Board approves three-month Free Muni pilot amid mayoral veto threat and MTA staffing concerns

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted 7–4 on June 8 to approve a three-month pilot to provide free Muni rides for all riders from July 1 through Sept. 30, 2021, funded by a $12.5 million appropriation from the city’s COVID contingency reserve.

Supervisor Aaron Peskin, Supervisor Matt Haney and Supervisor Dean Preston were among backers who argued the limited pilot would put money back into riders’ pockets as service returns and provide data for longer-term fare policy. Supervisor Preston, the lead proponent, framed the pilot as a targeted recovery measure and a test that "will put millions of dollars, as we previously discussed, into the pockets of working class San Franciscans."

Why it mattered: Supporters said the timing aligns with lifting COVID-era capacity restrictions (the MTA set June 15 as the date for relaxing distancing protocols) and would encourage ridership without immediate service impacts. Opponents said MTA staffing and operator availability were unresolved and that the agency had not supplied the written analysis they requested.

Key debate points: Preston said the pilot would not affect service restoration and cited MTA confirmation that distancing restrictions would be relaxed on June 15, removing a key capacity objection. Preston also said available data indicated the pilot’s beneficiaries would be disproportionately low- and moderate-income riders, citing an analysis that 52% of riders earn under $45,000 a year.

Critics, including Supervisors Safaí, Mandelmann, Stephanie and Melgar, voted no. Some expressed concern about fiscal impacts, operational readiness and whether the mayor would veto the ordinance; the mayor had publicly threatened a veto before the second-reading vote. Preston urged the mayor to allow the pilot, saying, "Let's give Muni riders a break for once."

The ordinances passed as follows: item 8 appropriated $12,500,000 from the COVID Contingency Reserve to the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency for a free Muni pilot; item 9 amended the administrative code to create a special fund for the pilot (end date 09/30/2021) and set fund-use conditions. The final roll call recorded seven ayes and four noes (Supervisors Safaí, Stephanie, Mandelmann and Melgar in the dissent). The board’s action will allow the MTA to implement the pilot, subject to the mayor’s decision on a possible veto.

What’s next: Implementation depends on the MTA carrying out operations and on the mayor’s potential veto. Supporters said the pilot would return tangible relief to riders and yield data for future fare policy discussions; opponents urged caution and further analysis of staffing implications.

Speakers on record included Supervisor Preston (pilot sponsor), other supervisors on both sides of the measure, and statements recorded from the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency during committee hearings.

Ending: With a 7–4 vote, the Board advanced a short, time-limited pilot intended to incentivize riders’ return to transit and study fare-relief effects, while implementation questions and a potential mayoral veto remain unresolved.