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Supervisors direct independent BLA audit of San Francisco Zoo; concerns raised about funding and pandas transfer
Summary
The committee voted 3-0 to forward a Budget and Legislative Analyst audit of the San Francisco Zoo for FY24-25 and FY25-26 after testimony from zoo leadership, union representatives and animal welfare advisors; supporters said the audit will strengthen oversight and help negotiate future city support.
The Government Audit and Oversight Committee voted on Dec. 5 to send a request to the Budget and Legislative Analyst (BLA) for a comprehensive performance and management audit of the San Francisco Zoo covering fiscal years 2024-25 and 2025-26.
Supervisor Rafael Melgar, sponsor of the motion, said the zoo has not had a BLA audit since 1999 and that the city—s longstanding memorandum of understanding provides an annual stipend of $4,000,000 that has not been adjusted for decades; after pandemic-era revenue and increased costs, he said the stipend—s real value is closer to $2.4 million. "Most nonprofits, especially those receiving government support, are open to be audited on a regular basis," Melgar said, adding that an audit is a best practice and not intended as punitive.
Tanya Petersen, the zoo—s CEO, told the committee she had worked at the zoo for 16 years and that staff were temporarily moving animals to higher ground during a tsunami warning. Petersen asked that an audit be performed with recognition of staff contributions and the zoo—s operational reality.
Public comment showed a split: zoo board leaders and some longtime supporters warned that a city audit could be redundant with AZA accreditation and other reviews, and cautioned that audit publicity might affect a pending panda transfer. Zoo employees, union representatives and animal-welfare advisors urged oversight and transparency and supported the audit as a means to surface operational and safety issues and to correct chronically low city funding.
After discussion, Supervisor Melgar moved the item and the committee recorded ayes from Member Melgar, Member Chan and Chair Preston, forwarding the audit request to the full Board with a positive recommendation. The motion instructs the BLA to plan and conduct the audit in consultation with stakeholders; the committee noted the audit will consider existing AZA and other professional reports.
What happens next: the committee—s report will be transmitted to the Board and the BLA will begin planning the audit; the committee expects the audit to inform future discussions about city funding, the zoo-city MOU, and capacity to host a panda transfer.
