Supervisor Chiu seeks searchable online database of city spending to increase transparency

Supervisor David Chiu on Tuesday introduced a drafting request directing staff to develop a proposal for a searchable, user‑friendly online database that would disclose the City and County of San Francisco's use of public funds. Chiu said the city's $6.8 billion budget is complex and that better technology could help residents and officials understand spending and hold government accountable.

Chiu said the effort would build on existing tools — he thanked the controller for progress on an online vendor database — and would require addressing implementation issues, privacy and confidentiality concerns. "Transparency of this kind would help to increase the confidence of our constituents in our government and to allow them to serve as better informed critics when they see fit," Chiu said. He noted that several other states, counties and cities have implemented similar online budget databases and that California has passed laws requiring such transparency in some cases.

The item was presented as a drafting request to begin work with city staff and interested members of the public; no ordinance or budget appropriation was proposed at this hearing. Chiu said the next steps would include coordination with the controller's office and technical vendors to scope the database and address privacy protections.