While Mayor London Breed isn’t required to reveal her next fiscal year budget proposals until June, it’s no secret that the city’s economic condition is dire. In a December memo, Breed outlined a budget deficit of $1.3 billion over the next five years and asked departments to freeze the creation of new positions and to make reductions.
The People’s Budget Coalition, which organized Wednesday’s rally, represents organizations that reach many vulnerable San Francisco youth communities, including Larkin Street Youth Services, the Chinese Progressive Association, Filipino Community Center, HIV/AIDS Provider Network, Latino Parity and Equity Coalition and Early Educators of SF.
Under the current budget environment, the San Francisco Department of Children, Youth and Their Families recently cut its grant funding by 35%, which the coalition said impacted many of the nonprofits that reach out to vulnerable youth.
The department’s total budget was reduced from $210 million in the 2023-2024 fiscal year to $182 million in the 2024-2025 fiscal year. Its grant funding was reduced by $26 million.
Despite the deficit, Breed has committed $92 million to fund over 142 agencies and 231 programs citywide for youth workforce development, children enrichment programming, academic support and youth violence prevention, according to Parisa Safarzadeh, a spokesperson for the mayor.
“This year, again, the city is facing an extremely challenging budget, but Mayor Breed is maximizing every dollar to make a positive impact on San Franciscan families across the city even when tough decisions have to be made,” Safarzadeh said in a statement.
The protest served as an opener to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors Budget and Appropriations Committee hearing on cuts to youth programming. Supervisor Connie Chan, the board’s budget chair, told the advocates that reductions to family services makes the city less safe.
“I really hope the mayor will bridge the budget deficit without sacrificing all the people who came out for these programs today,” Chan said.
Several speakers during the three hours of public comment called out Breed and the supervisors for supporting the San Francisco Police Department while reducing the funding for crime prevention programs. Last year, the board approved Breed’s request for a $25 million budget supplemental for police overtime.
“We’re the ones on the front line working with young people directly,” said Victorino Camilo Cartagena of CARECEN SF, a nonprofit serving Latinos. “Young people come to us before they go to police.”
Maria Su, executive director of the San Francisco Department of Children, Youth and Their Families, said some of the nonprofits funded by the department faced grant reductions. Others were denied requests for additional funding.
Downtown’s post-COVID office exodus led to a drop in business taxes, a major factor in the city’s emptying coffers.
Seeking to revitalize the city’s economic heart, yesterday Breed announced a ballot initiative formed with Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin, who is running against her in this year’s mayoral election, to reform San Francisco’s tax structure. If approved by voters this November, more than 2,500 small businesses would be exempt from some city taxes. Taxes for hotels, arts and entertainment businesses would also be lowered.
“We need a business tax structure that reflects our new reality, and that supports and encourages businesses large and small to thrive,” Breed said in a statement. “This proposal is the result of a collaborative approach that will deliver a tax system that will help San Francisco grow and fund critical City services throughout our neighborhoods.”
