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Supervisors send Elder Economic Security Index pilot to full board after extensive public support
Summary
The subcommittee accepted an amendment and forwarded a pilot to use the Elder Economic Security Index for the Community Living Fund to the full Board, after staff presentations and extensive public comment highlighting gaps in federal poverty measures for seniors and people with disabilities.
The Budget & Finance Subcommittee on May 6 voted to send an ordinance pilot to the full Board that would use the Elder Economic Security Index to analyze recipients of the Community Living Fund. The committee accepted an amendment of the whole clarifying the pilot will collect data on all recipients of the fund — not only elders — and will return to the Board with results before any eligibility changes are adopted.
Rick Dalbrith introduced the measure on behalf of absent Supervisor Ross Merkurimi and emphasized the Community Living Fund was chosen because it uses county monies and is therefore not constrained by state or federal matching rules. Anne Hinton, director of the Department of Aging and Adult Services, described the department’s role hosting the pilot and said the goal is to gather administrative data and test protocols so the city will be positioned if state or federal standards change.
Jenny Chung of the Insight Center described the elder index and showed county-specific data demonstrating gaps between the federal poverty guideline and a San Francisco County elder standard. Chung said the federal guideline (a single-person annual figure she cited as $10,830) fails to capture local housing, health care and transportation costs; insight center graphics showed as many as 52 percent of seniors in San Francisco County fall below the local elder index threshold even if they are above the federal poverty line.
More than a dozen community speakers urged the committee to proceed. Testimony included lived-experience accounts and provider perspectives: Vera Hale and John Malone described eligibility barriers to Medi-Cal and In-Home Supportive Services and urged follow-up reforms; community organizations including Senior Action Network, New Leaf Outreach, Planning for Elders, and the California Alliance for Retired Americans endorsed the pilot and suggested the city consider policy and budget changes that the index could inform.
Supervisor Carmen Chu moved to forward the item to the full board with the committee’s recommendation; the motion carried without objection. Staff said the pilot will collect and analyze data, return to the Board with findings and proposed next steps if the data support policy changes.
