Mayor tells supervisors he will press Sacramento and support stopgap funding as riders warn against Muni service cuts

Mayor Daniel Urey told the San Francisco Board of Supervisors on Feb. 11 that preserving Muni is a city priority and he will "do everything in my power to support Muni's immediate and long term health," while acknowledging the agency faces a large structural deficit.

The mayor appeared as a 2:00 PM special order, during which Supervisor Myrna Melgar asked whether he would ensure there are no service cuts while the city pursues long-term solutions. Melgar warned the board that Muni faces a short-term budget hole and an annual structural deficit she quantified in the discussion as "more than $300,000,000," asking specifically whether the mayor could prevent cuts this summer. The mayor said he had been advocating in Sacramento for state funding and that a "multi-pronged approach" including local and regional revenue measures on the 2026 ballot will likely be needed; he also said the city will need "stopgap funding this year." He added weekday boardings are back to about 500,000 daily and stressed Muni's regional importance.

Public commenters who signed up for the two‑minute period expanded on the urgency. Transit advocates pressed the board to transfer short-term funds—several speakers urged $15,000,000 from the general reserve—to head off a planned roughly 4% service cut this summer and avert a projected $320,000,000 deficit next year that one speaker said could imply cuts up to 30% in the future. Speakers included riders, disability advocates, and representatives of the Muni Now, Muni Forever coalition; many described the system as essential for workers, schoolchildren and seniors and warned that reduced hours, longer headways and eliminated lines would disproportionately harm transit-dependent neighborhoods.

Supervisor Melgar introduced a resolution reaffirming the city's commitment to developing fiscal solutions; she and other supervisors thanked the mayor for his commitment while saying the board must consider concrete stopgap transfers to avoid immediate reductions. Several speakers noted that the board recently directed $526,000 from the general reserve to support free parking and transit for Lunar New Year events and argued that larger transfers could prevent more damaging service reductions.

The board did not take a final vote on any emergency transfer during the meeting. Next steps recorded in the meeting record: the mayor will continue advocacy in Sacramento and the board indicated it will work with the mayor and with SFMTA leadership on both stopgap funding and longer-term ballot measures.

Ending: The special-order discussion concluded and the matter was "filed" for follow-up; public comment continued on related budget topics later in the meeting.