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Committee forwards multiple charter amendment proposals to full Board amid debate about city employees serving on commissions
Summary
The Rules Committee forwarded several charter amendments — including changes to election cycles and a proposal to encourage diversity on appointed boards while restricting city employees from serving — to the full Board without recommendation after extended public comment. City employees and unions urged revisions to avoid excluding qualified public servants.
The committee considered charter amendments to (1) shift election cycles for citywide offices to even‑numbered years, (2) encourage appointment of women, minorities and disabled candidates to boards and commissions while prohibiting city employees from serving on charter‑created bodies, and (3) alter the status and election of the municipal transportation agency board.
Supporters of the diversity language said they wanted more representation on appointed bodies. Many city employees and union representatives testified against a categorical ban on city employees serving on commissions, arguing that employees bring expertise and that the language could have a chilling effect on civic participation. George Lau, a city employee appointed to the Fire Commission, told supervisors he had been cleared by the city attorney and that his experience helped the commission.
Supervisors said the committee would forward these items to the full Board as committee reports without recommendation so the Board could consider amendments. Several participants proposed narrower approaches — for example, limiting prohibitions to senior managers or using waivers on a case‑by‑case basis — rather than a blanket bar.
Next steps: Items 15–17 will go to the full Board where supervisors said they could be amended; the committee encouraged further drafting and legal review before final action.
