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Budget committee forwards modified plan to add administrative staff to Adult Probation
Summary
The Budget & Finance Committee voted to forward a revised plan to add nine positions in the Adult Probation Department after debate over staffing priorities, IT needs and whether some roles should sit in Juvenile Probation; the committee removed several executive-level clerical posts and continued parts of the request for one week.
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors Budget & Finance Committee on the record discussed and forwarded a modified supplemental ordinance to add nine positions to the Adult Probation Department, aiming to bolster case-management, IT and grant-writing capacity while deferring some proposed executive support posts.
Chief Woodford, who has led adult probation for roughly four and a half months, told the committee she brought the request now to establish a management framework before a larger hiring wave: “We have brought on 2 probation officers. We have 6 more that . . . are being made offers, and we will be getting their reporting dates. . . . All total, by the April, we will have brought on 9 probation officers.” She said the department faces longstanding information-system failures and staffing shortfalls that leave many caseloads unattended.
Budget Analyst Deborah Newman summarized the fiscal effect and staff recommendations. The nine positions would create about $1,030,000 in ongoing general‑fund costs beginning next fiscal year and roughly $258,000 pro rata if positions started April 1. Newman told the committee the department has salary savings to cover hires this year but recommended deferring most of the package to the regular budget process; she endorsed a deputy director post, an IT position and a senior payroll/personnel clerk as higher priorities and recommended against filling three executive‑secretary slots at this time.
Juvenile Probation Director of Administrative Services Allison McGee testified that juvenile probation also needs contract and grant capacity and supported sharing two administrative positions between adult and juvenile probation. The Controller’s Office representative, Monique Smuta, said the controller’s 2000 audit showed problems that remain largely uncorrected and recommended targeted follow‑up work, particularly in information systems and staffing.
Committee members debated the balance between frontline probation officers and higher‑level administrative support. One member noted the auditor’s finding that the department could not state an accurate count of supervised adult offenders; Chief Woodford described an internal cleanup in the Western Addition where case records fell from an automated-system estimate of nearly 2,000 to fewer than 600 after manual review.
After discussion the committee approved an amendment to remove the Manager 7 chief‑of‑staff position and three executive‑secretary positions from immediate approval, to set the initial appointment fraction (0.17 of a full year) for the package rather than full pro rata start dates, and to assign one senior administrative‑analyst position to juvenile probation for contract management. The committee agreed to continue part of the item for one week to allow a short, targeted budget analysis and then forwarded the revised recommendation to the full Board with the committee’s report.
Next steps: the Board will receive the committee’s recommendation and the items continued for a week will return for the additional budget analysis requested by the committee.
