Board approves $132M-plus federal grant package including $55M for zero-emission ferry project

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors on Jan. 14 voted to accept and expand a package of federal grants to multiple city departments totaling more than $132 million. The board heard presentations from department leaders and then approved each resolution as amended; several awards were placed on Board of Supervisors reserve and delegated to the Budget and Finance Committee for review before funds are released.

Key awards in the omnibus package include:

- $55,380,000 (EPA Clean Ports Grant) to build the first high-speed zero-emission ferry network in the United States, including construction of a Mission Bay ferry landing near Chase Center, electrification at the downtown ferry terminal, a zero-emission 400-passenger high-speed ferry, and a maritime workforce development program. The port reported a required $15,500,000 local match, with $13.6 million from SFPUC power division and $1.9 million from SF Bay Ferry.

- $20,000,000 (U.S. Department of Transportation, RAISE) for the Bayview Connections project (Candlestick Point redevelopment) to build/upgrade roadway connections, add dedicated bus rapid transit lanes, separated cycle tracks and widened sidewalks; the developer is contributing $26,000,000 toward the remainder of the project.

- Approximately $20,000,000 from a Department of Energy award to advance building performance standards and policy development for large existing buildings, a joint application with Berkeley; the portion for San Francisco is roughly $14,300,000 to develop policy, implementation and enforcement work toward decarbonizing large commercial buildings.

- $14,996,876 (U.S. DOT charging and fueling infrastructure) to fund up to 300 Level 2 or DC fast chargers; the city said this will put it about 80% toward the publicly accessible charging target for 2030 and will focus on Justice40-designated disadvantaged communities.

- $13,635,302 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) to strengthen STD prevention and control and maintain disease intervention specialist capacity through Feb. 2026.

Also included were awards or retroactive approvals for vocational rehabilitation services ($791,433), CalAIM justice-involved enrollment support ($223,673), refugee support services ($832,804), NIH clinical-trials network work ($104,508), DOJ opioid/stimulant site-based programming ($1,600,000), seismic and hazard mitigation work for port infrastructure (FEMA/BRIC and Hazard Mitigation grants totaling roughly $2.86 million across items), and other energy, equity and community-engagement grants. A full list of the items was read into the record during the committee of the whole presentation.

Presenters stressed the speed of federal grant rollouts and the need to accept awards before an impending federal deadline. Environment Director Tyrone Joo described collaboration across departments and said the grants required “thinking outside the box” to deliver decisions quickly. Public Works described the Bayview Connections improvements and the department said construction could begin in the first quarter of next year pending approvals. Port staff said the Clean Ports award was intended to reduce diesel pollution in near-port communities and support a regional zero-emission ferry network.

The board took several housekeeping steps: many awards were amended in the board file to reflect received award letters or fiscal-impact determinations from the Budget and Legislative Analyst; multiple items were placed on Board of Supervisors reserve while the Budget and Finance Committee reviews completed files; Item 10 (an MTC grant for a Visitation Avenue pedestrian and bicycle safety project) was referred back to the Budget and Finance Committee at Supervisor Chan’s request and with the mayor’s office concurrence.

All items on the committee-of-the-whole list were adopted as amended during the meeting. Because several awards require subsequent committee review and ASO (annual salary ordinance) approvals to add positions if needed, funds will remain in reserve until Budget and Finance releases them after examining complete files.