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Supervisors back ordinance to create LGBT seniors task force with 18‑month sunset
Summary
The committee forwarded an ordinance to create a task force to study the needs of LGBT seniors, approved an amendment increasing membership from 11 to 15, and asked that recommendations be returned to the Board and mayor after an 18‑month term.
The Government Audit & Oversight Committee voted to forward an ordinance establishing a task force on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender seniors, including an amendment to expand membership and a firm 18‑month sunset.
Supervisor Scott Wiener, the ordinance’s author, told the committee the city must plan for a growing LGBT senior population and said the task force will "produce recommendations to the Board of Supervisors and to the mayor". Wiener moved to amend the measure to change the task force size from 11 to 15 members to improve diversity and representation; the committee accepted the amendment and forwarded the ordinance with a positive recommendation.
Public testimony favored the task force. Ashley McCumber, executive director of Meals on Wheels of San Francisco, said collecting demographic data on LGBT seniors is essential to meeting needs and noted the agency now serves more than 2,800 homebound seniors. Dr. Maase Edelman of Openhouse described work to build LGBT-welcoming low-income housing and told supervisors that the city’s approximately 25,000 LGBT seniors will double over the next two decades, underscoring the need for targeted policy.
The ordinance sets a clear endpoint: the task force will expire after 18 months and return recommendations for policy and budget consideration. The committee approved the measure without objection and forwarded it to the full Board for further action.
