Board committee approves gate increase, sets April deadline for Taxi Commission health plan

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors Budget & Finance Committee on Sept. 26 voted to amend a controller recommendation on taxi fares, setting the gate cap at $91.50 and adding a 25‑cent fuel surcharge to the flag drop, raising that drop from $2.85 to $3.10.

The committee’s action came after more than three hours of public comment and extended debate among supervisors, taxi‑industry representatives and driver advocates. Chair Supervisor Chris Daley said the committee wanted to balance “the realities of rising operating costs” with the city’s goal of finding a durable health‑care mechanism for drivers. “We’ve asked the Taxi Commission to provide a menu of options,” Mayor‑appointed Taxi Commission Executive Director Heidi Machen said, committing the commission to deliver a formal proposal by April 1, 2007.

Why it mattered: The hearing brought competing priorities into sharp relief. Taxi companies and many medallion holders and drivers urged a rate increase or a fuel surcharge to cover sharply higher costs for fuel, insurance and new vehicle requirements. Driver advocates and union representatives, including Rua Grama of the United Taxicab Workers, opposed conditional increases and urged that a concrete health plan be in place before drivers pay higher fares. “We need health care — not more excuses to raise rates without a plan,” Grama said during public comment.

What was decided: The committee negotiated and adopted the amendment that (a) raises the gate cap to $91.50, (b) increases the first‑fifth‑mile flag drop by $0.25 (to $3.10), and (c) requires the Taxi Commission to submit a formal proposal for driver health coverage by April 1, 2007 and for the Clerk to calendar a hearing to consider fare or gate changes at that time. A separate alternative proposal (item 2 on the agenda) that would have taken a different approach was tabled by the committee.

Public testimony and tenor: Dozens of drivers said they are struggling with inflationary costs and insurance spikes; medallion owners argued the city should fund or help fund driver benefits because medallions are a city asset. Driver representative Richard Vega emphasized the daily operating stress for drivers: “It costs money to operate these cabs…we need a 50‑cent increase on the gate drop,” he said. Other speakers, including Marshall Charles of United Taxicab Workers, urged enforcement of existing gate limits and cautioned against transferring costs to drivers before a health‑care mechanism is defined.

Process and next steps: The committee’s action is a recommendation to the full Board of Supervisors, which will consider the ordinance and any related amendments. The Taxi Commission is expected to return to the Board with a menu of health‑care options by April 1, 2007; the committee instructed the Clerk to calendar a hearing at that time. The committee also noted the legal and procedural limits on how paratransit surcharges and other add‑ons could be restored, which would require separate ordinance action.

Stakeholder positions quoted in this hearing were attributable to the speakers recorded on the public record. The committee’s roll call divided on earlier motions (the alternative item 2 was tabled by roll‑call, with Supervisor Daley voting no), but the final amendment to item 1 was forwarded to the full Board with recommendation without objection.