Commission hears city five-year financial plan and approves Department of the Environment's draft FY15'16 budget

The Commission on the Environment heard an overview of the City and County of San Francisco's five-year financial plan from the Mayor's Office on Jan. 27 and approved the Department of the Environment's preliminary FY15-16 budget for submission to the Mayor's Office.

Kelli Kirkpatrick, a fiscal analyst in the Mayor's Office of Public Policy and Finance, summarized the December five-year financial plan and its key findings: projected general-fund shortfalls and drivers. Kirkpatrick said the plan projects a $15,900,000 shortfall in fiscal year 2015-16 and a cumulative shortfall of $88,300,000 in fiscal year 2016-17. She noted that while revenues continue to grow, expenditure growth (including salary-and-benefit increases, investments in new facilities and public safety hiring) is projected to outpace revenues. The Mayor's Office also presented a recession scenario that modeled a $936,000,000 reduction in revenues over several years in the event of a downturn beginning in FY17 and discussed using reserves and cutting one-time spending as possible fiscal strategies.

Later, Joseph (Joe) Salem, Program Manager for Finance and Administration at the Department of the Environment, presented the Department's preliminary FY15-16 budget. Salem described the department's revenue mix (impound account ~46%, other city departments ~9%, rents ~45%) and reported a proposed total budget of approximately 20,460,000 (transcript currency symbol inconsistent). He outlined program-level changes: clean transportation up ~35% driven by three new grants totaling $561,000; a BAYREN energy-efficiency grant dropping from 1,080,000 to 371,000; a biodiversity funding gap of $77,795; and a climate/renewables gap of $178,132. Salem said the overall department budget is essentially flat with a 1.33% variance projected for the next fiscal year.

Public commenters raised concerns about impound-account compliance. Nancy Werfel, who submitted a formal letter, argued the draft budget improperly allocates impound funds and urged the Commission not to approve the budget unless it could certify compliance with the 2007 impound-account guidelines or hold a special meeting prior to Feb. 23. Dr. Tompkins also urged clearer neighborhood-level allocations for toxins-reduction dollars to address disproportionate burdens in Bayview Hunters Point.

Director Deborah Raphael acknowledged the comments, described revisions made to correct a mislabeled impound allocation, and said staff would respond directly to public commenters and continue discussions before final submission on Feb. 23. After discussion, the Commission voted to approve the Department's preliminary FY15-16 budget for submission to the Mayor's Office; the vote was taken by voice and the motion carried with no recorded opposition.

No final appropriation was adopted at the meeting; commissioners and staff said they would continue to address the identified program deficits and impound-account questions in the weeks leading up to the formal budget submission.