Dear Everyone;
These are the ballot recommendations of the LPSF with a short thumb-nail of the initiatives. This is being posted here as due to technical difficulties the LPSF web site is down.
The Dept of Elections url's may work for a pdf of each initiative. Otherwise this is the url for the full voter booklet a small 9.5 MB pdf.
http://www.sfgov.org/site/uploadedfiles/elections/Nov2008_VIP_EN_2.pdf
http://snipurl.com/4h9gs [www_sfgov_org]
Ron Getty
Chair Initiatives Committee
LPSF
LPSF RECOMMENDATIONS - Nov. 4th GENERAL ELECTION - INITIATIVES
PROP A- San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center Earthquake Safety Bonds, 2008 (PDF)
$900 million bond issue to earthquake proof SFGH and do other upgrades. With the principal and interest payments total pay out over 20 years will be $2.5 billion. This is subject to no cost over-runs.
PROP B- Establishing Affordable Housing Fund Using Set-Asides from Property Taxes (PDF)
B: No (0-8-0)
A percentage of the total property taxes collected totaling about $36 million would be set aside for affordable housing causing a drop in other city services or funding by this $36 million.
PROP C- Prohibiting City Employees from Serving on Charter Boards and Commissions (PDF)
C: Yes (8-0-0)
Forbids city employees from serving on boards or commission where their vote could be a conflict of interest or subject to undue influence.
PROP D- Financing Pier 70 Waterfront District Development Plan upon Board of Supervisors' Approval (PDF)
D: N.R. (0-2-6)
This project is being funded by the developers for the project and businesses opening up on the newly developed site. However after the LPSF vote recommendation was made a news article pointed out the city would have to be contributing as much as $500 million towards the project. Had this been known at the time the vote tally could have been no.
PROP E- Changing the Number of Signatures Required to Recall City Officials (PDF)
E: No (0-8-0)
San Franciscowould replace its 10% signature requirement with the state signature requirement of 15% to up to 20% depending on the office and number of registered voters in the district. Making the signature requirements tougher would make it tougher to force out elected officials.
PROP F- Holding All Scheduled City Elections Only in Even-Numbered Years (PDF)
F: Yes (6-0-2)
To align the various offices as noted for the elections of 2009 and 2011 for sheriff and DA, City Attorney, treasurer and Mayor the terms of office would be extended to 5 years for a one time only extension.
Eventually in the following years thereafter 5 years later all City wide offices would be elected in one year saving taxpayers money from holding general elections every other two years for city wide offices.
PROP G- Allowing Retirement System Credit for Unpaid Parental Leave (PDF)
G: N.R. (4-2-2)
For city personnel who took unpaid parental leave to adjust their retirement to allow for the unpaid leave with service credit for unpaid leave prior to 2003. Subsequently there have been changes in city state and federal laws regarding unpaid parental leave.
The initiative states: all costs to purchase the service shall be paid by the member. There shall be no costs to the city or county. No service credits will be allowed until all such costs are received by the Retirement System.
PROP H - San Francisco Clean Energy Act (PDF)
H: No (0-8-0)
A provision in the act allows revenue bond issues which do not require voter approval only a mandate by the Board of Supervisors which could lead to unchecked increase in gas and electric fees for ratepayers.
PROP I - Creating the Office of an Independent Rate Payer Advocate (PDF)
I: No (0-8-0)
Tied into the clean energy act but the advocate does not have any authority.
PROP J - Creating a Historic Preservation Commission (PDF)
J: No (0-8-0)
A commission proposed by Aaron Peskin to create more bureaucracy for property owners and a go around on the planning commission.
PROP K - Changing the Enforcement of Laws Related to Prostitution and Sex Workers (PDF)
K: Yes (8-0-0)
Get the police out of adult victimless crimes consensual sex workers business
PROP L - Funding the Community Justice Center (PDF)
L: No (0-7-1)
Setting up a special center to try individuals accused of victimless crimes of sex workers, street corner pharmacists and public drinking and then minor assault and battery and petty thievery and so on and to provide social and health services. This type of services can be done by combining the departments already providing those services without requiring additional funding. The recently approved SF budget 2008 - 2009 included $2.6 million and will require an additional $126,000 to be fully funded and require about $2.4 million a year to operate.
PROP M - Changing the Residential Rent Ordinance to Prohibit Specific Acts of Harassment of Tenants by Landlords (PDF)
M: No (0-8-0)
One-sided act to upgrade tenants’ rights in response to major lists of alleged abuses by a property management company totally ignores and hits up landlords who are decent and is just another nail in coffin of available rental properties. This was written by Chris Daly.
PROP N - Changing Real Property Transfer Tax Rates (PDF)
N: No (0-8-0)
Increases the property tax transfer rate on large properties to fund city activities and raises about $29 million.
PROP O - Replacing the Emergency Response Fee with an Access Line Tax and Revising the Telephone User Tax (PDF)
O: No (0-7-1)
Replacing the “voluntary” funding of 911 found to be legally unconstitutionally with telephone bill tax on all telephone usage land lines cell phones etc to fund 911 rather than charge a user fee to callers of 911 raising about $82 million a year.
PROP P - Changing the Composition of the San Francisco County Transportation Authority Board (PDF)
P: N.R. (0-0-8)
Newsom submitted initiative which modifies how political appointments are made to the MTA.
PROP Q - Modifying the Payroll Expense Tax (PDF)
Q: No (0-8-0)
Exempting businesses with under $250,000 in payroll from the payroll tax then having partnership distributions charged as payroll for payroll tax purposes such as law and accounting and medical and dental and other such professional partnerships which have year end profit distributions. Currently a business with under $166,000 in payroll is exempted or some 20,000 businesses going to $250,000 would add 5,500 businesses.
The estimated overall impact would be a net tax increase of $10 million.
PROP R - Renaming the Oceanside Water Treatment Plant (PDF)
R: N.R. (4-3-1
Name change to George W. Bush Sewage Treatment Plant
PROP S - Policy Regarding Budget Set-Asides and Identification of Replacement Funds (PDF)
S: Yes (8-0-0)
Requires any mandated fund set asides to have identified the source of those funds.
PROP T - Free and Low-Cost Substance Abuse Treatment Programs (PDF)
T: No (0-8-0)
Proposition T would require DPH to provide an annual report to the Board assessing demand for substance abuse treatment and presenting a plan to meet such demand. It would require DPH to maintain an adequate level of free and low cost substance abuse treatment services and residential treatment capacity sufficient to meet existing demand. The City would be required to provide a variety of substance abuse treatment services. As long as there is unmet demand, the City would also be required to prevent any reduction in funding and staffing for City substance abuse treatment programs, as well as residential treatment. Funds for these services are allocated annually in the budget process and currently total $50 millon.
Note that an ordinance cannot bind future Mayors and Boards of Supervisors to provide funding for this or any other purpose. Under the City Charter, the ultimate cost of this proposal depends on decisions made in the City’s annual budget process.
PROP U - Policy Against Funding the Deployment of Armed Forces in Iraq (PDF)
U: N.R. (4-0-4)
Public policy statement cutting off funds for Iraqwar with the exception of the money needed to bring the troops home.
PROP V - Policy Against Terminating Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) Programs in Public High Schools (PDF)
V: No (3-5-0)
Public policy statement made to the Board of Education to endorse keeping the JROTC.