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Hundreds testify at Budget Committee public‑comment day, urging full funding for homelessness measures and flexible housing subsidies
Summary
At a June 25 Budget & Appropriations hearing, service providers, unhoused residents and advocates urged full funding for Prop C/"City Our Home," flexible housing subsidies, hotel vouchers and HESPA/OCOH recommendations, and many called for CART funding and sheriff/SFPD reductions.
San Francisco’s Budget & Appropriations Committee spent its June 25 meeting hearing public testimony on how the city should allocate funds for homelessness and housing programs in the coming fiscal years.
Speakers representing Hospitality House, Senior and Disability Action, Larkin Street Youth Services and dozens of community organizations urged supervisors to restore or add funding for flexible housing subsidies, emergency hotel vouchers and community‑based solutions they say prevent people from becoming chronically unhoused. “We need to invest in flexible housing subsidies for adults, families and youth to end homelessness,” Hospitality House representatives said in video testimony.
Multiple youth‑serving groups and Larkin Street speakers pressed for transitional‑age youth supports: long‑term subsidy slots, bridge housing and clinical behavioral services inside shelters and drop‑in centers. Larkin Street and allied callers asked that subsidy extensions be funded for programs that are not yet self‑sustaining after pandemic disruptions.
Several organizations urged the board to fully fund the Compassionate Alternative Response Team (CART), a community‑based alternative to policing for homelessness‑related calls. Supporters argued CART would be more effective and less harmful than police or sheriff responses; the coalition’s written and oral testimony noted that only a small percentage of police homeless encounters result in service connections.
Other callers representing Senior and Disability Action requested $3 million for portable rental subsidies (tenant‑portable vouchers) and $3 million for senior operating subsidies tied to units, describing the measures as tools to keep vulnerable seniors and disabled people housed as the eviction moratorium lifts.
Advocates for OCOH and HESPA budget recommendations urged the board to honor community‑developed spending priorities tied to Proposition C. Those who testified said community oversight and longer‑term subsidies are required to avoid repeated annual add‑back fights.
The committee recessed after the long public comment period and will continue budget deliberations on Monday, June 28.
What’s next: The Budget & Appropriations Committee will consider the mayor’s proposed budget and add‑back requests in follow‑up hearings; no formal spending decisions were made at this session.
