Supervisors advance charter amendment to boost Department of Police Accountability oversight, require biennial audits

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors on July 28 held a committee hearing on a charter amendment that would rename the Office of Citizens Complaints as the Department of Police Accountability (DPA), give the DPA direct authority over its proposed budget, and require the DPA to conduct a performance audit every two years of how the San Francisco Police Department handles claims of officer misconduct and use of force. The board recorded an operative election date of Nov. 8, 2016 for voter approval.

"I believe it's the blessing that we can do, to move our efforts on police reform forward and bring true accountability to the San Francisco law enforcement, particularly the police department," Supervisor Cohen said, thanking community organizations and legislative staff who worked on the package. Supervisor Cohen also recognized legislative aide Mualitu Benyo for his work on the measure.

There was no public testimony on this item at the July 28 hearing. Supervisor Marr moved to continue the item to July 29 at 10:35 a.m.; Supervisor Tang seconded the motion and the continuance was approved "without objection." The hearing was held and filed.

Separately, the board later approved a motion modifying the amount of time required under board rule 2.227 between a charter amendment's first appearance on the board agenda and the board's order of submission to the electorate for the file associated with this measure; that procedural change was approved unanimously in a roll call vote taken later in the meeting.

The July 28 discussion did not include final text for operations, staffing or a funding mechanism for the proposed Department of Police Accountability; those specifics and the charter language will be considered at subsequent hearings prior to any final board action or placement on the ballot.