Tenant proposes Resident Council Advisors and $100K seed fund to improve oversight and services at public housing sites

At the San Francisco Housing Authority commission meeting on April 1, a tenant representative proposed forming a Resident Council Advisors body to provide oversight and governance for tenant associations across SFHA sites.

The proposal outlined a governance structure with four core chairs and 22 affiliate seats to represent buildings, two seats reserved for peer mental-health counselors, rotating seats for resident services and management, and subcommittees to clear action items. The presenter requested $100,000 in seed funding to pay for a website, a hotline, translation services, core-chair transportation, and initial operating costs.

The tenant representative said the RCA would provide auditing, conflict-resolution, membership selection and training, and monthly reporting to the commission to increase accountability among tenant associations. “We just wanna have an audit, that's all,” the presenter said, describing alleged disappearance of participation funds during COVID in some tenant associations.

Commissioners asked about attendance and affiliate participation, and whether the Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development (MOHCD) had been consulted. The presenter said she had received limited support and believed MOHCD had encouraged slower, less active engagement. Commissioners requested written materials and asked staff to describe how the commission will support resident outreach and oversight if funding is requested.

Next steps: the resident representative will refine the proposal and commissioners signaled interest in seeing a budget, a formal charter, and details on how oversight and audits would be conducted before any funding decision.