>> good morning and welcome to the rule its committee of the san francisco board of supervisors. i am the chair of the committee aaron peskin joined by

supervisor mandelman and supervisor chan. >> clerk: due to protect city board members and the public, the board supervisors legislative chamber and committee art room are closed. members will be participate engine the meeting remotely. committee members will be attending the meeting through a video conference as if they were physically present. call (415) 655-0001 the meeted id is 187 450 8115 and then press pound and pound again. you will be muted and in listening mode only. when your item of interest comes up, dial star 3 to be added to the speaker line.

best practices are to call from a quiet location. speak clearly and slowly and turn down your television or radio. you can submit public comment to myself at victor.young@sfgov.org. it will be included as part of the file. that completes my initial comment. >> chairman: thank you, mr. clerk. can you please read the first item. >> clerk: yes. item number one packs advisory committee. >> chairman: thank you, mr. young. in this case, colleagues and you will recall that a couple of months ago, we considered appointments to this body and

this nominee one applicant for one seat that has to be nominated by the san francisco unified school district diana kathnaro is known to us because she was before us when we first considered this and is before us today and we'll have an opportunity to speak in a minute. but there's one issue that i want to touch on very briefly is that unbeknownsed to this committee back on march 8th i think that [inaudible] that there had been an informal

practice of reserving seats 1 through 3, the community seats, representatives of the african american community, the asian pacific islander community, and the latinx community. dph and i say this gently did not inform us of that and, indeed, those designations are not set forth in the law nor are they set forth in the mate act. so we were not aware of that informal practice. we did appoint every api person who applied to serve on the body. al beit we moved around the seats so we could get as many folks involved as possible. so it is true there's not a person in the api seats. so there's nothing we can do at

this point but i do want to acknowledge that confusion and gently admonish dph staff that while we appreciate and encourage as being resolved for specific groups. so that's all i have to say about that and, with that said, i'd like to return to the matter at hand and here from ms. cavagnaro for seat 15. >> thank you chair peskin and supervisor mandelman for having me today. i was unaware when i originally

applied for this seat that i was to be nominated by sfusd pack. in the meantime, i did reach out to them and for better or worse, the person that was originally appointed to the position was unable to fill the seat and so i spoke with the leadership over at the pack and had great conversations about my background and interest which i'd be happy to go into again here. as we've mentioned, we talked a couple months ago about that and i'd be delighted to be considered for this role and to also be a great representative to the pack and as an sfusd mother represent what parents and the pack is really looking for as a member of this specific committee. >> chairman: perfectly stated in my humble opinion. are there any questions or comments from members of the rules committee?

i think my chat box is working. i don't see anybody. so why don't we open this up to public comment. >> clerk: yes. members of the public who wish to provide public comment on this item please call (415) 655-0001. the meeting id is 187 540 8115 and then press pound and pound again. if you haven't already done so, please press star 3 to line up to speak. a system prompt will indicate you have raised your hand. please wait until the system indicates you have been unmuted and you may begin your comment. at this time, we have nine callers, but nobody is in line to speak at this time. >> chairman: okay. well, with that, public comment is closed. >> clerk: actually, we have one person who just logged in.

>> chairman: okay. and public comment is open. >> hi there. this is naoni laguana and i'm the chairman of the parent council. and our coordinator is unable to be here, but we just wanted to support dianna. we were the ones to interview her and feel like she's the right fit for the position. we feel really lucky to have her. thank you. >> chairman: thank you. are there any other members of the public who would like to testify on this item number 1. >> clerk: that was the last caller in the queue to speak. >> chairman: okay. public comment is closed. and, colleagues, if there's no objection, i would like to make a motion to send ms. cavagnaro

to the full board for seat 15. and there's nobody in the chat box which i'm sure john c. fixed last week. so on that motion, a roll call please. >> clerk: yes. on that motion [roll call] the motion passes without objection. >> chairman: thank you, mr. young. could you please read our second and final item. and, we'll see you at the full board next week. >> clerk: yes. item number two is consider appointing one member term ending january 31, two thousand twenty-three, and two members terms ending january 31, 2025, to the veterans affairs commission. i'd just like to note the neighborhood for the [inaudible]

commission allows waiver by ordinance only. so that is a little bit different and, if you do wish to waive residency, we do need to get some advice in from our deputy city attorney. >> chairman: thank you, mr. young. i was actually going to point that out in my open comments, but i wanted to start by thanking all of the applicants not only for applying, but for their service to our country and for their desire to continue that public service in the context of this long standing policy body that i've referred many timings over the years. this is a body that has 17 seats, 12 appointed by the board of supervisors and 5 by the mayor. they have staggered terms.

and, today, three of those seats are open and, we have as mr. young indicated twelve applicants before us. although, i note that in the intervening time, the mayor has appointed one of the applicants joseph baba to one of her five seats. so that takes us down to 11 folks who are vying for the veterans affairs commission. one of them i note is an encumbent and as mr. young noted, unlike many other bodies that the rules committee deals with, a residency waiver would, indeed require an ordinance by the board of supervisors which would be rather extraordinary which depending on what this

committee thinks may take us down to nine seats. additionally, i wanted to note that section 5.102 that creates this body requires that at least three of the body of 17 members be women veterans and i asked my staff to do a little research about how many women are in the armed forces and are veterans and depending on what source you look at, women are between 10% and thirteen% of all veterans. two of those women must be appointed by the board of supervisors and one by the mayor. and, the board does have two women appointees. but, despite that, i know that we all strive to get much more gender equity on all of the bodies that we deal with.

so, with that, colleagues, i don't know if you have opening remarks and, of course, we'll hear from all of the eleven applicants and while they are free to say whatever they would like, i thought i would pose a couple of high level questions that might help guide our thinking and deliberations and first is whether or not the applicant has been to a meeting of the veteran affairs commission and, if so, how many times and maybe what that experience was like and i do note that there is a box on the application to check as to whether an applicant has been to a veterans affairs commission meeting or not. some have indicated yes. some have indicated no and some have not filled that box out at all. that's also a good reason to ask a question. and, second, it would be good to hear what the applicants

think are the top two or three issues facing veterans today and what the role of the commission is in elevating those commissions and obviously, the applicants don't have to address either of those two things, but i thought that might be helpful in our deliberations. with that, are there any comments from committee members? seeing none. why don't we go to the applicants in order of their applications. why don't we start with daniel shaffer. i do know all of these seats are at large seats. so, mr. shaffer. >> clerk: mr. chair, would you like to set any kind of time limit today? >> chairman: it would be great

if we could do this in 3 minutes, but committee members might have questions. so how about we try three minutes an applicant. is daniel shaffer available? if not -- >> clerk: we do not see mr. shaffer logged in at this time. >> chairman: okay. why don't we go on to david corpman who is here. >> hello, can everyone hear me? >> chairman: we can. >> thank you for having me here. i'm an anesthesia resident at ucsf right now. a little bit about me. i entered the military through the air force academy and graduated 2010.

my first military assignment was as a full bright scholar in the state of china and i occupied leadership positions in the military intelligence and the research and development community. after i completed my service, i moved to san francisco to do my development training here. it's a great clinical environment, but also a city that prizes diversity and is a beacon of inclusivity. so one story from my time, there was a time i was on the inpatient services there was a veteran, he had complex medical needs and when it came time for him to be discharged, he didn't

have a good plan for where he was going to go. and, unfortunate reality of a lot of medicine is that patients are discharged inappropriately. in this case, this veteran was given a taxi voucher to msc south and hope for the best. i don't know if that veteran had a shelter that night or if he was again on the street. and so, there are many things that the veterans affairs commission has done working on housing, education, other access to veterans benefits and those are some of the main issues that i see the committee embarking on and also working towards in the future working with other veteran sources as well. >> chairman: and i note that you are a mandarin speaker as well. >> i am.

certified mandarin speaker by ucsf as well. >> chairman: and volunteered for senator harris relative to interviewing folks for military service academy nominations. >> that is correct. >> chairman: are there questions for this applicant? do you want to address the fact that you have not attended any of the meetings yet? >> thank you for bringing that up. i faxed in the application in late 2020 i participated with the commission virtually via the microsoft teams platform and i've also communicated with members of the commission as well about ways to help the health care community be more involved with the commission and i'm aware there are no physicians on the board. many professional colleagues in

the hospitals i've had conversations with them about what are the more pressing issues with them as it related to veterans setting them up for success and then communicating with the president of the commission about how to bring these professionals from san francisco through the commission and help better inform the commission about how to be engaged with people taking care of veterans in our hospitals, including myself as a clinician treating veterans. i've worked at the san francisco va for the last month and i also have a lot of professional colleagues who have been doing this for decades who feel the commission would benefit from. although the commission became known to me late 2020, it's been exciting to see it in action participating in a meeting and then also working with my colleagues and trying

to come up with ideas about how to further invigorate the work of the commission. >> chairman: thank you, sir. any questions from members for mr. corpman? if not, why don't we move on to elliott johnson. mr. young, sounds like elliott johnson is not there unless he's one of the phone numbers that doesn't have a name attached to it. >> clerk: yes. i do not see mr. johnson on the log-in sheet. if you have called in via telephone, you can hit star 6 to unmute your line. if you're calling in as an applicant. >> okay. can you guys hear me? >> clerk: yes, we can. >> hey. how are you guys doing today?

>> great. >> i'm elliott johnson. i'm the navy vet. as well as when i got out i reenlisted and was a cb construction electrician. currently, i'm an sfmta employee over here at the traffic signal shop for 17 years. i do live in daily city outside of san francisco. you know, i, you know i'm not as qualified as probably a lot of guys are, but i'm around the veteran community a lot. i bar tend at the american legion for five years. worked at the va before i came to the city. i'm around a lot of guys. i'm just a regular veteran like they are and i just want to help and support guys any way i can. so as far as any visions or any

forsight as far as looking out for a veteran, i would take those as they came and work through them as best i can. and, you know, that's my background. >> chairman: mr. johnson, same question i asked mr. corpman relative too attending commission meetings, you checked no box, but we let mr. corpman know [inaudible] >> yeah. i will start attending more regardless either if i get appointed or not. i haven't before. it was just, you know, too busy, kept putting it off and i never got a chance to get over there about the last year before covid that i knew about it. so i've operated in other capacities on boards with

american hegion, with my kids soccer club, but i never did go to any of those meetings. >> chairman: no worries. your honesty and any questions, committee members for mr. johnson? all right. why don't we move on to eric dang. >> thank you guys. bye bye. >> clerk: mr. chair, i believe mr. dang withdrew his application. >> chairman: okay. i did not see that, but thank you for letting us know. then, we will go to the encumbent for seat number 2, george ishikata. >> good morning, chair peskin, supervisors chan and mandelman. i wanted to get the opportunity

to speak with you briefly. as the chairman mentioned, i'm the encumbent. i have attended nearly all the meetings of the veterans affairs commission. i think i missed one because i was working for the commission on a project and one i was on a work trip. but i've been able to observe the goings on of the commission. in relation to the other questions that supervisor peskin posed, one of the issues that impacts the veterans affairs commission is that people mistakenly believe it's an outreach entity. of course, outreach is tasked to the veterans service officer for the county and the veterans affairs commission is supposed to be a policy oriented body that associates the board as well as the mayor on policy issues related to veterans. so i think there's frequently a misunderstanding of what a role

is. the hope is to try to influence policy and assist in ways that will have a greater impact on the veteran community. the second important point is i think our veteran community in san francisco is considerable. it frequently is seen among those with problems frankly. the homeless population for instance has a larger percentage of veterans in other groupings. however, we do have a large number of veterans who are very stable and very integrated into the very fabric of work and living in san francisco. so i don't want to forget that we have a large group of individuals. we don't want to focus all our we need to look at the larger

picture. i think one of the biggest challenges facing the veterans affairs commission is we are sort of a forgotten commission. the fact is very few people know about us and through some administrative oversights, although we were created by administrative code, we do not fall under any city agency and, as a result, we have no funding, no funding line to be be able to bring money into the organization. we have no full-time staff and, as a result, this is really an effort by 17 volunteers to try to keep things running. so i think that will give us some formal acknowledgement and designation under a city agency whether that's the we have

sfgov.org accounts. but no one manages that accounts for that. it has changed over the past three years as i've been a member and it has oriented on trying to accomplish more to help more veterans in the city. i think one of our speakers already mentioned some of the housing issues that we've under taken. we have the vso report to us regularly now so we have an understanding of how the outreach works. for me personally, i've had the

opportunity to serve for three years in various. i'm currently the chairman of the rules committee for the veterans affairs committee. and i'd certainly like to continue that. >> chairman: thank you for that very thorough presentation, mr. ishikata. are there any questions from members? i see nobody on the roster. so why don't we move on to jason chittavong. i saw he was logged in i thought. >> hello. i'm here. >> chairman: you are. >> i would say chairman and members of the rules committee. i'm a bay area native and a san francisco resident for the past seven years.

during my military service. i served in the marine corps in 2004. during operation iraq freedom and during freedom [inaudible] . i'm applying to my current work right now where i help veterans in the community, being out there trying to be a voice and advocate. one of the biggest challenges of overturning home been dealing with difficulties of transitioning and i got involved with multiple veteran organizations it in order to provide public assistance and social service and, of course, being here in san francisco, it's a major challenge for housing and a project that i got really interested with and got involved with the

commission board to help with the veteran preference below market rate home program and continue working further in that. i worked with student veterans, elders, family members, homeless veterans which very few have ever heard where we assist veterans who are coming out of custody and go through a treatment program whether they have mental illness or substance abuse. with them being challenged to make a voice, i'm trying to be their advocators. and, for the past year, 2020 and right now 2021 i attended to all the commission meetings just reporting any updates from

the veteran corps justice program. thank you. >> chairman: thank you, mr. chittavong. the next applicant who i saw in the participant list is one that i believe and i mentioned earlier was appointed by the mayor to one of her seats, but i see that joseph baba is there. do i have that correct the, mr. baba? so we will move on to matthew bell. is matthew bell available?

i don't see him either unless he's one of the members that we don't see. how about nicholas rusanoff. >> i'll have a prepared speech and i'll be able to answer questions afterward. my name is nicholas rusanoff and i joined the army immediately after 9/11. i served in iraq in 2004. after the war, i lost everything. i met my wife in san francisco as a -- she was a san francisco native. she opened my eyes to see this city as our home. we married at city hall. i obtained an accounting degree at sfsu. the best school in our city. i received the best care from the san francisco v a.m.. i was helped by source to cloud shares to connect with services and housing. i connected with the community

and i am a very grateful veteran. currently, i give back by volunteering with a team of veterans suffered by our veterans and rethese are our forgotten comrades and we have a duty of care for them and to show them the opportunity to thrive within san francisco. through the housing lottery. i have stable housing and i will work to secure the stable housing for this and future generations of veterans. i don't want to have my veterans to struggle through shelters i had. my war is the war on poverty

and it starts by getting our veterans in shelter. currently, moacd has programs for different professional status like those needed in the city. and the teachers next door program said nothing for our veterans. they have a program based on people for a medical position. further z this department operates and the u.s. department and housing of urban development. currently, veterans are precluded from accessing va home loans. commissioner and our committee is working to include our veterans within the mayor's

office housing. but i need your appointment. i'm a private citizen and i'm only able to push this plan so far. the veterans commission is my plan to work within the system to improve the mayor's office. generations ago, our bonus veterans took to washington to fight for promise for them. >> chairman: mr. rusanoff, go ahead and wrap up. it's good to see you by the way. >> to fight for the benefits promise to them. the economic opportunity to thrive in this country. we will create a gi housing road map for san francisco. our job is to bring our warriors home and to care. san francisco is the new

battlefield. duel diagnosis. housing, education, health care are our weapons. save those who fought for you. their children and their children's children will make a fortress of hope. with the city and county of san francisco. i have attended several meetings with the mayor's office of housing. when i was struggling for housing. the veterans commission came to my aid and, together, i just couldn't stay in a home and not make sure that our fellow veterans have one as well. so we are attending their meetings on a regular basis for the past year. right now, i agree with commissioner ishikata and i really find that this is a

committee that is going to do well for our veterans and they're going to need our support. and thank you for everyone who's willing to serve our city and nation. >> chairman: thank you, mr. rusanoff. give your wife my regards. next up is and i'm going to check the chat box assuming my chat box is still working. next up is nick bolen. >> thank you, sir. good morning board members, commissions, and veterans. eye a retired united states marine corps master sergeant and full-time realtor. i'm seeking a position on this board today because of the intrinsic values i developed serving our country.

my intent is to lead by example. disability claims. health care, education, and housing for veterans. i believe that it is up to us to shine a light on that pathway. we do believe that most of the local transitioning that this city and county offered. as a member of this commission, transitioning back to the civilian sector does not equate to homelessness in our city. as we know, many of our local businesses employ veterans and have been convinced if they didn't qualify for veteran services. let's change that. together, we can pro mote to continue education for veterans health care, veteran families and more. i will use my position on this board as a resource for our veterans. i'm sure most of us are volunteering in our local

neighborhoods and communities already. this commission is a perfect place for that servant leadership philosophy to multiply. i promise to double down on my own efforts of volunteering. my conviction is to give back to a city that's continued to help me over the years. so what makes me a good choice to continue the work of this commission? i was part of the homeless veteran population in san francisco from 2017 to 2019. i lived in my tent and car, showered at the gym on ocean avenue, ate from the dollar menu at mcdonalds. i was able to navigate the programs and services available in our city. now, i'm a business owner, no longer homeless and on the cusp of graduating college. i put my knowledge to work for veterans by appointing me as

our nest commissioner. i fully understand we effect policy, however, i believe it's imperative that we're in the weeds with our veterans to know what their current needs are. so, with that, thank you, and simpe fidelis. >> chairman: thank you. i have your application. let me just ask the question i asked before which is your attendance at meetings of the current veteran affairs commission. >> yes, sir. at the time that i thought my application, i didn't understand i was meeting both spirit and letter and once i was notified of that i just continued my attendance. >> chairman: got it. seeing no questions from my colleagues. why don't we move on to randall

knight. and if randall knight is not here, why don't we move on to shelia bolar. and if neither one of those folks are here. i just want to circle back around to see if daniel shaffer or matthew bell are around and i do note that joseph baba who again, i was informed was appointed to one of the mayor's seats. so, mr. baba, even as an applicant, you have public comment as to the commission commission we can come back to you for general public comment. mr. baba, i see you're trying to say something. >> hi, yes, good morning

everybody. good morning rules committee. last thursday, so oddly enough, i found out in the mayoral appointment. just the breakneck speed of government sometimes. >> chairman: sometimes it goes really slow and sometimes it goes fast. >> i'm in the navy. so anybody navy situation it's high schoolya situation. hurry up and wait. active duty time. based out of dublin, california, but i live in very foggy district 1. i look forward to serving and leveraging my experience and background as well to the veteran of the community. >> chairman: thank you, mr. baba. so, mr. young, it sounds like the other applicants are not --

that would be shaffer, bell, knight, and bolar are not here with us this morning. is that correct. >> clerk: it appears they're not present at this time according to the log-in list. if one of those parties has called in, you can press star 6 to speak at this time. and, as of last week, they may have called in on the public comment line. >> chairman: okay. why don't we go to public comment on this item number 2. >> clerk: yes. members of the public who wish to provide public comment should call (415) 655-0001. the meeting id is 187 540 8115 then press pound and pound again. if you haven't done so, please press star 3 to line up to speak.

a system prompt will indicate you have raised your hand. you may begin your comments. at this time, we have 25 listeners and 16 people in line to speak. >> chairman: all right. first speaker, please. >> good morning committee members. i'm kevin keen. i'm calling on behalf of mr. nicholas rusanoff. i've known nick since the mid 2000s and in all that time i've found nick to a strong willed and passionate person. aside from his family, i see nick's biggest passion is veterans and their concerns. nick advocates and demonstrates his care and concern for veterans doing what is needed to help better the lives of men and women who have bettered our

nation. you ought to consider someone who generally cares and respects veterans not only as a whole, but as individuals. you ought to consider someone who's willing to cut through the red tape and clearly guide this commission forward. nick has been phone to postpone his own plans to take a veteran to a medical appointment. he's brought food and drink to those homeless and hungry. he's advocated for veterans to receive their much needed benefits and he's listened to those and assisted veterans who were contemplating suicide. he genuinely cares about his fellow veterans. he's been treating each of them as heros and will further this cause as a member of the veterans affairs commission. thank you for the opportunity to speak here this morning. >> chairman: thank you. next speaker, please. >> good morning.

my name is brandon dowed. i'm also calling on behalf of nicholas rusanoff. i've known nick for almost 30 years now. it's impossible to outwork nick. it's been true since high school when he was a lot better at football than me. and that's gone throughout his life from being in the military and he talked about himself being a veteran afterward. you can't really be more passionate about veterans than nick is. i'm a west point graduate myself. i was in operation iraqi freedom and have struggled with ptsd. and nick was someone who has helped me through rough times. things like commissions have been seen as steppingstones to bigger things. being an advocate for veterans is nick's end game. and i think any organization is stronger with nick in it, but

especially anything to do with the veterans. so thank you very much for your time. >> chairman: thank you. next speaker, please. >> good morning, chair peskin, fellow supervisors. my name is victor oliveri. i'm here to bring you today the official recommendation of the veterans and i'm glad commissioner ishikata mentioned homelessness. we are all all volunteer commission. everyone has to do the lifting and we're so proud to have received so many applicants, but unfortunately, we only have three seats available. with that in mind, i just wanted to note we do have a rules committee with experience and we vote to make this official recommendation that i'm bringing here to you just like you do for the board

supervisors. essentially, we sought to translate the military experience. we discussed the pros and cons of each applicant and then instilled the needs of the commission. and to be quite honest with you, in the past, we've received less inadequate appointments, left the commission, or left because they didn't contribute to the work of the commission. and that is precisely began to start recommending these. that all these applicants will have. as well as the representative aspects of each of the applicants in light of what the commission currently is seating. the public comments we're going to hear today are going to be important. but getting people to turn out to public comment is not indicative of the work a commissioner will do. i truly believe no one knows the needs of the commission better than the commission and

with that in mind. the best and most complementary applicants in terms of professional experience in needs of the commission and neither one needs a waiver residency are dr. david corpman and mr. jason chittavong for seat 4. >> chairman: and the speaker got his recommendations out just before his time elapsed. next speaker, please. >> hi, my name is benjamin cahi. i'm an army veteran and i'm speaking on behalf of nicholas rusanoff. i first met nick in 2018 through a veteran surf crew. i struggled through a lot of our integrating into society

after getting out and also struggled with looking for work as well. i talked with nick and nick was very connected with the programs that are available to veterans. and, through this, he connected me with a c.p. and then actually ended up getting me a job. i would love to see him be part of something bigger because he already does what he can for the veteran community with the things he's got at his hands right now. thank you. >> chairman: thank you. next speaker, please. >> hi. i've worked with the va the

past 30 years. i've had a chance like ben to serve with nicholas rusanoff as part of a veterans surf group. i have to tell you what you've been hearing that he is the passionate advocate for veterans issues both legal housing, medical, psychiatric, and you really, i know that, you know, you're hearing it from the amount of people calling for his support that he's just bringing a lot of energy to this. so i really recommend you consider that as you pick your next member of the veteran affairs commission. so thanks. >> chairman: thank you, doctor. next speaker, please.

next speaker. >> hello, my name is benjamin floyd. i'm calling on behalf of nicholas rusanoff. i've known nick for a year now. i'm also an air force veteran. and the time period that i met nick about a year ago, i was homeless at the time and i was dealing with a lot of kind of mental health stuff. and kind of i met him in the surf group actually along with the doc and he kind of helped me get back on my feet mentally. i just wanted to talk on his behalf and say and probably how do you say.

>> chairman: thank you. next speaker, please. >> yes. hello. i've known nick for over a year now. i guess i'm another member of the fan club, it sounds like. and i just wanted to recommend him for the position. he's one of the most solid people i've ever come across. thank you. >> chairman: thank you. next speaker. >> hi, my name is christina and i'm also calling on behalf of nick rusanoff for the application for the veterans affairs commission. i'd like to say he embodies the truest spirit of advocacy. on a professional level, i know

nick would excel in this role. on a personal level, it's his nature to look out for others. for years, he as relentlessly worked to speak out for veterans' interests and addresses the problems and needs of the veterans community. being an advocate for veterans as he encourages veterans a path of self-betterment and if somebody in the community that can count on for a helping hand or an ear. you couldn't find a better person to show you what true brotherhood and sister hood is like in the veterans community. thank you. >> chairman: thank you. next speaker, please. >> hi, my name's pearl. i'm with the sacramento's veterans walk and talk. i'm also here for nicholas rusanoff. i'd like to echo on what everybody has said, but i'd

also like to say when this guy can do with the resources available. he's not going to tire out. he has the energy to do this. he's going to shake things and move things. you need to have him where policies are made. he's right for the job. thank you. >> chairman: thank you. next speaker. >> hello, good afternoon. good morning. thank you for the opportunity to speak this morning. i'm actually calling as well to voice my strong support for nicholas rusanoff. taking time out of my day. i've had the distinct pleasure of knowing nick for almost a decade. i'm an iraq war veteran suffering a gunshot wound and we're taught in the army that the person in the fox hole next to us or down the line has our six. they keep us alive in combat. but it's not easy. i struggled when i came back

like so many people and then i found nick. and what started through buddy text and text turned into resources and so much more. he knows the systems because he has been inside the systems. he's a veteran. he's helped so many of us navigate our lives and with a mutual understanding. and the person you left the day you left the military is still inside of you. but with all airs of service. his attentiveness, knowledge and compassion are only surpassed by some of the great stories of his own service. understanding the needs of veterans. the true veterans like myself where technology has made nick not only someone i look up to but someone who continues to serve the community as a role model and can speak on today's growing veteran population. in conclusion, nick is a purple heart veteran who works daily

to ensure he knows that we know he has our six. i'm honored to call in and endorse and strongly ask the board and all of you to allow nick to serve on the veterans affairs commission in the city and county he loves so much. thank you. >> chairman: thank you. next speaker, please. >> hi. can you hear me? >> chairman: yes. we can. >> my name is jeff carr i'm an attorney in redwood city. i recommended nick when he got out of iraq in 2005 and 2006. i'm active in veteran court in san mateo county. this is my way of a testimonial. you've heard a lot of positive things, so i'll make it real simple. if you need someone who's tenacious and not walk away from a position from what i understand, nick is your guy.

i'm disabled also. i was a door gunner in vietnam and got shot a couple times and in the 15 years since i represented nick, he's worked every year to make me go back and get my disability upgraded. it was a long project. i didn't want to do it. he finally got me to do it and i can happily say my disability went from 10% to 90% just this year because nick stayed on the project and made me look out for my own rights. so that's my recommendation for nick. >> chairman: thank you, counselor. next speaker, please. >> hi, my name is bill clift and i met nick about three years ago. i worked for the san francisco va medical center and i'm also a vet. and mostly i met nick through some recreation activities like the pga hope program and the veterans service alliance.

he's always doing outreach on his own. he's working with vets to get the right people housing. he helps with financial planning. he provides transportation to medical appointments, to the va. he also gives rides to different recreational events like golfing and surfing. he also teaches vets how to surf and he's very good at creating community and comradery and i think he would be a great addition to the commission. thank you. >> chairman: thank you. next speaker. >> hello. my name is jonathan belli. i'm a veteran with two purple hearts. i'm endorsing nick rusanoff right now. and i first met nick two years ago when i came back from afghanistan and i met him in a

nonprofit organization that gets them back outside. at the time, i told him, no, leave me alone. i gave my number to him and you know what, he kept calling me, telling me get signed up for school benefits. get signed up for va health care. i ended up calling nick at 1:00 a.m. and he talked to me that whole night until 3:00 a.m. that next morning, he was at my door and he took me to the san francisco va and i spoke to dr. strasnika and dr. burgerman. he got me signed up for school benefits as well. currently, i'm working on my benefits, my education program to become a vet tech. i endorse nick rusanoff and if you can't find anyone, he is the best guy you can have for this committee. thank you, have a best day. >> chairman: thank you for your moving testimony. next speaker, please.

>> good morning, committee members. i'm a county representative service for the county of san mateo and i'm calling on behalf of nicholas rusanoff and i want to echo a lot of the things that have been said about him so i'll be brief. he and i worked frequently how to face challenges and any discussions, you can see how passionate nick is about veterans issues and how personally he takes on the roles of advocacy. nick will refer veterans to me from more counties. they always tell me nick trusts you and i trust him. working with veterans and building that strong bond is not the easiest thing in the world, but it can make a world of difference when it comes to outam comes. i think the time that nick has spent working with veterans,

his personal experience and work he's done have made him acutely aware of the needs of the veterans on an administrative and individual level. i understand the passion alone is fantastic, but probably not everything needs to be successful as commissioner. i do think it's that insight that can make a difference not just to help folks in need of help. learn from the people that have gone before you, learn from their mistakes and i think nick would be fantastic as a commissioner. thank you for your time. >> chairman: thank you. next speaker, please. >> hi, good morning, supervisors. this is hanley chan. i serve in the veterans commission before i start talking, i support george

ishikata and jason chittavong. if veterans walk and talk supports nick, i support nick and i really want to meet nick now. 22 veterans diaper day. last month, we packed the house in a veterans commission hearing with all these veteran groups proathletes supporting our senator decriminalizing psychedelics. psychedelics has been good for our ptsd for our veterans community and mental health. all the supporters that spoke in our commission hearing urges us to do something about it

because 22 veterans dying per day is a tragedy and we're supposed to have zero veterans day a day. and this is hanley and i'm done speaking. >> chairman: good to hear your voice, hanley. long time no see but it's been a long year. next speaker, please. >> hi, my name is sam lou ie. i'm here to speak on behalf of nicholas rusanoff. i've known him for over a decade and i have seen him first-hand help many veterans. this commission would provide him the opportunity and the resources to reach many others, but most importantly, he has the consistency and the education to follow through with that. and i can't say more about mr. nick rusanoff. >> chairman: thank you, sir.

next speaker. >> hi, yes. my name is bob betett and i'm also speaking on behalf of nick rusanoff. i've got another speaker on the line, we're sharing a line here today. let me say i wholeheartedly support nick. i think he's an ideal choice for the post. i am a trial attorney here in the san francisco bay area. i've been an attorney for over 30 years. i'm also a military veteran and a member of the west point class of 1983. i met nick about 15 years ago while he was at san francisco state, he worked for my law firm as a bookkeeper. and nick immediately decided to enlist my help in legal issues for veterans.

he was quite a pest about it, but i was pleased to be able to help. he was constantly asking about advice and things that he could do. over the years, we became personal friends and i can't tell you how many times that he would call me for a ride if he didn't have a ride available to go assist a veteran in crisis. he would do whatever it would take to help his brothers. i think he's an ideal choice for the post. i think he brings a passion to it and a perspective that many others do not have. i wholeheartedly endorse him. >> i'd also like to make an endorsement on behalf of nicholas. i met him about 15 years ago and i've watched him develop into an empathetic and self-less man who has my trust.

i am not a veteran, but i was a navy brat. that's why i never served. i didn't want to stand watch or brag about standing watch so i chose not to serve. nicholas was the first person to show me what a mistake that was. it wasn't about his army history, but rather his ongoing effort he felt compelled to take on behalf of veterans from the war he served in. young men he had encountered struggling with homelessness, substance abuse, and abandonment. although frequently involved the va. he did this acting alone. he genuinely cared for the benefit of his brothers and solely because they were his brothers. i've never known a committed advocate and i spent the year working for lawyers. the commission may already have a full bank of people just like

nick and his service there might be redundn't. the quality of brotherhood in the commission which he has already demonstrated. he wants and needs to be part of this process. from my perspective, the commission needs nicholas rusanoff as much as he needs them. thank you for your time. >> chairman: thank you. next speaker. >> good morning, supervisors. the commission didn't have a third recommendation because the chair of the rules committee was george ishikata. it would have been a grand slam because his work has been absolutely fantastic. he has served as secretary which is the most time consuming and everyone in the commission wants him back for another four years. beyond that, we desperately need someone with clinical

experience in the medicine field to navigate the gaps. that is exactly what we need dr. david corpman on the commission. he has been very active since 2021 and is actively working with us to bring in subject matter experts. beyond that, we also desperately need someone to work in the restorative justice system and a great bunch of folks to join our committee and that is why mr. jason chittavong should be on the commission. all the public comments about nick was fantastic. we do not do outreach and the city does not report to us and, on top of that, we also have a lot of folks on the commission who have had this experience. but what we desperately need is george ishikata, jason

chittavong and. >> clerk: we currently have five speakers in line to speak. if you have not done so, please press star 3 to be added to the queue. thank you very much. >> chairman: thank you, mr. young, go ahead. >> hi, i'm calling to support nicholas rusanoff for the commission of the va commissioner. i believe he has all the appropriate qualities, experience, and personality for the position. he possesses strong communication, organizational skills. he follows through with his commitments. he brings with him a unique charisma that allows him to connect with veterans and their families. and, most importantly, nick is incredibly kind. he goes above and beyond for those he tries to help.

and he has made our lives better. i have never seen my husband as happy and as hopeful since he was medically discharged. thank you. >> clerk: thank you. can we have the next speaker, please. >> hello, my name is amarita king and i am a deputy probation officer with the san francisco probation adult department and i am working with the veterans corps and i am endorsing jason chittavong and nicholas rusanoff for this position because i have worked in the san francisco criminal justice system for 22 years and i've also served as a chair for the re-entry counsel sub

committee and personally, i received services as an at-risk youth with san francisco huckleberry youth programs and i've been dedicated to serving the underprivileged, the marginalized people of san francisco and both nicholas and jason exemplifies helpless services to me and they're there to be a service to veterans in need and not looking for accolades and they've both personally touched me with their dedication. thank you. >> chairman: thank you. next speaker, please. >> hi, i hope i'm being heard right now. >> chairman: we can hear you. >> great. thanks.

>> i'm an attorney here in san francisco and i handle cases in a veterans justice court. i'm calling to recommend jason chittavong and nicholas rusanoff. i work in two other collaborative courts as well and i can say that what sets veterans justice court apart are the peer mentors both mr. rusanoff and jason chittavong. they have a unique understanding of our veterans and they have a way of reaching out and impacting the veteran participants in a way that's completely different and unique than any of the other key partners, meaning different than what the judge can do, what the lawyers can do, probation case managers. mr. rusanoff and jason chittavong go above and beyond and they have a way of leading to the success and the

successful graduation of our veterans and i think a lot of it is because they do not see the participants as defendants in the criminal justice system, they see them as human beings who deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. and i heard mr. chittavong earlier say he works to restore the honor of our veterans and i can say that's exactly what both mr. chittavong and mr. rusanoff do. i'm grateful for their participate in court. they truly have changed the lives of countless participants in our courts. thank you for this opportunity to speak on their behalf. >> chairman: thank you for your testimony. next speaker, please. >> good morning honorable members of the rules committee. my name is miles tucker, i'm a sitting veterans affairs commissioner for the last two years and i serve as the head of our legislative committee and i wanted to speak today to

recommend george ishishgz ooshgzkata jason chittavong and and david corpman. i've had the pleasure of working hand in hand with jason chittavong who shows up all the time to our committee meetings. he has a deep understanding of the policies and understands the items that go behind the veterans policies. i know first-hand jason can do that. and to speak to dr. corpman, he is a recent veteran that this commission desperately needs to make those effective and policy recommendations to the policy and the mayor as we are charged to do. between george, jason, and david, our commission would be grately improved to do -- to

continue the work of improving the economic housing and workforce and development and health compare charges that we are hoping to improve our veterans committee here through policy recommendations. thank you for your time and i highly consider george, jason, and david. >> chairman: thank you. next speaker, please. >> hello? >> chairman: go ahead. >> hello, good morning. good morning supervisor peskin. bill barn cal. i'm the senior commissioner for the veteran affairs city and county of san francisco. number one, i recommend the reappointment of george ishikata. he's done a stand up job and we all look up to him. i highly recommend jason chittavong and jason to pass

legislation to get the bmr program changed for our if i don't get these two individuals on my commission, they're strong advocates. they're very knowledgeable about the bmr program and we're going forward and it's fantastic for our veterans if we get this bmr program. with them, it's imperative we get these two individuals on the board and it would be an injustice if we don't get them. so thank you so much and looking forward to seeing jason and nicholas on the board and the commission with me. thank you. >> chairman: thank you, commissioner. next speaker, please. >> hi, my name is justin. and i want to endorse nick bolen. at the time when he was getting

out, there wasn't a transition period to help vets that were going back into the civilian world to give them the education that they needed to survive out there in civilian world and because of that, he lived homeless for two years in various homeless camps and there were times when he almost died because there were homeless rangers who would go to different homeless camps and burglarize people. but during this time, his homelessness, he would take a shower at the gym so that he could go to school to get an education and he -- when i met him, he had helped me get a house here in the bay area. when i first started my process, it was early 2019 and when i got out in october of

2019, he actually -- he didn't give up on me and he made sure that i got a home and he actually helped me out with getting or with recommending me to someone for my veterans benefits and he's helped me, you know, not only with my house, but with getting veterans benefits and education benefits. so, you know, nick was always there for me, you know, whenever i need them to call or just to hang out or just to talk shot just like marines do. so i appreciate you, nick, and i highly endorse this guy. >> chairman: thank you. next speaker. >> hello, my name is retired staff sergeant james mcchowski and i'm speaking on behalf of nicholas rusanoff.

nicholas has been a friend of mine for the last two years and i feel like this man embodies the spirit of never leave a fallen comrade and never quit. this man is a wonderful individual who cares immensely about helping every single veteran he runs in to. and it doesn't matter where we go with this guy, if we run into a veteran that's not advocating for themselves and getting everything possible thing for themselves, this man takes his time to make sure that they know what they need, what they can do, and what avenues they can take. he cares immensely about everyone that he runs into especially veterans. i can't think of a better person to be advocating or working with veterans in any capacity and i think he would make you a fine veterans affairs commissioner. that's all i have to say. thank you for letting me speak. >> chairman: thank you. next speaker, please.

>> good morning. my name is patricia chavez, and i would like to enwhere's nick bolen. i'm a mortgage broker in the bay area and i've been working with nick bolen for several years now and i can vouch for him and say that i have never seen somebody acting as a realtor assist veterans the way he does. he definitely goes the extra mile and i have seen him do miracles when it comes to change status for veterans when it comes to them getting their disability and increasing their benefits. he definitely goes the extra mile and i'm very impressed with what he has accomplished in the last couple of years and i can only foresee that he will do great things in the future for veterans. >> chairman: thank you.

next speaker. >> clerk: chair peskin, i believe that was the last caller in line for public comment. >> chairman: okay. public comment on item number two is now closed. and, let me just start by thanking all of the members of the public for your testimony. a lot of it quite moving as well as all of the applicants, those that we heard from, as well as those we didn't hear from. this is not an easy decision. and i want to thank everybody as i said in the beginning for your service in numerous branches of the military as well as your willingness to serve or continue to serve on the veteran affairs commission. i wanted to start before we discuss this amongst the members of the committee to actually welcome the conversation not only the

conversation that i had with mr. rusanoff many months ago during covid over the internet about below market rate units for veterans, but the conversation about how the commission itself could be better resourced. it has a little bit of an orphan commission. it is not associated with the department. i would be very interested in working with the commission, whoever we put on it to see whether that could befectuated with changes to the commission code. that's administration i welcome and encourage. i also want to know that i know and while i have not appeared there, i haven't appeared anywhere in recent time that this is a commission that while certainly, there are 17 actual members of the commission itself that welcomes the active participation and inclusion of

veterans who aren't officially or formally a member of the commission per se which is by way of saying that if you don't get selected today, we very much encourage you to stay active with the commission and be apart of that policy making. there are only 11 members of the board of supervisors, but there are many people who are intimately involved with the legislative process who weren't elected to their positions. with that, colleagues, i would offer some high level thoughts. i offered a couple of them at the beginning of the meeting. and, with no disrespect, actually, with respect to the two individuals one of whom appeared and one of whom did not that are not residents of the city of san francisco. it is pretty much without precedent that a special ordinance would be passed to

allow your inclusion on this body. it would require an ordinance to be drafted, introduced, sent to committee, heard twice at the board of supervisors and signed by the mayor. so, colleagues, i would offer and i say this with respect to the applicants that the residency ordinance required makes that tough. i also think that showing up is 9/10 of everything and that would take us down to four individuals existing encumbent commissioner ishikata whom we've heard from and has served as secretary and his testimony and application and testimony on his behalf was extraordinary, so i would respectfully suggest to vice chair mandelman and supervisor

chan that he be serious consideration for reenlistment as it were. and, i would say the same as to mr. chittavong and then -- i mean, look, any which way, this is a tough deal, but i want to say that mr. rusanoff, and, yes, of course, we got a lot of impressive testimony on his behalf but i have come to known him personally and i could offer similar testimony and dr. corpman also remarkably impressive. impressive relative to influency in mandarin, in relative to his medical expertise and, of course, his history as a veteran in his own right. but i actually think

dr. corpman with sincere respect that you may be able to offer some of your services, this is true really of any of these individuals, but as an active respected participant and soon enough we will have another vacant seat and i say that to the commission who has while it has officially recommended two of the three individuals that i'm leaning towards many of the individual commissioners themselves actually testified on behalf of mr. rusanoff. that includes commissioner hanley chan and commissioner bill barnacal. so, colleagues, why don't i turn it over to you supervisor mandelman and supervisor chan. i would kind of throw out their

ishikata, chittavong and rusanoff. colleagues, have i done something to offend you. neither one of you have said a word. >> supervisor mandelman: we are in your chat, mr. chair. >> chairman: you know what, my chat is broken again because it's not working. i started to think that somehow i offended both of you over the weekend which is always possible. >> supervisor mandelman: indeed. i think i'm in there before supervisor chan. >> chairman: please. >> supervisor mandelman: all right. thank you, mr. chair. i agree with pretty much everything you said. i think it does -- i think the strongest candidates are those four. and it does seem like ishikata

should be returned. and, i'm fine with the three of four you were suggesting. i do think david corpman does -- i think brings this sort of medical perspective and given that so many of the veterans issues that are most pressing have to do with health care and then with sort of the connection between health care and homelessness that he was talking about. i do think he's a very strong candidate and if we don't put him on now, i think we should try to put him on soon. as we have more appointments. >> chairman: yeah. and the great thing about this commission is that all the terms are ag