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Committee forwards shelter‑standards ordinances after amendment and assurance of six‑month review
Summary
The committee forwarded two related ordinances — one to add minimum standards and enforcement provisions for city‑funded shelters and another to require Department of Public Health staffing for shelter monitoring — after accepting amendments that reduce new staffing to 1 FTE and add a six‑month post‑enactment review.
The Government Audit and Oversight Committee voted to forward two ordinances to the full Board next week that would impose minimum contractual standards for city‑funded shelters and require the Department of Public Health (DPH) to assign staff to support shelter monitoring.
Supervisor Tom Ammiano described the legislation as the result of broad stakeholder work with the Human Service Agency, the Department of Public Health, the Local Homeless Coordinating Board, shelter providers, the Coalition on Homelessness and shelter residents. He said the rules are intended to establish basic congregate‑living standards — comparable to those used in hospitals, nursing homes and jails — and to improve infection prevention, resident dignity and staff training across the shelter system that serves "more than 1,800 men, women, and children." "These standards would provide basic prevention against passage of communicable diseases, healthier residents, and better training for staff," Ammiano told the committee.
Ammiano proposed and the committee accepted a set of amendments negotiated with the mayor—s office: the staffing commitment in Item 3 was reduced to one additional full‑time equivalent (down from two), the legislation will require a six‑month review after enactment to evaluate operator compliance, number of fines, arbitration cases, and fiscal impacts, and the Department of Public Health was named to administer contract and standards oversight. Ammiano also moved to remove a proposed provision dealing with bus tokens.
Several public commenters, including at least two long‑time participants in the stakeholder process, expressed concern that earlier drafts had envisioned oversight by the shelter monitoring committee and argued that shifting enforcement to DPH represents a significant change from consensus. One stakeholder said the committee had been the proposed enforcement body and opposed moving enforcement authority to DPH; another caller described recent changes as a "disfigurement" of the legislation.
Anne Cronenberg, Deputy Director of the Department of Public Health, thanked the sponsor and said the six‑month review "alleviates a lot of our concerns." Cronenberg acknowledged DPH faces a large budget deficit and that the additional staff is not yet budgeted, but said the department hopes the position will be included in the FY 2008–09 budget process.
Deputy City Attorney Cheryl Adams advised the committee that ordering a board‑appointed legislative body to perform day‑to‑day oversight of an executive function would violate separation of powers; Adams said the executive branch (the Department of Public Health) is the appropriate body to carry out day‑to‑day shelter oversight while the shelter monitoring committee can provide advice and review.
The committee accepted the negotiated amendments without objection and forwarded both ordinances to the full Board for hearing next week.
Provenance: Committee reading of Items 2 and 3, sponsor presentation and amendment acceptance, public testimony and responses by DPH deputy director and deputy city attorney (transcript segments beginning with clerk reading Items 2 and 3 and continuing through the committee—s vote to forward).
