QUESTIONS ON THE
BOARD’S BUDGET PROCESS

What is Daly doing procedurally?

Supervisor Daly last Tuesday (June 5) introduced a Motion to amend the Mayor’s proposed budget by making $37 million of cuts to the budget and redirecting this $37 million to his own priorities. This motion will be heard at the Board’s Budget Committee next Wednesday (June 13) at 1PM.

If the motion passes at the Budget Committee next week, the City’s budget being considered by the Board in June would no longer have funding for the priorities that Daly is trying to cut. This motion will not be voted on by the whole Board, but rather by the Budget Committee.

Supervisor Daly’s action is the first time in recent history a Supervisor has moved to cut the annual budget without a Budget Analyst’s report, any public dialogue, and any opportunity for meaningful community input. It represents a disturbing end-around of the usual budget process.

Who’s on the Budget Committee?

Supervisors Daly, Ammiano, Mirkarimi, Elsbernd and Dufty. Supervisor Daly is Chair of the Committee, which allows him to set committee meetings and decide what items get heard at Committee.

What’s the Board’s process for reviewing the Mayor’s budget?

The Charter requires that the Mayor propose a balanced budget to the Board of Supervisors on June 1 of every year. The Board is then required to pass a balanced budget by July 1 each year. The Mayor proposes and the Board passes an interim budget for the month of July, so the Board doesn’t have to fully pass the annual budget until July 31 each year.

The Budget Committee typically hears the Mayor’s budget in the last two weeks of June. (The first two weeks of June allow the Board’s Budget Analyst to make recommendations for changes and cuts to departmental budgets). The Budget Committee hears each department’s budget—which involves the Mayor’s proposed spending—and can make any changes it sees fit. The Budget Committee than passes the Budget out of Committee to the full Board, where it sits for two weeks. In the last two weeks of July, the full Board considers and passes the budget.