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Rules Committee backs charter amendment to allow noncitizen San Francisco residents to serve on boards and commissions
Summary
The Rules Committee voted to recommend a charter amendment to the full Board that would permit San Francisco residents — regardless of U.S. citizenship or, if approved separately, age (Vote 16) — to serve on city boards, commissions and advisory bodies; proponents emphasized equity and broader representation and the item will appear on the November 3, 2020 ballot.
The San Francisco Rules Committee on a unanimous committee vote recommended to the full Board a charter amendment that would remove a U.S. citizenship requirement for appointment to city boards, commissions and advisory bodies and instead require appointees be San Francisco residents of legal voting age.
Sponsor Supervisor Shamann Walton told the committee the amendment is intended to expand civic participation by allowing noncitizen residents — including undocumented immigrants — to serve on advisory and decision-making bodies. "This Charter Amendment will remove the citizen requirement allowing qualified individuals to apply and serve on committees and commissions in San Francisco," Walton said, thanking colleagues for unanimous co-sponsorship.
Supporters framed the amendment as an equity measure. Sarah Souza, a lead organizer for the campaign, told the committee the measure has two components: allowing San Francisco residents to serve regardless of immigration status, and expanding reporting metrics to track diversity across commissions (including gender and sexual orientation). Gabriel Medina, campaign co-chair, presented demographic data, arguing Latinx and other communities are underrepresented among appointees.
Public commenters — including teachers, immigrant-rights advocates and local organization representatives — spoke in favor. Kate Fry, a citizenship teacher at City College of San Francisco, said immigrants bring expertise and should not be excluded by a citizenship test. Nima Rahimi, an immigrant rights commissioner, said the amendment is "long overdue" and vital during the pandemic and amid protests over police violence. Several speakers tied the amendment to COVID-19 disparities and calls for police accountability, arguing broader representation on commissions would improve responsiveness.
The committee recorded a roll-call vote recommending the charter amendment to the full Board: Supervisor Stephanie — Aye; Supervisor Marr — Aye; Chair Ronan — Aye. The clerk read that the amendment will appear on the November 3, 2020 ballot unless otherwise stated.
The matter now moves to the full Board of Supervisors for consideration and placement on the ballot. If approved by voters, the charter language would replace the existing citizenship-and-registered-voter requirement with a residency-and-legal-voting-age requirement, and add the stated diversity-reporting components.
Provenance: The committee clerk read the item ("a charter amendment to amend the charter of the city and county of San Francisco to require that members of the board... be residents..."), proponents presented data and testimony, and the committee passed a motion recommending the measure to the full Board.
