Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Homeless Services Restrooms topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Supervisors pass emergency ordinance requiring more public restrooms, handwashing for unsheltered residents
Summary
The Board adopted an emergency ordinance directing the city to provide one restroom per 50 unsheltered people within three weeks and to prioritize 24‑hour locations near encampments; amendments clarified siting, 24‑hour exceptions, and FEMA reimbursement.
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously adopted an emergency ordinance on May 5 requiring city service agreements with third parties to provide and maintain additional restroom facilities and hand‑washing stations to limit the spread of COVID‑19 among unsheltered residents.
The ordinance requires the city to deliver, within three weeks of the ordinance’s effective date, restroom access at a ratio of one restroom per 50 unsheltered people in designated areas. Amended language adopted by the Board requires emergency restrooms to be concentrated in areas of greatest need, located within 1,000 feet of identified encampments, and to be open 24 hours per day except where the Department of Public Works has identified sites that are low‑need or have nearby 24‑hour facilities.
Sponsor Supervisor Matt Haney and co‑sponsors Supervisors Walton, Preston and Mar argued the measure implements public‑health guidance and fills gaps for people living outdoors, for essential workers, and for sanitation for workers delivering services. The Budget and Finance Commission recommended the ordinance, and the mayor’s office and Department of Public Works had been engaged in discussions before the vote.
Budget and finance staff told the board the city expects some costs to be reimbursable by FEMA. The ordinance was amended in committee to focus restroom deployments in highest‑need areas and to include operational details that reflect conversations with DPW.
The board accepted non‑substantive clarifying amendments and then voted unanimously to pass the emergency ordinance as amended. Supervisors emphasized the measure’s role in slowing disease transmission and protecting both housed and unhoused San Franciscans while other shelter options continue to be expanded.
