Rules Committee advances ordinance letting voters opt out of printed voter guide; elections and environment staff testify

The Rules Committee advanced an ordinance to amend San Francisco’s municipal elections code to permit voters to opt out of receiving the printed San Francisco Voter Information Pamphlet (VIP) and instead receive materials digitally.

Ted Walter, representing the item sponsor, said the measure would require the Department of Elections to establish an opt-out process allowing voters to receive election materials by email or to access them online. The proposal includes a notice to voters about confidentiality provisions and circumstances when voter contact information could be disclosed.

Gerard Gleason, an Elections Commission appointee, raised concerns about privacy and the existing state access rules for voter registration data. Gleason said ballots returned without a contact method can lead to uncounted votes and warned that once voter information is available it can be commercially harvested: "This information cannot be used for commercial purposes. Once this material is out there, there's no control on it." He urged stronger administrative protections for emails and phone numbers used for elections administration.

David Asman, deputy director at the Department of the Environment, urged support on environmental grounds, calling the measure "a no-brainer" and outlining paper and emissions impacts from producing the printed guides.

Public commenters supported the measure on environmental and convenience grounds. The committee moved the ordinance forward with a positive recommendation to the full Board; the transcript records the motion carried without recorded opposition.

Next steps: The ordinance will proceed to the full Board of Supervisors for further consideration; the Department of Elections and the Elections Commission will likely coordinate on implementation details and confidentiality notices.