conditions areas. i really want to say something. after they move to better living conditions, it really improve a lot, not just help them to deal with the economic burden and improve their living conditions and also improve the living conditions between the husband and also the wife, as well. and i want to give you two examples. the very first example is one of the family, the husband get depressed because living in s.r.o.s, and when he moved to better living conditions, he did not have to take all that medication, and he wanted to communicate that with others,

as well. the other example is a little sister, and this little sister, when she lived in s.r.o.s, she doesn't get a lot of rest because living conditions really bad in s.r.o.s, and also, she doesn't have a good nutrition to supplement her service load. when she moved to a better living conditions, she got improved of this kind of condition, as well. and she really hope that board of supervisors can continue to support s.r.o.s housing programs because all these housing programs, they cannot imagine how bad it will be. thank you. >> we're now going to hear from

yong [inaudible]. [speaking cantonese language]

>> hello, board of supervisors. i'm from s.r.o. family uniting collaborative. i live in a very small s.r.o. unit. my husband has a [inaudible] and when -- during covid-19 pandemic, he only can rest on the floor instead of on the bed. and because my family cannot afford a bed, and even there's no space to put a bed in s.r.o.s. and for my children, my

children went to take on-line classes, because the s.r.o.s are really small, we cannot put a table in the s.r.o. unit, and my children's books can only put under the bed, and we don't know when we can improve these conditions, and i can only tell my children that tomorrow will be a better day. and i really hope that the board of supervisors can think about the housing issues and the heart issues, as well and continue to support s.r.o. families. thank you. >> we're going to hear from twan yoo hay.

[speaking cantonese language]

>> interpreter: hello, board of supervisors. i'm person of a family of three person, and i'm the main support of my family because my husband is disabled person, and

i have to support my family on my own. we actually live in a space in s.r.o.s. every time when i see my daughter doing her homework in s.r.o.s without very good living conditions, i will cry. right now, with this housing program, we can move out from s.r.o.s, and we hope that the board of supervisors can continue to support this housing program. thank you. >> we're now going to hear from chung may pao.

[speaking cantonese language]

>> hello, board of supervisors. my name is shing may tao, and i'm also a resident of s.r.o.s. and i'm a member of the s.r.o.s uniting families collaborative, as well. i hope that the board of

supervisors can continue to support this skill set of programs because this career skill set program can help our s.r.o.s resident to improve our skills and -- so that our -- and also because most of the s.r.o.s residents have the language barriers, and this program allows a lot of the skills to help us to get a better job to improve our -- to increase our incomes, as well, and we really hope that you can continue to support this program. thank you. [end of translation]. >> we're now going to hear from yam mu lin. [speaking cantonese language]

>> interpreter: hi, board of supervisors. my name is yu min lee, and i live in s.r.o.s. last few years, i work in dry cleaning authority and also as

janit janitors and also, like, some in-home support services, and we can only earn the minimum wage in san francisco. before i immigrant here, i work -- i work in the -- oh, i was working the jobs using computers. but because after we immigrant here, because of language barriers, we don't have that much career skill sets to get that job. so i really think that the

s.r.o. housing collaborative program can help us to improve our careers and help us improve our skill sets. and i hope that the board of supervisors can continue to support this program. thank you. [end of translation]. >> members of the board, i'm mathias, and i'm the last speaker. first of all, i want to thank the clerk's office for the incredible flexibilities for allowing us today to provide live testimony, recorded testimony, and testimony from the hub in chinatown. we're thankful for the clerk's office and all the time they put into hearing us out. you heard directly from the families. i'm not going to add anything. in covid times. we can not just imagine -- and

i hope, by looking at the videos, that you can appreciate the amount of space that families have. in the first video, the mother shares a 360° video of her s.r.o. room. and that's where the kids have to go to school, learn, that's where the parents have to have arguments -- that's where they need to argue. that's where siblings need to take time-out from each other. that is the reality of our s.r.o. families, over 650 families citywide, and we are here to ask you to increase rental subsidies for s.r.o. families, so we can help more families move out of s.r.o.s and into family housing. and we also ask you to support our community learning hub,

which is giving these vital life learning skills to immigrant families. thank you, and thank you to the clerk's office for facilitating this process to allow us to complete our presentation. operati >> operator: thank you very much. could we have the next speaker, please. [please stand by]

>> and to reinstate the services cut. the council we provide and facilitate matching and do a lot of work with minimal dollars.

we support the community efforts and ask the police funds to go specifically to the police community. experts have come up with six healthy proposals to serve black children to be provided. at the same starting point, my community should not have to play catch up from the very beginning. >> thank you very much for your comments. can we be connected to the next speaker, please. >> good morning to the members of the budget and proatio appros

committee. at a recent virtual event we drew over five hundred people almost needly. today nearly half of the city's eight thousand homeless people will over age 60.

>> i'm one of around thirty eeo specialists across all

departments. we investigation discrimination and retallation claims. this work is important to myself and fellow city employees. particularly during this period of racial justice and disparity. the delivery of services to the public and internal practices and systems. many of us city employees serve our city in crucial capacity by staffing the unhoused and the response to the pandemic and other overlapping emergency situations and providing resources support to the massive oppressive situation that has

been happening since the pandemic started. we still face some of the most expensive housing costs in the county. many houses have become single housing since the pandemic. workers are contributing their fair share to the pandemic and it's time for others to do so too. thank you for your considerations. >> thank you so much for yurp comments. can we have the next speaker p please. >> letting cops keep their job

sprofane. we have the right to speak. the assembly of government is failing us. you don't need to instigate

violence by policing us. back of public safety policy is killing us. please stand with your people. defund sfpd. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hello. i've been spending my life fighting for justice. too many times to count police have harassed our people. they [indiscernible]. please give us some water. he was sweating profusely.

he begged him. only then did they call the ambulance. i'm so teared this behavior. right now millions of people because of the pandemic and the fires are thinking for of themselves and not the others. we are going to get rid of the police and jails. your job is to make a just transition. we'll take it over until you do the right thing. end the suffering and violence. >> thank you very much for your comments. could we have the next speaker, please.

>> caller, please go ahead. >> good morning, supervis super. i'm a local 21 member. i'm the supervisor, my job is sttomonitor funding. we are ensuring residents continue to enjoy our parks and community gardens.

now i'm having to choose between my job. my family relies on my wage to pay for rent that continues to increases. the consumer price index for consumers is two point three percent. we are giving back tens of millions of dollars in addition they have the-by doing the jobs of more than one person. please do not balance the budget on our backs. there should be no more budget cuts or layoffs. we see many home owners struggle due to current-[indiscernible].

i ask the supervisors-thank you so much. and i hope you can make a good choice in not hurting the workers. >> thank you for sharing your comments with the committee. can we have the next speaker, please. >> good morning, supervisors. i'd like to talk to the people who are here to support defunding the police. this hearing has been really demodemonstrative-there's nevery consideration of going into the budget and rearrange things. the mayor has threatened

supervisors with cutting their favorite non-profit funding if they mess with the budget. they are letting bad things happen. they are allowing all the things that non-profits cause to happen and come in at the end and mitigate some of those programs. there's way to cut the police because housing and health care will be funded. it's not going to happen, but of course, it has to happen. police are no longer needed as they were designed. you are tolerating it when you have a chance to do something about it.

position-the goal is to keep rez dpentresidents and have any sayn how government runs. you are not represented in this democracy. these supervisor supervisors kn- >> can we have the next speaker, please. >> i'm calling representing the community benefit district. i want to speak today to ask the board to fund the parks.

in tender loin we have the most densely populated community in the city. the total of each resident is less than half. the parks need additional support to ensure they are clean, safe, and inviting. we need additional investment and stewardship to enjoy the clean air and recreation. [indiscernible]. we respectfully ask that you bring parks and the

tender loin. bring back these programs. thank you for your su support. >> i am with the sr collaborative. my concern is class funding for the parks. and lseand also for the dog par. i've noticed that will our community is doing a great job

in the tender loin. we do need the funding for the parks because people need a dpet away. i feel that's something we need funding for. >> hello. i'm also from central city and a long term resident. i'm here to ask for funding for the parks also that we have here. we need them so much here. especially here. a lot of seniors, children, they just don't have places to go to see greenery and breathe fresh

air. i'm asking you will fund for safe passage. thank you very much. i hope you fund it. thank you. >> i'm an employee of the tender loin district. public safety is deeply vital. residents rely on public space for-[indiscernible]. wre need[id

your funding to ensure the parks don't close. people walking down the streets and dancing, many people stopped to join. let's support our public safety in parks in the tender loin. thank you. >> thank you, very much. for your comments. that's everyone. thank you. next caller. >> good morning. i'm a local 21 member.

i'm an essential worker. the use condition working of streets and sidewalks to ensure safe passage. i risk my health and health of loved ones to go to work everyday. we're facing the loss of our cost of living adjustment. so far, i've been fortunate enough to still live in san francisco. because of the pandemic, i'm the only person in my household with an income. my partner has been laid off since march. i'm aware the city has reserved

more than one million dollars. a sacrifice saved the city fifty million dollars. for the city to persevere, you need the essential workers that have sacrificed so much. we need you, the board of supervisors to help. please no budget cuts or layoffs. >> thank you. could we get the next caller, please. >> i'm a scientist working in d6. i'm asking you for disarm and disband the police.

they continue-[indiscernible]. they allow the officers to view the videos before writing reports. when we ask for transparency about police violence, reform doesn't work. we must remove the sheriff's presence from hospitals which costs over $20 million per year. reinvest the money in trauma reform care. we must invest in housing that will prevent crisis. we have lost our patients for the sake of symbolism. we need real change and leaders

with the courage to do it right. this is a conversation we need to be having. not a conversation about reformed or police posters. defund the police, invest in the things that makes us all safe. housing, health care, reparations. we want staffing cuts. thank you. >> thank you very much for your comments. next caller, please. >> hi. good morning. i'm the organizer, i support the budget coalition request. the public housing director-i'm

here to speck for chil speak fo. we're asking caregivers. as a parent who once paid for child care. i dedicated my life to ensure that san francisco is for the children. the proposition f in november. we ask for the funding to be honors. our teachers stipend should be fully funded. more than three thousand children on the waiting list.

>> thank you for your comments. >> can we have the next speaker, please. >> good morning.

twenty three expiring programs it adds significant cuts to our programs. it addresses critical needs of the philippino needs. the rising costs to live in san francisco. they have significantly reduced wages to support their children at home. essential workers and caregive caregivers. essential grocery clerks. business owners on the brink and becoming unhoused as the pandemic continues. they double on the streets of

our city. distance learning, cultural learning including-[indiscernible]. access to care for local health. economic recovery. it's absolutely critical at this time. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. caller, go ahead, please.

is there a caller on the line? please begin your comment.

>> hello. can you hear me? >> yes, we can hear you. please begin. >> i work with community works. we run the san francisco sheriff's department resolved to stop the violence program. i'm the coordinator where i run the intervention program. today i wanted to talk about the keeping the sheriff's office in our budget. i was an inmate in 98 and today i'm the inmate manager.

. . . . i was fortunate enough to accompany the then sheriff to the harvard school of government for the final presentation for that award. it makes no sense and is counterintuitive that that --- >> thank you very much for your comment. please connect us to the next speaker please. >> an i'm an i.t. professional working in the p.u.c. but back in march i was deployed to work as a disaster service worker. i was responsible for providing a stable, reliable, and digital platform for the mayor, supervisors and agencies like

the human relations commission to reach out and providing safe space during the safe and unknown times. my colleagues and i risk our lives to keep city services aroad in. and the mayor's office is quick to applaud city workers commitment to san francisco and the budget proposal lacks any commitment to us in return and we are expected to do more with less every single day. we have already given back tens of millions of dollars in scheduled raises. return work to the employees of the city and reduce contracting out budgets. we care about work and we are asking you to pass the budget committed to us. thank you. i yield my time.

>> thank you very much for your comment. >> caller: good afternoon. i am president of agent incorporated an organization incorporated in 1971 by harold yee and we represent a number of minority business enterprises and many of them are lbe or local business enterprises in the city of san francisco. the local business enterprise program is the successor to the former minority that was struck down by prop 209 and with the member of the coalition for economic equity and works

closely with trade organization and preparation for the impending passage by allocating funds within the disparity and with the local area in general. with the lbe is done before passage of prop 16 and we need to be prepared for passage of prop 16 and even if prop 16 doesn't pass, we need to know where the minority and women business enterprises stand as we go forward. thank you.

thank you very much for your comments. next speaker. >> caller: i am a medical student and i am calling with pub luck comment and defunding the sheriff and when i was rotating at the hospital i onced one of the patients be brutally beaten and sustain hairline fractures on his wrist and currently was $21 million of the budget to fund the sheriff and the immunization of patient advocators and transition emphasis for our patients. and toward the behavioral emergency response team. when you think of alternative ways in which we can support our patients and be there for them in their time of need.

i also stand in solidarity with the folks trying to defund sfpd as we look forward investing in housing and food and other social services for our people in their time of need. i yield my time. >> thank you very much for your comment. i want to call to echo so many of the previous constituents in one flavor or another. some are begging for food. some are begging for shelter. some of them are begging to no longer be beaten by the oppressive and militarized police. these all teem goals that can be accomplished with the same mission but sadly our

supervisors are using modern technology to avoid the will of the people. we as constituents are speaking clearly hour after hour, minute after minute, begging for the oppression to stop. begging for the beatings to stop. begging for food. begging for shelter. begging for anything other than what we receive. but what we continue to receive, what you continue to prioritize is political oppression. there's plenty of budget for the sfpd to brutalize five protestors in the mission. but there's no budget for us to save our elders. there's no budget for us to feed our homeless. no budget for teachers in our schools. but there's budgets for the

police. and our prison pipeline is endemic to our society and damages our public safety as a whole. our constituents, we as a whole are begging and this process is imperfect and our voices may not be as clear if as we were all standing in city hall yelling. however, hour after hour we are clear that the beatings must stop. we should feed people rather than punish them.

we should clothe them. >> thank you very much for your comments. can we get the next caller please. >> caller: i actually have three other people on my line and pass it off to them. my name is maggie and i have been a tour guide at china town, a program under china town development community development center for over three years. china underground tours provided training unemployment for people and in the past we have received funding and in the midst of the pandemic, it is hard to know how we can continue our program. in the last few months we have transitions to working exclusively online to providing workshops for youth. and we have also been able to host for institutional cities outside the city. we want to continue educating and helping young people through our program which is why i am urging you to fund china town

tours for the next fiscal year. thank you so much for your time and i will pass it on to the next person. >> caller: good afternoon. my name is judy and the virtual learning help for low income seniors and continue to support china town and with the suspicion and if they connect and engage and damage for the past eight years and to deliver classes for seniors and with the resolution for something. and now even more important to help.

to stay in touch and to tern virtually to be problem solvers. >> i am here to ask you to support to see a digital divide between different generations and between families from communities that do not have access to technology and families that live in single room occupancies. recently the high school youth programs have hosted online s.r.o. program for subjects like math, english, japanese, and also chinese. and live in cramped conditions

where they live, eat, and also now attend classes and during the tutoring program we saw there are difficulty accessing devices with families more than one child. the youth want to learn more about asian american history and work our way to continue to provide for tours online and finding creative means and meeting online and also continue to stay engaged in community and virtual way and for people and social circles and continue to give support. it is important to continue to engage the youth outside of school and to stay active during this time. it is essential to continue the support opportunities for youth and fund digital access, digital literacy and digital youth programs. thank you. >> thank you very much for your comments. >> caller: hi, supervisors.

can i start? do i go next? >> yes. >> caller: i am sandy from china town community development center and i work with youth and low income seniors and families and increase from low income seniors and families in china town and don't have necessary digital devices and to those who care about him. and the s.r.o. families are in a vulnerable situation and low income family who don't have digital access. and low income seniors and will be excluded from to get tested. with isolation. and connect to the family and

organizations trying to help them. and children and s.r.o.s won't be a victim of online learning. the first time to have other people pass information on housing. we are all in this together because we are not together when asking if i am able to be digitally connected. we are not connect when the children suffer in the classroom and don't have digital access. we are not together when families access critical information and together and let's use this pandemic and with the digital access and those in need. >> thank you very much for your comments. >> next speaker please.

you can begin now. >> caller: good morning, supervisors. ppa is part of the counsel's act and include 23 design programs for a total of $2 million. the sisterhood garden program is one of the 23 aspiring acts and this program started in 2014 and we have engaged here with the community and the community garden and seniors and black families and to leadership and

food security needs and community engagement and restore the budget and the success of the garden. thank you, supervisors. >> thank you very much for your comments. next caller please. >> yes, we can hear you. please begin. >> may name is susan buckman and i am speaking in support of wealth and disparity in the black community and their demand that all the reality funds and from the sp police department which the mayor has long earmarked for the san francisco community be taken to the black community and not be siphoned

off by other entity and departments and nonprofits and unions that have failed for years of people living in the black communities. the conversation about defunding the police would not be happening now except for the violence and oppression done towards the black community for decades. i understand all city workers are suffering during this time and are desperate for money to keep their heads above water. while they have the hope of one day standing on solid ground when we return to better times, the black community is actively drowning and has been for decades. and even in the name of black lives matter will only push the black community deeper underwater. thank you. >> thank you very much for your

comments. could we have the next caller please? caller, please go ahead. >> caller: hello? >> yes, we can hear you. >> caller: the executive director of legal services for children in san francisco and calling in support of the budget ask for san francisco immigrant difference cooperation funding in addition to san francisco legal immigration network and asking that funding from the rapid response network be restored. the three coalitions together represent immigrant justice in san francisco and are extremely critical to protecting the most vulnerable san franciscans. i thank the board of supervisors

for the tremendous support and encourage them to vote on the budget with the return of the money to the rapid response network. thank you so much for your time. >> thank you very much for your comments. could we have the next caller please? >> caller: good afternoon, supervisors. and i am an employee of the san francisco public utilities commission and the local member 21. and i began my career in san francisco county and the most important thing about keeping a world class city running is it takes thousands of individuals working together in concert to provide the essential services we all rely on and the realities of relying the citizen

infrastructure during the season in the context change and the response to covid-19 and the city shows us many of the same individuals that are called upon with normal services during normal times. and called upon to provide disaster response and recovery services. i am calling in here today to urge support to adopt a fair budget that continues to provide essential services and also supports our community. and also invests in the people providing the services and employees and nonprofits and the expectation of federal relief money down the line and regular measures on the ballot in november. and ultimately there is no reason for the mayor and the budget to demand concessions. thank you very much.

thank you for your comments. could we be connected to the next caller please? >> caller: hello? can you hear us? >> yes, we can. >> caller: we have a group of eight for public comment and will start with prerecording first. >> caller: [inaudible]

-- for continued support for housing. honestly should be ashamed for not going anything with the homeless.

[inaudible] >> caller: i'm terrell and i am experiencing homelessness as a youth. and defunding the government is best for poet parties and with hospitals and schools and giving that huge advantage from those not other parties such as this

and to castrate those in the minority community and transgender and those in poverty. the general funding is the high percentage of the tax dollars we contribute so much to and need higher wages now and after the pandemic with the government job intact. >> i am a youth with district services for over three years during the covid outbreak and services has changing clients and changing needs to try adhere to and has been around for decades and the actions speak to progress made in some of the clients.

with the youth and san francisco and the proposed budget decreases for youth, children and families for the next fiscal year and not only serves clear homeless youth and has to redirect your budget and the at-risk population. and work to find stereotypes and the new design and lasting changes and the youth and homelessness. thank you. >> thank you for your comments.

>> coldhold on one moment. [inaudible] >> caller: we should support all of those who have been affected negatively and anti-lgbtq and antihomeless and negative system of oppression. as a young brown taxpayer, i urge the community to fund lgbt and housing insecurity and h.i.v. we have to solve the poverty problem.

and to help those who need help. thank you. [inaudible]

>> connecting work and joblessness programs and is known that transition until youths are one of the most impacted during economic uncertainty and as we have seen in the pandemic, we saw in the economic recovery plan. the funding can insure that they are opportunities and work in district six and funded and moving forward to be homeless and the expression programs and

will give youth a more positive outlet in terms of reaching the alternatives and to serve youth and other forms and what they represent to the rest of the world. thank you. >> i want to thank mayor breed and as an essential worker who continues to work multiple times a week to district six in san francisco and crucial for leaders to adequately support

all san francisco residents during this unprecedented time. especially young people who are experiencing homelessness. and essential worker who is support them. the nonprofit work force is essential and the annual cost of doing business increase is critical to making sure that they can deliver the services and sustain our staff. since covid-19, nearly 40% of our young people have opted for employment and directly impacted the ability to maintain housing and the overall well being. and a dramatic increase in suicidal ideation and challenges with mental health services and clinics across san francisco due to the pandemic. and we really need our d.b.o.s to open back up and have funding to do so and provide the services. i asked them to urge the board of supervisors to prioritize homelessness and the budget decisions and insure our youth are provided with equitable

resources to meet the unique needs. and resources and employment support and education and programs and continue running and be fully supported. to sustain that. and truly is one of the violations that we do not intend to do so. >> thank you very much for participating in the process. could we be connected to the next caller please? >> caller: good afternoon, supervisors. good afternoon, supervisor. can you hear me? >> you are connected to the

call. please begin your comments. >> caller: okay. good afternoon, supervisors. i am a senior in the community action on the budget justice coalition. san francisco has been in a housing crisis with skyrocketing rent and evictions from people to find or hang on to affordable housing. the city needs to find rental subsidies and eviction prevention for seniors and people with low incomes to allow people to stay in their homes. i want to urge you all to disarm and disband the sfpd and the entire justice coalition rather than continue to put money into the systems and housing.

and child care and community service. all this is the best way to make our city safer and to fight back against racism. for services and if i could just help provide the safety net for the most vulnerable. please commit to equity. please defund the police and fund our community and thank how we can in this type of crisis change it all. and come up with a better solution and prioritize our communities. thank you.

>> good afternoon. and these issues are my own. the nationally recognized model for policing reform. sfpd isn't perfect but the answer is to continue to improve the department and not further ripple it through defunding. there are some functions that the department has been asked to take on and dealing with mentally ill and homeless individuals who are not committing crimes will will be better handles and the vast

majority are critical to our city. with the community policing and these losses need to be reversed. this is essential for providing that and is an unfortunate reality that without law enforcement respect for the straittors and with further chaos for the safe sleeping sites program and reside in a safe and stable environment until they exit the permanent housing and drug addiction issues to allow encampments throughout that city and is housed an unhoused. and finally please support

implementation for conservatorship with severe mental illness they are able to care for themselves independently. allowing such individuals to live on the streets is nothing less than a death sentence for them and puts others at risk. thank you for your time and considering my views. >> thank you for your comments. could we have the next caller please. >> i am kevin gallagher and i work for the rental subsidy and to advocate for funding for housing services. i work currently with 15 families to transition from having no house to being able to afford housing without support within a period of 1 to 2 years. thises categorically more difficult now than it was before covid. the clients are more economically vulnerable now than they were before.

the clients work service job and other jobs that require in-person contacts and work from home. and they are single parent who is can't go to work without access to safe child care and schooling options. they have had to wait months to receive benefits like unemployment insurance, stimulus patients and cash aid since system some of them still haven't received those things. i feel grateful that the clients have access to stub sidy program and would all be at imminent risk of houselessness. there are more than 100 families in the same situation in my one little program and every other rental subsidy is facing the same thing. hundreds and maybe thousands who aren't able to access those subsidy programs or another type of program right now just due to limitations on rapid rehousing and permit supportive housing. we are in a higher need situation than we were. before covid the resources were barely adequate and now they just no longer are.

i understand budgets need to be balanced but to do this on the back of the low income most high need familys is ethically and socially unconscionable. i would like to ask that you increase from it so we can appropriately address this extraordinary situation we are all in. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. could we be connected to the next caller please. >> caller: good morning, supervisors. thank you for your work and time.

and the racial and diverse community from africa, arab and latino community. with the services to look for immigration relief for the immigration status without the fear of immigration precautions. in the time of covid-19 in need of error for attention to us and the community between access and basic life saving programs in the near term and from that process and not making

additional cuts to the budget. to help to see inmates to respond to the need of the community. and that network with 13,000 more cuts already. that is way respond our work and

providing information and connecting us that is limited with the community member. and the immigrant community by supporting of the immigrant population of many in the community to thank you for your time with immigrants to make sure all immigrants survive during this covid pandemic. thank you.

can we be connected to the next caller please. >> an i work at the justice immigration center and the bar association of san francisco. with the justice and university senters and to reach thousands of unrepresented individuals to otherwise appear before an immigration judge without an attorney. to be legally unattainable for actions in our community.

with the work toed a vance justice and urge the board of supervisors to pass the mayor's budget and restore funding to the san francisco rapid response

network. we have an audio file that was sent in to the clerk's office. >> we're working to queue that up. please be patient. stop funding those who are being

hardest hit by covid-19 and members are getting sick with the virus and tenants are calling the hot line with jobs and income and needs rights to advocate for because they don't know about the rights they have and are being threaten bid the immigrants with ice to protect immigrants from ice. there is a budget to balance and we are asking you to cut police budgets and other law

enforcement budgets that do not serve our communities. we know the programs do not keep the communities safe. we don't believe we need another police academy and to fund important social programs like the ones i mentioned. thank you for your time and please stand with our community this is year and pass a budget that will serve us.

with the immigrant hotline and so many programs that the communities need right now. to be impacted on how to pay for child care assistance and for our elementary school daughter and even as we are still paying for day care. for the youngest we can't home school her. my partner's income has been cut and what we need is the programs

and urge them. to help the communities with that part. >> hello, supervisors. i live in the mission district of san francisco. i reach out to let you know that making deep austerity cuts impacts us as we deal with the pandemic and worried about keeping that roof over our head. with the raised class and gender inequality ands proer thety will

only make it worse. they clearly show what cities are willing to support through funding. in an economic downturn, they demonstrate the moral obligation based and how they prioritize to fund and prioritize services that are living and thriving. and to help people survive by coronavirus. i am pleading with you to do the right thing. thank you. i am urging you to pass the

budget cut dedicated to immigrant family and services of color. without living paycheck to paycheck and were laid off or furloughed. we need all of you supervisors to stand strong and vote for a budget that prioritizes services for the unhoused and ice rapid response connections that are the only safety net for those hit hardest by everything going on, covid, the wildfires, and suppression and violence from white supremacists among many other things. you must balance the budget and find additional money and to

look at other areas to not distract and cutting police and other criminalization budgets can net the city millions to fund the important social programs. thank you for your time and stand with the people from that just cause. i am sending this video to urge you to pass a budget that stops cuts to families like mine. i am urging the supervisors to vote for a budget that includes

domestic violence services and immigrant protections and services for newcomers. the programs are essential to communities that are being hit the hardest by the coronavirus. and as we have seen and are seeing around the country, police don't prevent crimes. san francisco does not need more to save $24 million and to balance the budget to the other law enforcement branches that have not served our community.

with the housing side in san francisco. and i am submitting my comment to urge a budget to immigrant families and communities of color. that include funding services

needed to come back to combat this placement and the evictions that we know is coming. we need all the supervisors to stand strong and vote for a budget that include programs like tenant counseling and domestic violence services because the programs are the safety net for the communities that are being hit the hardest and look at the police department and the sheriff's department which do not serve our communities. we do not believe there needs to be more police communities and to fund important social programs that actually serve our community. thank you for your time. >> hello, board of supervisors. we have been nerving black and immigrant latinex communities in the mission and bay view for the

last decade or several and i am reaching out the to make sure the budget is not balanced on the backs of those who need the services that our people rely on from tenant rights counseling to rapid response network to homeless services and the list goes on. we need you to help this budget reflect the values of san francisco to be the moral document that we know it is. and find creative ways and things like the police academy which can save $24 million a year and to again insure that those who have already been suffering the most on the

coronavirus and wildfires that we are protecting our people. thank you in advance for your creativity to ensure that we are able to do the right thing by our people. >> thank you. we are going to transition to the media commentary and in the meantime for the members of the public, we have an estimated 185 voices in the queue waiting for their opportunity to connect to the call. >> thank you so much, mr. caro and as you know, we are breaking at 1:00 for 30 minutes. and since we are transitioning, i believe right now would be a great time to do that. so i want to make a motion that we postpone until 1:30. >> mr. vice chair, we have one audio clip that is queued up to go at this moment if we could

entertain that motion after we have dealt with that technological hurdle. >> that is perfect. thank you so much. >> thank you. [providing comments in spanish]

>> interpreter: i'll summarize what the gentleman was saying. so he's saying hello, supervisors. i hope this finds you well. my name is lucina valenzuela, and i am asking you to please recognize budget cuts in a way that will [inaudible] this pandemic has affected all of us in ways that it has affected our health and it has affected us emotionally. we must support community-based organizations that help us from being evicted.

in order to not have evictions and support families like my family, i would urge you to cut things like the police department and not things that help us. i urge you to work together to solve the hopelessness problem that we are currently having, and please help our community based organizations. thank you. >> operator: mr. vice chair. we do still have the interpreters on the line, and we would be ready to bring in additional voices who want to speak to the committee who need interpretation assistance. we're ready to do that now. with your blessing, of course. >> supervisor walton: how many are in the queue right now? do you know?

>> operato >> operator: i don't know how many would be required to need the interpreter. >> supervisor walton: as we work on the question, let me check in with my colleagues in terms of your thoughts of taking a break now or taking public comment through the translation right now and then recessing a little later? >> president yee: i'm okay with taking the callers and then taking a recess. >> clerk: mr. chair, it looks like there's between six to

eight speakers. >> supervisor walton: that's fine. i'm okay with hearing them and then taking a break. >> clerk: thank you, mr. vice chair. >> thank you, supervisors, for hearing the filipino community. we have several members from the filipino communities to make comment. many of our members provide culturally competent services and provide education and language help. due to covid, we are very busy helping our community members, as well as unhoused tenants.

we also do tenant counseling, support students and families, as well as conducting wellness and many more. our populations live in neighborhoods that have the highest number of cases of covid. we are an essential bridge between [inaudible] disconnected to services. it is important that the city keep us whole, along with other communities that are already vulnerable, and now with covid-19, are at the highest risk of displacement. our first speaker is gretchen. >> clerk: thank you, gretchen, please begin your comments. >> hello, supervisors. thank you for your time and working with support communities. my name is kristin, and i work at the filipino community

center. this coalition prioritizes the needs of vulnerable and at risk communities. before the pandemic, community members were regularly receiving services, and now their concerns have only become more complicated. filipinos who makeup a large number of the workforce and hospitality industry need a lot of help to address their needs. many of our clients face issues around food insecurity rent, unemployment, and p.p.e. services are intensifying, and now it is time to address more. community-based organizations and the budget justice coalition work to address the needs on the ground every day. we listen to our community

members and quickly adapted our services. we ask you to do the same. we urge you to provide needed funds and support for our community. organizations in the budget justice coalition like the filipino community center are needed now more than ever to provide accessible and culturally competent services for the black, indigenous, and people of color communities of san francisco. thank you for your time. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. >> hello, board of supervisors. thank you for using this time to talk.

we're one of those families receiving support. we get [inaudible] and food to go. [inaudible] we're one of those -- not one, million of people that have been [inaudible] i hope that you guys can help us as we're one of the people helped by f.p.c. thank you for your time. >> good morning. supervisors, thank you for your leadership and support for our community during this time. my name is mary beth tatum, and

i am a district manager. we serve mostly low-income and immigrant families who have already been struggling to stay in the city due to the high cost of living, which is especially more challenging during this pandemic. s.f. filipino center, we've been able to address the needs of our community for the past 15 years. our clients needs have become more challenging than in years before. i'd like to -- like our client, connie, expressed in her comments, budget cuts will have a significant impact on the seniors we serve who are among the population vulnerable to covid-19 and who have been facing food insecurity and trouble accessing groceries safely. i am calling today because i'm very concerned about the budget

cuts which will only negatively affect our community members. the funding for programs and services in the budget justice coalition will help support and provide a social safety net for the most marginalized residents of san francisco. i urge you to fully fund the entire budget justice coalition list. thank you for your time. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. [providing comments in tagalog]

>> interpreter: i'm just going to translate real quick. good morning, supervisors. my name is [inaudible], and i'm calling you to ask you to please restore the cuts to all the organizations serving vulnerable communities in san

francisco. as someone who goes to bessie carmichael, i see how the cuts have negatively affected them. groups like the filipino community center and somcan are critical to providing culturally sensitive services to our communities. we help families fill out d.d. forms, educate them on their tenant rights and provide food for those who cannot leave their homes or who have lost their homes. i have personally spent every thursday from morning until late evening putting groceries in bags and providing them to filipinos in encampments in the tenderloin and other areas of san francisco. besides financial hardship and distance learning pressures, there's also a rise in domestic violence. this is not the time to cut

funding for our community groups when our city is asking us to do more reaching our filipino communities. we are on the justice list. thank you so much. >> clerk: thank you. [providing comments in tagalog] >> do i continue? >> clerk: yes, please

continue. [providing comments in tagalog]

>> interpreter: good day, supervisors. thank you for looking out for our communities at this time. i am shari from [inaudible] we provide culturally responsive programs to the bessie carmichael cultural center and families all over san francisco. some of our services include summer care, tutoring and wellness checks, food assistance, assistance for financial relief, applications, connections, and referral services for community resources. we also do interpretation, group support and family mental

health and wellness. we serve mostly low-income immigrant families which have already been struggling to stay in the city due to the high cost of housing. the funding for programs and services in the budget justice coalition helps support and provide a safety net for the most vulnerable and marginalized residents of san francisco. i wish for you all to fully fund the entire budget justice coalition list. thank you so much. >> clerk: thank you for the assistance. do we have any other callers on that line? >> operator: yes, we have -- >> clerk: please begin your comments. >> hi. my name is [inaudible] and i'm with t.c. program. i'll be reading a statement from one of the families we

serve. [providing comments in tagalog]

>> interpreter: i'll just go ahead and interpret the parts that were said in filipino. good day, i am neda. i am a wife and parent to three kids. i live in the mission district. due to the pandemic. my husband and i both lost our jobs. we have all we needed to stay home. this includes our children's distance learning. there are a total of eight of us in a one-bedroom apartment. in all of this worrying, our physical and mental health are tremendously affected. the children are experiencing boredom at home so they're on their computer or gadgets most of the day. at [inaudible] we were able to get family services needs, provide time for our family, especially our children. their after-school program are a huge help as they support guidance and help to our children as we are new

immigrants. they are ready to help address our needs any chance they get. please continue supporting essential nonprofit organizations and other much needed services in san francisco by supporting the budget justice coalition. thank you so much. >> clerk: thank you so much for your interpretation assistance. please begin your comments. >> hi. my name is rhea martinez, and i'm with [inaudible]. our organization is fiscally sponsored by f.a. dia. i'll be reading a statement from one of the families that we serve. [comments provided in tagalog]

>> i urge you to fully fund the entire budget justice coalition list. thank you. >> interpreter: good afternoon. my name is analita ebol, and i live in the mission district. my daughter used to have two jobs, but now, she only has one, and due to this loss, a lot of income -- due to this,

we lost an awful lot of income in our household. there is a lot of fear having to live a normal life. regardless, we are still surviving, and it is a thank you to the big help of [inaudible]. when it comes to food that we don't have, [inaudible] provides us with food distribution. we don't only need food assistance, we need financial assistance, which is why we need their help to the end of this pandemic. parent support is another great help that [inaudible] provides. through the group, parents are give spaces to talk about their experiences and resources that they need so that they can survive this pandemic.

during this pandemic, my grandchildren were able to have opportunities to learn because of their bigger sisters and bigger brothers. they were also happy because they were given incentives to do their best. it is my wish that they will continue to work with my grandchildren and they will be able to work and achieve their needs. please support [inaudible] and other needed supportive services in san francisco by supporting the budget justice coalition. >> clerk: thank you for your statements. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon. my name is judy [inaudible] and i am the case worker in somcan.

i am here to read a letter of one of the families who are now temporarily living in a family shelter. [providing statements in tagalog]

>> thank you. >> interpreter: all right. i'll interpret for the message that was said in filipino. good day to you all. my name is frizo campo. my husband and i have two kids. we are now currently living in east palo alto, and when i was looking through the current services for filipinos in san francisco, these were the oned

that were said they were okay. they helped us to find shelter so our family can be safe. they always asked about me and our family to make sure we were safe. i thank all of those in somcan and those who helped my family. it's also a big help that they continue to help families like mine in help navigating this country. my sincere and heartfelt thanks to this organization have helped change our lives for the better and especially my children's lives. thank you so much. >> clerk: thank you so much for the comments and the interpretation. do we have another caller organized through this group that needs interpretation assistance? >> yes. so -- >> we have two more. >> good afternoon, budget appropriations commission. thank you for taking all of our calls today and providing the leadership and patience to this

meeting. i am [inaudible] we are fiscally sponsored by f.a. diaz and part of the budget justice coalition. [inaudible] that introduces filipino american studies to k through college students that are low immigrant youth of color in the excelsior neighborhood of san francisco. our program has hit a target goal since being funded by mohcd over the past two decades and has served hundreds of students over the past two decades and we are rewarded by a significant cut to our budget that does not make any sense. it would result in the elimination of one of our positions and a cut to our

provided services. we continue to provide ethnic studies to our students during covid-19, and our students see our class, they feel a sense of community. and most importantly, they see themselves in this curriculum. the relationships that we have created with our students is important to stay connected and engaged in schools, especially with the difficult pivot to remote learning. these cuts not only affect us but various community based filipino organizations. this proposed cut could provide a sense of community, identity,

and security. we stand in solidarity with the budget justice organization that prioritizes and stands with the vulnerable filipino community of san francisco, and i urge you to fund the entire v.j.c. list. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. >> good morning, supervisors. thank you for your time of leadership during this covid-19 pandemic and providing services for our indigenous, black, and people of color in san francisco. we are fiscally sponsored by the american developmefilipino development coalition or fadc.

since the shelter in place order back in march, the f.c.c., along with fellow fadc organizations had to swiftly just our skills to support those suffering increased unemployment, homelessness, severe food insecurity, increased policing and tenant harassments and evictions. more than 20% of registered nurses are filipino, and many more of our hidden frontliners are filipino senior caregivers, nannies, and housekeepers. our community organizations continue to respond by adapting our programs and services, expanding way beyond our staff's formal training. a cut to our services will cut

the number of families that we support in the mission and beyond. we help provide a safety net for the most vulnerable populations in the city. i urge you to fund the entire v.j.p. list. thank you. >> interpreter: thank you. that's all our speakers. >> clerk: thank you very much. mr. vice chair, if you want to return to your presidership of the meeting here. >> supervisor walton: thank you very much. colleagues, i would like to make a motion that we recess until 2:10 p.m. >> clerk: on the motion offered by vice chair walton -- oh, that's right. thank you very much. seconded by supervisor yee. on the motion to recess until 2:10 -- [roll call]

>> clerk: mr. chair, there are four ayes on the motion to recess until 2:10. >> super

>> supervisor walton: thank you so much. welcome back, everybody. we are now back from recess. we are going to continue with our marathon public comment session. mr. clerk, can you let us know who's in the queue so we can continue public comment. >> clerk: yes. operations, can you queue up the next comment, please.

while we are waiting, i'd just like to note that members of the public who wish to provide public comment on this item should call 415-655-0001. the meeting i.d. is 146-351-5423. press pound, and pound again. if you haven't done so already, please press star, three to lineup to speak, and wait for the system to be unmuted before providing public comment. operations, could we have the next public comment. >> good morning, supervisors. my name is [inaudible] and i'm joining many of my neighbors in

san francisco to disband, dearm, and defund the police. [inaudible] illustrating the continues bias against our black and brown neighbors. [inaudible] i urge you not to accept the mismanagement of

funds that the sfpd has demonstrated until now. i urge you to make san francisco a safe place to live for all by disbanding, dearming, and defunding the sfpd. i thank you for your time. >> clerk: thank you. can we have the next caller, please. >> hi, there. i am calling, along with many of my neighbors, as a district 6 resident, and i'm calling to implore you as the board to do everything in your power to defund, disband, and disarm the sfpd. i think it's pretty obvious at this point that this is what the public needs, and you've heard from so many incredible nonprofits who can use this many as those obviously black and brown community members and neighbors and so many unhoused

people who need help right now. we know that it's a difficult thing to do, but that's why you're in this position, and it is so important for you to use this power and to do the right thing, which is often not the easy thing nor the quick thing. we really appreciate you going to bat for us and listening to the residents of san francisco who really urge you to do your work here. thank you so much, and i yield my time. >> clerk: thank you. can we have the next caller, please. >> hello? >> clerk: yes, please proceed. >> hello. my name is jared rosel, and to me, as a long time resident of the tenderloin and the tenderloin benefit district, i'm calling on the city to provide stewardship and funding

for tenderloin parks. as you're aware, the tenderloin community is in need of open spaces. your support is is crucial. we need funding to ensure the tenderloin community parks, so please fund our parks. additionally, i would like the city to provide funding to our tenderloin city collective food security coalition to ensure our children are fed. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. may we have the next speaker,

please. >> hi, i'm sorry. can you hear me? >> clerk: yes, we can. please proceed. >> okay. great, thanks. my name is casa hartsock, and i live and work in d-6. today, i'm calling to ask you all to drop the funding for policing in san francisco and fund community services.

[inaudible] i [inaudible] eventually, my family escaped, and he remained at the department and working as a security guard in another part of the city. as i found out when i was much older as an adult, studies show that up to 40% of police officer's families experience a rate of domestic violence, a rate much higher than the rest of the population. [inaudible] during the midst of a global pandemic and recession that are impacting the same

communities that are already overpoliced. to get through, we must instead reinvest the funds in our communities through these already difficult and trying times. thank you. >> clerk: thank you. can we hear from the next speaker, please. >> pardon me. [inaudible]. >> caller, you're on the phone. is there a caller on the phone, ready to make comments? >> hold on one second. >> if you're not ready, maybe

we can go to the next person and come back. >> hello. hold on a second. sorry. hello. my name is rachel everman. i'm a nonprofit worker and a d-5 resident. i am calling on the supervisors today to direct funding to the things that san franciscans value. recently, i spoke with a homeless man who had just been the victim of an encampment sweep. he was carrying all of his belongings that hadn't been stolen or destroyed, and he didn't know where he was going to sleep that night. you've heard today from callers who our city needs funded: services for homeless, child care, and parks. we currently have money to fund all of these things in the sfpd

budget. it's that simple. we need to keep the resources to keeping vital safe. we need few you are police on the streets. this is the criminal justice reform that will keep san franciscans safe. the police have demonstrated that they cannot be reformed. reformed police killed mario woods. reformed officers disproportionately arrest and threaten black people. we must defund the police. this means significant cuts on significant personnel reduction. do the right thing. >> clerk: thank you. may we have the next caller,

please. >> good afternoon, honorable members of the board of supervisors. thank you and mayor breed for your leadership and support, especially during these devastating times. my name is holla. i'm a resident of district d-2. i'm a member of an immigrant family and very much relied on school food programs. i am calling today in support of the tenderloin food security collective's budget request of $150,000 so food security missions in the tenderloin can meet some of our district's basic needs. in the last few weeks, the tenderloin has lost 8,000 muslim meals because of federal budget cuts. reducing vulnerable population exposure is vital to keeping

the tenderloin residents safe and healthy. 6.5 months into the pandemic, the tenderloin is receiving a pop up pantry, there by increasing the needs and the safety of which residents get their food. i encourage you to not only request the budget request of the $150,000 but double it. no child in san francisco should worry about access to food, and especially under our watch. thank you for your consideration, and god bless you. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. next caller, please. >> as we've heard from so many important community organizations, there's way

better ways to spend this bloated budget to help build the community and create a safe and healthy city for all. we've heard you say black lives matter, so use your power to make the city budget reflect that. reduce community interactions with police this year. fire sfpd officers, fire sheriff's deputies, and invest in important community resources. thank you. i yield the rest of my life. >> clerk: thank you. may we have the next caller, please. >> hi. my name is jackie, and i'm the founder of a pot farm called empower to change, and i'm calling today to echo a lot of the support around defunding

sfpd and funding for black lives, but i'm calling to fund services for the trans community, as well. thank you for your time. >> clerk: thank you. may we have the next caller, please. >> hello. can you hear me? >> clerk: yes. please proceed. >> hello. my name is colleen, and i'm the marketing coordinator and cofounder of feeling well. today, i'm asking you to stand with the people, with the immigrant communities and communities of color. i urge you to defund the police and use the funding to support black, latin x and other communities of color by funding

organizations that are on the frontline every day. community we the mental health in our community is so important, especially with the latinx community that has been hit severely hard by the covid-19, as well as the other low-income communities that have been systematically under served. so our c.b.o.s, our first responders, essential workers are essential in getting our community through this crisis. we stand with other communities of color that have been

underserved, and we would like to ask the supervisors to stand with the community to keep our budgets whole so that we can continue to serve the communities to continue to support those struggling with their lives and just trying to make it through the next day in the city. thank you, and i yield my life. >> clerk: thank you so much for your comments. can we have the next caller, please. >> hi. my name is sophie landau, and i live in district 7, the san francisco occupied ohlone land. i'm calling to ask for bigger cuts to san francisco police department and sheriff's department because the cuts aren't enough. my white father has never been pulled over when i was in the

car with him, but i had to stop getting rides from my black stepfather because he was disapproximate portionately targeted -- disproportionately targeted by the police. i've been afraid of the police my whole life, but i had to relearn that they do not threaten my life, they threaten the lives of the black and brown folks i love, and there's something i can do, and there's something that the board of supervisors can do. fund the community, not the police. if you're not afraid of the police, look at the color of your skin and the color of the skin of those you care about the most. defunding the police isn't as scary as police brutality, and it means giving police less money in the same way that budget cuts defund arts,

libraries, and the post office. if black indigenous people of color are not safe, if trans people are not safe, if unhoused people are not safe, if incarcerated people are not safe, the community is not safe. we need to educate the people, not fill the people with police tore or. we need to help the most vulnerable help, not hope the help trickles down because trickle down never works. thank you so much for listening to my comments, and i yield my time. >> clerk: thank you so much for your comments. can we have the next caller, please. >> hello? >> clerk: yes, we can hear you. >> okay. i want to get so you can hear me. good afternoon, board of

supervisors. judith nelson, and i'm a representative of cap hospitality house, part of the budget justice coalition, and i want to thank you for helping keep our hospitality house staff in float during the pandemic. i realize that government had recently said "we will have to make some hard choices," and that was before these requirfi surrounded us. many thanks for living. god bless you all.

>> clerk: thank you. can we hear from the next speaker. >> hello. my name's teresa. i'm employment program coordinator at hospitality house. i just want to thank you guys for listening to us? so i worked at an employment program, and, you know, many of our job seekers experience one or more barriers to employment, some barriers, such as lack of transportation are temporary and easier to address than others. our case managers assist in meeting basic needs, help find employment, and continued support in the workforce and at home. we need to do better. we urge you to support the budget coalition -- budget justice coalition for recovery together.

these two coalitions represent more than 50 organizations, and their proposals reach thousands of san francisco households. i'm requesting that you rebuild our job training system to remove barriers to people of color, especially our youth. we need housing subsidies for our seniors and those living with hiv and those in unstable living arrangements. thank you for listening. >> clerk: thank you. >> thank you. >> clerk: our next speaker, please. hello? >> hello.

>> clerk: yes. [inaudible]. >> i'm a professional engineer at s.f.o. for the city and county of san francisco, and i am an ifpte local 21 member. as a civil servant, i maintain services and equipment at the airport and also provide services to allow medical services to be transported all over the nation and medical equipment. it is unfortunate that many people are at home or furloughed or unemployed, but we are not furloughed, and we've not stopped working since the pandemic began. many of us are working harder than ever. while many of my peers have

been assigned to work on the frontline, the remainor are working diligently to keep the city operational to recover after the pandemic. our wage increases have been delayed until after the pandemic. it isn't cheap to live in san francisco, and delaying or eliminating future increases will force workers to leave the city they love and no one wants that. the city has a healthy reserve of more than $1 billion and is expecting more than 600 million of federal relief money. asking workers to give more during this time is unnecessary. use the city's reserves, and don't balance the budget on the backs of your workforce. thank you. i yield my time. >> clerk: thank you. can we have the next speaker,

please. hello. can we have the next speaker, please. hello, may we have the speaker, please? hello, you're on the line. we're ready for you. >> hello, supervisors. my name is art merceau, and i'm a purchaser with the city.

we defer our cost of living allowance to the state of emergency declared by mayor breed, but now we're being asked to defer that two years. not only does it belittle what we do, it also belittles the lives of those we love. do not balance the budget on our backs. there should be no more budget cuts, no layoffs. thank you. >> clerk: thank you. can we have the next speaker,

please. >> hello? >> clerk: yes, we can hear you. please proceed. >> hi. good afternoon, board of supervisors. my name is abbie, and i'm the coordinator for the san francisco rapid response community. we're asking you to restore the $135,000 that the hotline received through the r.f.p. process, especially during this time where i.c.e. was conducting immigration enforcement during a pandemic, and we also want to stand in solidarity with all of our community based organizations and also uphold the asks of the budget justice coalition.

i also would like to name very specifically that i express full support for defunding sfpd, and that is all. thank you, and i yield my time. >> clerk: thank you. can we have the next caller? >> hi. good afternoon, supervisors. this is [inaudible] calling from [inaudible] and also a cochair for the housing provider network. [inaudible] we ask that the mayor's office and board of supervisors also prioritize the funding that we need to keep these operations fully funded. all of our agencies have been impacted by covid-19, and even during these challenges and challenging time, housing

providers continue to provide critical services like housing and critical services. the city has deemed our work essential, yet we're not being paid the same $24 an hour rate that others are receiving. we ask that all essential workers receive this pay rate during the pandemic. we ask that the city fund the full budget justice coalition ask along with the following housing network supportive priorities. fully fund the housing ask, including increased pay for essential workers, equitable services for agencies, and fund

a 3% cost of doing business. and verify an ongoing cost of doing business for all contracts. thank you for your time, and i will yield my time to the rest of the callers. thank you. >> clerk: thank you for your comments. may we have the next speaker, please. >> hello, supervisors. my name is [inaudible] i also serve as the chair provider for the service working group. i'm on the budget justice coalition. i wanted to call today to provide support and solidarity for all of the asks of the budget justice coalition and request that the board of supervisors defund the police in order to fully fund and support all the social services throughout san francisco, both the city workers and nonprofit workers. we often say in youth development field that all behavior, whether it's behavior

that is positive or behavior that is unhealthy, is always the result of a need that's unmet. and so when we look at police, we really have to ask ourselves, what need to police meet for all of these folks, and what need did these police really mean for our communities when there's so much need for housing, there's so much need for education, there's so much need for social services? we often look at police as the band-aid, and we expect them to address concerns while not meeting the root cause and the need. so i want you all to really support the falls that go into this budget and ask that you do defund the police, and consider redirecting those funds to the social services that support young people, specifically those that are going to be joining community learning hubs and doing in-person service and

putting their own healthy security at risk without even a pay increase or access to primary health care. so finally, i wanted to end by just asking that the supervisors support a -- consider a cut to the parents for schools funding program, and i would yield the rest of my time. >> clerk: thank you. can we have the next caller, please. >> my name is elia hernandez, and i'm a mother and a grandmother. i urge you to please support [inaudible] for our e.c.c. teachers and child care providers and waiting list for

child care, and i'm also on [inaudible] thank you so much. >> clerk: thank you. can we hear from the next speaker, please. >> hello and good afternoon, supervisors. my name is [inaudible] and i'm a representative on the housing task force. [inaudible]

. >> clerk: thank you. speaker's time has elapsed. can we hear from the next speaker, please. may we have the next speaker, please.