Hundreds urge Board to restore childcare, housing, immigrant legal aid and community services at budget hearing

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors’ Budget and Appropriations Committee opened June 24 to a day of public comment in which hundreds of residents and nonprofit leaders urged restoring and expanding funding for childcare, immigrant legal services, community health and housing support.

Speakers from Parent Voices, the Family Resource Center Alliance and other groups pressed the committee to protect Prop C funds and to invest in early care and education infrastructure, arguing the city must not treat those revenues as a general “slush fund.” "We have 3,000 children on the wait list in San Francisco," said June Bug, identifying herself with Parent Voices, and asked that funds be used to build childcare infrastructure.

Advocates for immigrants and legal aid repeatedly urged extension or restoration of last year’s add‑backs for the San Francisco Immigrant Legal Defense Collaborative (SFILDC). Nina Harris, identifying herself as a legal program associate at the Center for Gender and Refugee Studies, said SFILDC enables “zealous, just, and accessible advocacy” and asked the board to continue funding the collaborative.

Community organizations representing women, unhoused residents and the Latino Task Force called for multi‑year stabilization funding. Eve Langston Bartow and others who run women’s shelters and drop‑in centers warned that relocation costs, lost leases and limited capacity threaten services for thousands of women and their children. "We serve 3,000 women a year," Community Forward SF’s Felicia Torres said, asking for relocation and sustained operating support.

Public health and food security groups pressed for restoration of funding to food hubs, vaccine outreach and community wellness teams. Latino Task Force speakers described vaccination outreach and food distribution programs that reached tens of thousands and said cuts would harm ongoing COVID response in vulnerable neighborhoods.

Speakers also clashed over public safety and the police budget. Several callers urged full funding of the SFPD and the district attorney’s office, saying more officers and prosecutors are needed to keep residents safe; others pressed the board to prioritize community‑based responses such as the Compassionate Alternative Response Team (CART) instead of increasing police spending.

The committee did not take final action on the mayor’s proposed ordinances on the day; members voted to recess and forward unfinished items to a June 27 meeting.

This public‑comment day stretched for hours and included testimony in multiple languages and several video statements; the committee briefly experienced technical interruptions during the virtual queue but completed roll call on the recess motion at the end of the session.