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Board creates Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing
Summary
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously passed an ordinance to establish a new Department of Homelessness, transfer homelessness-related functions into it, and create a local coordinating board to meet federal continuum-of-care rules.
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved an ordinance amending the Administrative Code to establish a new Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing, transfer homeless-related functions into the new department, and create a Local Homeless Coordinating Board to advise on homelessness policy and serve as the city's continuum-of-care governing body in accordance with federal requirements.
The change was presented on the board's regular agenda as Item 8 and was adopted by unanimous consent. The ordinance moves administrative authority and oversight for homeless policy into a single department intended to coordinate the city's existing programs and funding streams.
Supervisor Aaron Peskin, who spoke about the item later in the meeting, said the new department should be empowered to prioritize housing-first exits and integrate services across city departments. Peskin noted the city had allocated funds in the budget for the new department and that the newly hired director, identified in later remarks as Mr. Kositzky, had begun hiring staff and stood up a new navigation center earlier that day.
The board recorded the vote as unanimous, and supervisors said the change should reduce interdepartmental silos and improve coordination for housing and supportive services for people experiencing homelessness.
The ordinance transfers functions already performed across agencies into the new Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing and establishes the Local Homeless Coordinating Board to meet federal continuum-of-care governance requirements. Mayor's Office of Housing staff are expected to coordinate with the new department on pipeline projects identified as potentially eligible for a local density bonus program (discussed elsewhere on the agenda).
Next steps: the department director will continue staffing and implementation work; the board and the administration signaled an expectation of follow-up reports and continued coordination with the Mayor's Office of Housing to align services and pipeline financing.
