San Francisco commission urges supervisors to back all‑electric new‑construction ordinance; asks for tighter exemptions and transparency

The San Francisco Commission on the Environment voted unanimously to send a resolution to the Board of Supervisors urging support for an ordinance that would amend the city's building code to require new construction to be all‑electric.

The commission's action followed a lengthy presentation from department staff and Jacob Bentliff of Supervisor Rafael Mandelman's office, who said the ordinance would apply to building permit applications submitted on or after Jan. 1, 2021, and that limited exceptions would be allowed only where all‑electric construction is demonstrably physically or technically infeasible. Bentliff said the proposal covers roughly 60–65% of projects currently in the development pipeline and includes a delayed allowance for commercial cooking equipment until Jan. 1, 2022 to permit additional stakeholder outreach with the restaurant community.

Cindy Comerford, the department's climate program manager, reviewed the ordinance's components, the outreach conducted by the city's 0 Emission Building Task Force and an equity analysis produced by department staff. She told commissioners that the measure relies on the department's authority under the California Health and Safety Code to amend local building code provisions and that staff's analysis of cost‑effectiveness studies and local examples generally showed all‑electric construction is cost neutral or cost saving over a building's lifetime.

Public comment was overwhelmingly supportive but focused on narrowing the ordinance's waiver process. Dozens of callers urged the commission to close a perceived loophole by clarifying that "infeasibility" cannot be established on the basis of anticipated financial loss, and to provide stronger public transparency and reporting on any waivers granted. Multiple advocacy groups asked the commission to recommend language from a joint letter drafted by Earthjustice, the Sierra Club and the San Francisco Climate Emergency Coalition.

Commissioners praised the department's outreach and Supervisor Mandelman's leadership but said the ordinance should include stronger transparency and accountability measures. Commissioner Wald recommended, and staff agreed, that the commission transmit a companion letter with the resolution outlining specific suggested improvements, including reporting on any exemptions and a planned post‑implementation review to identify unintended consequences.

Commissioner Ahn moved the resolution and Commissioner Burke seconded. Charles called the roll; all commissioners voted aye and the motion passed. The commission's letter and the resolution will be forwarded to the Board of Supervisors and staff said they will work with the Department of Building Inspection to develop an administrative bulletin that explains the waiver review and third‑party verification process.

The commission's action is advisory; final adoption and any amendments to the building code would occur through the Board of Supervisors' legislative process and DBI rulemaking. Jacob Bentliff said the next milestones include an August 19 Building Inspection Commission recommendation, a Land Use Committee hearing and hopes to reach the full Board of Supervisors in September.