Civil Grand Jury urges clearer data and an oversight commission for San Francisco homelessness agency; Board amends and forwards response

The San Francisco Government Audit and Oversight Committee on Oct. 20 heard a civil grand jury progress report that urged clearer public data, improved neighborhood outreach and creation of a commission to oversee the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing (HSH).

Court Gross, chair of the grand jury investigation committee, said the jury found that public-facing information about homelessness is “nearly inscrutable” and that relying primarily on the Point‑in‑Time (PIT) count can be misleading. The report recommended a new oversight commission (recommendation R4), better dashboarding of shelter and program data, neighborhood outreach improvements and age‑specific data to address an aging unhoused population.

Deputy Director Emily Cohen of HSH told the committee the department generally agreed with many recommendations, described a strategic plan due in January and cited recent outcomes: a 15% decrease in unsheltered homelessness between 2019 and 2022 PIT counts, a 3.5% overall decrease and an 11% drop in chronic homelessness. Cohen said HSH estimates an annualized figure of roughly 20,000 people who touch the homeless response system each year, derived from administrative HMIS data and health‑system touchpoints; she said the department has launched a data hub and dashboards and is adding staff for neighborhood engagement.

Supervisors pressed both presenters on interpretation and presentation of data. Chair Dean Preston and others asked how the 20,000 annualized estimate relates to the PIT snapshot (7,754 on a single night) and whether dashboards will show breakdowns by age and program outcomes. Cohen said the 20,000 number is an estimate using administrative records and HUD guidance for annualizing PIT counts; she said age and retention metrics are tracked and will be incorporated in reporting.

Public commenters echoed concerns in different terms: some urged stronger tenant protections and oversight of supportive housing conditions; faith‑based and advocacy groups emphasized the moral case for acting on homelessness and better messaging to show progress. Court Gross urged HSH to tell the public more about accomplishments (he cited roughly 2,000 housing units acquired through Homekey) to improve public perception.

On the committee's formal items, Chair Preston moved amendments to the board response to identify that (1) HSH lacks a single oversight commission (agree with finding F4A), (2) the committee would partially disagree with F4B to acknowledge advisory bodies’ contributions while noting coordination gaps, and (3) recommendation R4 has been placed on the November 2022 ballot. The committee voted 3–0 (Preston, Chan, Mandelmann recorded as ayes) to adopt the amendments and then voted 3–0 to send the amended resolution to the full Board with a positive recommendation. The committee also voted 3–0 to file the grand jury report.