by Lupe Velez
In the latest development regarding the future of the city’s commissions and committees, Mayor Daniel Lurie and Board of Supervisors President Rafael Mandelman proposed three ballot propositions that boost executive power this month. If these measures pass, the mayor would be granted the power to hire and fire department heads, change commissioners at will, reorganize departments, and remove prohibitions on employing deputy mayors—all suggestions that a special panel made last month.
This is a result of Proposition E, which San Francisco voters passed in November 2024. This measure established a “Commission Streamlining Task Force” to assess the functions of our city government’s committees and commissions. Then-Board President Aaron Peskin drafted the measure as an alternative to Proposition D, which was criticized as an attempt at giving the Mayor unlimited power to remove/modify or eliminate governmental bodies. Prop. D failed to pass.
Fast forward to Mayor Lurie’s time in City Hall. He has seen this as an opportunity to garner even more power under an already strong mayor system of government and gut several commissions and committees, a move that would effectively stifle community voices and participatory government. In late 2025, the task force members made proposals to eliminate commissions across sectors impacting a wide variety of vulnerable groups and communities. Commissions that are under attack include the Food Security Task Force, Our Children Our Families Council, Shelter Monitoring Committee, Commission on the Status on Women, Disability and Aging Services Commission and more. These commissions are essential, as they allow for participatory governance and demand accountability and transparency from our public officials, while promoting equity and representation of our diverse communities.
Several bodies addressing homelessness are now on the chopping block. As the task force has convened and made recommendations, it is clear that it is asking City officials to relinquish their oversight power to the mayor in spending homelessness response funds. In this administration, it would mean divesting from permanent solutions and permanent housing and investing in more shelters and criminalizing efforts. The commissions and committees affected include the Homeless Oversight Commission, the Shelter Grievance Advisory Board and the Shelter Monitoring Committee. By requesting data, reviewing budgets and questioning departmental performance, the Oversight Commission brings greater public analysis to one of the City’s most pressing issues. The Shelter Grievance Advisory Committee plays a vital role in ensuring due process and fairness within San Francisco’s shelter system. And the Grievance Committee’s purpose is to provide accurate, comprehensive information about the conditions in and operation of shelters and report them to elected officials, appropriate public agencies and the general public.
The Coalition on Homelessness stands firm in protecting these essential governmental bodies in order to preserve participatory governance and ensure protection from executive overreach. It also stands with all vulnerable communities in the fight to preserve commissions and committees and in being represented in local government. On Tuesday, March 17 at 3 p.m., the Board of Supervisors will convene a special hearing on the Commission Streamlining Task Force’s recommendations. This is an opportunity for concerned San Franciscans to give public comment to the Board and advocate for vulnerable communities and the governmental bodies that give them in the decision making process for policies and funding that impact their livelihoods.
