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Sheriff presents station-transfer proposal; committee treats it as a staffing option
Summary
During budget hearings the Sheriff—s office presented an operational analysis suggesting station-transfer units run by the Sheriff could cover duties at lower cost and hours than SFPD; supervisors welcomed the data as one possible staffing tool while noting it is not a substitute for broader police staffing needs.
The San Francisco Sheriff—s Department presented an analysis to the Budget & Finance Committee examining the hours and costs of station-transfer coverage and comparing them to San Francisco Police Department operations.
The Sheriff told the committee that the SFPD would need roughly 91,980 hours per year (an amount the Sheriff characterized as routine for the city—s 10 district stations) to operate station transfer units at an estimated cost of about $4.96 million. By contrast, the Sheriff said the Sheriff—s Department could deliver similar coverage with roughly 35,000 hours at a cost of about $1.63 million, a difference the Sheriff said equates to roughly 44 SFPD officer equivalents in annual hours and cost.
Supervisors and the Sheriff treated the analysis as a potential partial tool to help the city meet public-safety staffing needs. Supervisor Scott Wiener thanked the Sheriff for producing numbers that could be plugged into broader staffing discussions; he emphasized that any such substitution would be only one component of solving a longstanding gap in police staffing and not a replacement for hiring additional officers. The Sheriff said his department is willing to discuss formal agreements to take on specific duties, including hospital runs, where appropriate.
The committee did not adopt a policy change at the hearing; supervisors asked staff to consider the numbers and pursue follow-up discussions among police, sheriff and budget staff.
