Supervisors approve forwarding $5.9M pretrial diversion contract increase to full Board

The Budget & Finance Committee on April 29 voted to send to the full Board with a positive recommendation a fifth amendment to the contract between the Sheriff's Department and the San Francisco Pretrial Diversion Project that extends the agreement by one year and increases the contract by about $5.9 million.

Kristen Hollings, chief financial officer for the Sheriff's Department, described the amendment as an exercise of the first of two one‑year options and said the requested additional funds are intended to respond to a sustained caseload increase driven by court rulings (Humphrey and the federal Buffen ruling) and COVID‑19‑related expedited releases. The department and Pretrial officials said the program's daily assertive case‑management caseload has grown significantly; Pretrial said staff have increased from roughly 30 to about 80 and the program relies on a non‑interview risk tool (the Public Safety Assessment, sometimes called the Arnold tool) to guide recommendations to courts.

David Moroff of the Pretrial Diversion Project described performance measures the program tracks — appearance and safety rates — and said city and contractor staff are expanding services including 24/7 coverage and connections to treatment and housing partners. Supervisors pressed for details on what direct services are provided to higher‑acuity clients, who provides electronic monitoring (Sentinel), the program's clinical capacity for people with serious mental illness, and how domestic‑violence cases are handled and referred to appropriate interventions.

Stephen Campbell of the Budget and Legislative Analyst (BLA) summarized the office's review, finding the proposed increase reasonable and noting the FY21 budget is roughly $1.5 million higher than FY20 projected expenditures; BLA recommended approval. Public commenters, including the San Francisco Domestic Violence Consortium, urged clarity and assurance that domestic violence intervention services — distinct from general anger‑management programs — were available to diverted clients.

The committee voted to move the amendment to the full Board with a positive recommendation (roll call recorded at SEG 1758–1770). Staff said more data and follow‑up were available and offered to continue engagement with supervisors on performance measures and outcomes for cohorts where Pretrial recommendations and judicial decisions diverge.

What’s next: The amendment will be considered by the full Board of Supervisors; departments and Pretrial said they would follow up with supervisors on metrics and comparative outcomes for cases where Pretrial's release recommendations differ from judicial orders.