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Rules Committee forwards several commission nominations to full board
Summary
The Rules Committee advanced nominations for the Public Utilities bond oversight panel, three First 5 seats and four Animal Control & Welfare Commission seats to the Board of Supervisors with positive recommendations; most advanced without opposition and one residency waiver was granted for a First 5 nominee.
The Rules Committee on Thursday advanced multiple commission nominations to the full Board of Supervisors, including a recommendation to reappoint or appoint candidates to the Public Utilities Revenue Bond Oversight Committee, the Children and Families First Commission (First 5) and the Commission on Animal Control and Welfare.
Chair Supervisor Jane Kim called the committee through procedural votes that moved several applicants to the full board. For Item 1, the committee recommended the single applicant for the Public Utilities Revenue Bond Oversight Committee after members said the applicant had already met with the Public Utilities Commission and no one objected. For Item 2, the panel recommended reappointments and new appointments to three First 5 seats: Suzanne Gerardo (reappointment, seat 7), Linda Asado (seat 6) and Lynn Merv (seat 9) were forwarded with positive recommendation; the committee also approved a residency waiver for Merv to allow her appointment despite not meeting the residency requirement.
At Item 4, supervisors recommended reappointing incumbent commissioners Philip Jerry (seat 3), Pam Hemphill (seat 4) and Sally Stevens (seat 5), and moved forward Ryan Young (seat 6) for a new appointment to the Commission on Animal Control and Welfare. Supervisors and public speakers lauded the nominees' backgrounds in animal welfare, wildlife advocacy and community outreach; chair Kim said the selections reflected both continuity and fresh perspectives. The committee noted there are currently no people of color on that commission and discussed diversity considerations during the deliberations.
Public comment accompanied each item. Ray Hartz, director of San Francisco Open Government, urged more transparency for appointment processes and recommended posting applicants' materials online for public review. Supporters of the First 5 and animal-commission applicants spoke at the meeting, urging outreach to underrepresented communities and praising nominees' qualifications.
The recommendations will go to the full Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, June 14, unless otherwise noted. The committee recorded the motions and advanced the items with no recorded objections for the First 5 and animal commission nominations; the clerk will publish the formal roll calls when the full board takes each nomination up.
The meeting also included a moment of silence for two firefighters killed and a third injured earlier that day; the committee paused public business briefly before calling the next item.
