Board approves ordinances and resolutions on ammunition, preschool subsidies, Laguna Honda donation, pedestrian safety grant and liquor licenses

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted on a series of ordinances and resolutions at its March 5 meeting, adopting measures that ranged from gun‑safety rules and early‑learning contract modifications to transportation and liquor‑license determinations. Several items were approved without objection or by roll call.

Votes at a glance (selected items adopted March 5)

- Ordinance amending the Administrative Code to permit city payments to offset federal income taxation on health‑insurance premiums for employees’ same‑sex spouses or domestic partners (Item 9). Vote: 11 ayes; passed by roll call.

- Resolution approving a contract modification with the Children’s Council of San Francisco to administer Preschool for All subsidy payments — amount described in the meeting as not to exceed approximately $40,700,000 for the period beginning July 1, 2012 (Item 10). Vote: adopted without objection; roll call recorded 11 ayes.

- Resolution authorizing Laguna Honda Hospital to retroactively accept and expend a charitable gift of $500,000 to the hospital’s patient gift fund (Item 11). Sponsor remarks identified the Knight Living Trust Fund as the donor. Vote: adopted without objection.

- Resolution accepting a U.S. Department of Education grant for early learning quality improvement (Item 12). The amount presented in the meeting was approximately $1,200,000 for the stated period. Vote: adopted without objection.

- Resolution correcting and increasing a District Attorney grant (Item 13) and a resolution increasing a buffer zone protection program grant (Item 14). Vote: adopted without objection.

- Ordinances amending the Police Code regarding ammunition (Items 15 and 16). Sponsors described two linked measures: (1) requiring retailers to report sales of 500 or more rounds in a single transaction to the Chief of Police; and (2) prohibiting possession or sale of certain types of ammunition, including so‑called “Black Talon” brand and ammunition intended exclusively for law‑enforcement or military use. Supervisor Cohen introduced the measures and thanked police, hospital trauma staff and the mayor’s office. Both ordinances were approved by roll call (roll calls showed unanimous support in the recorded votes). Vote: 11 ayes.

- Resolution determining that issuance of a Type 42 (on‑sale beer and wine) license to Folsom Street Foundry (1425 Folsom Street) will serve the public convenience (Item 17). Vote: adopted.

- Resolution approving the transfer of a Type 21 (off‑sale general) license for Walgreens from 345 Eddy Street to 135 Powell Street, as amended to address neighborhood concerns and to achieve a net change in local license concentration (Item 18). President Chu explained amendments negotiated with the applicant. Vote: adopted as amended by roll call.

- Resolution authorizing the Department of Public Works to retroactively accept and expend a Federal Highway Administration grant in the amount of $797,000 for pedestrian‑safety improvements on Sloat Boulevard (Highway 35) at three intersections (Item 19). Supervisor Yee, who sponsored the item, described the request as addressing three hazardous intersections and cited a recent pedestrian fatality near Sloat Boulevard. Vote: adopted without objection.

- Motions confirming appointments, including London Bridal to the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District (Item 20) and Tom Nolan to the Municipal Transportation Agency Board of Directors (Item 21). Vote: roll call approvals recorded.

- Additional items (Items 24–26 and an adopted Resolution declaring March 9, 2013, Rosa Parks Japanese Bilingual Bicultural Program Day) were adopted by roll call or unanimous consent.

What the votes mean

Most items were approvals of grants, contract modifications, or license determinations rather than new citywide regulatory frameworks requiring extended debate. The two ammunition ordinances were the most substantive policy items debated at the meeting; supervisors framed those measures as tools to help the city track large ammunition purchases and to prohibit specific, especially injurious ammunition designs.

Speakers and attributions

Sponsor remarks on the ammunition ordinances were delivered by Supervisor Cohen. Supervisor Yee spoke to the pedestrian‑safety grant on Sloat Boulevard and emphasized a recent local pedestrian fatality as a motivating factor. Several items were adopted "same house, same call" or without objection after committee consideration, per the meeting record.

Provenance and evidence

Roll‑call votes and the clerk’s announcements in the transcript record the adoptions summarized above; where committee reports were referenced, Board members noted prior Committee consideration.

Ending: The adopted measures will be implemented by the relevant city departments; for ordinance language and implementation dates, staff said the city would publish the final adopted texts and next steps in the appropriate department files and on the Board’s public calendar.