City and County of San Francisco
Ethics Commission

English

   
Tuesday, February 19, 2019
Contact: Pat Ford (415) 252-3100

• Chair Chiu called the meeting to order at 2:05 pm with all members present and welcomed new Commissioner Fern M. Smith.
• Under Item 2, received public comment on matters appearing or not appearing on the agenda.
• Approved two matters on its Consent Calendar:
  • Unanimously (5-0) adopted a motion by Vice-Chair Kopp and seconded by Commissioner Smith to approve Item 3, Draft Minutes for the Ethics Commission’s January 18, 2018 regular meeting.
  • Unanimously (5-0) adopted a motion by Chair Chiu and seconded by Commissioner Smith to approve Item 4, the Proposed Stipulation, Decision, and Order In the Matter of Joseph Certain (Ethics Commission Complaint No. 1718-012).
• Provided comment and received public comment thanking former Commission Member Paul A. Renne for his service on the Commission following the completion of his term of service on February 1, 2019. By unanimous vote (5-0), approved a motion by Vice-Chair Kopp and seconded by Commissioner Lee to adopt a Resolution in honor of Commissioner Renne. Chair Chiu presented former Commissioner Renne with an engraved plaque on the Commission’s behalf.
• Re-elected Commissioner Daina Chiu to serve as Chair of the Commission for 2019 by a vote of 4-1 (with Commissioner Kopp in the Dissent). Elected Commissioner Noreen Ambrose to serve as Vice-Chair for 2019 by a vote of 4-1 (with Commissioner Kopp in the dissent).
• Heard a Staff presentation and received public comment on Item 7, an informational presentation on Ethics Commission campaign disclosure dashboards.
• Discussed and took public comment on draft ordinances regarding the public financing program under Item 8. Adopted four motions:
  • A motion by Chair Chiu and seconded by Commissioner Kopp to change the deadline for publicly financed candidates to file their Statement of Participation or Non-Participation to three days after the nomination filing deadline was approved 5-0.
  • A motion by Chair Chiu and seconded by Commissioner Kopp to change the increments for adjusting the Individual Expenditure Ceilings (“IEC”) of publicly financed candidates from $10,000 to $50,000 in a Supervisorial race and from $50,000 $250,000 in a Mayoral race was approved 5-0.
  • A motion by Vice-Chair Ambrose and seconded by Commissioner Kopp to adjust a candidate’s IEC when opponent activity exceeds the candidate’s IEC by any amount was approved 5-0.
  • A motion by Vice-Chair Ambrose and seconded by Commissioner Lee to eliminate contingency accounts was approved 4-1 (Commissioner Kopp in the dissent).
• Commissioner Kopp left the meeting at 5:00 pm.
• Discussed Item 9, the monthly Staff Policy Report and provided the opportunity for public comment. No action was taken.
• Heard a Staff presentation and provided the opportunity for public comment on Item 10, the monthly Staff Enforcement Report. No action was taken as the item was for informational purposes only.
• Discussed and received public comment on Item 11, the Executive Director’s monthly report. No action was taken as the item was for informational purposes only.
• Provided the opportunity for public comment on Item 12 regarding the status of complaints received or initiated by the Ethics Commission. The Commission had no discussion and took no action on the item.
• Provided the opportunity for public comment under Item 13, items for future meetings. Executive Director Pelham announced the Commission’s monthly meeting in April has been changed to Friday, April 12 at 1:30 p.m. due to scheduling issues.
• Under Item 14, unanimously (4-0) approved a motion by Commissioner Lee and seconded by Commissioner Smith to adjourn the meeting and adjourned at 5:39 pm.

Draft Minutes for the February 15, 2019, regular meeting will be available upon their completion and will be included on the Agenda for the Commission’s next Regular Meeting. The next meeting of the Ethics Commission is scheduled for Friday, March 15, 2019, at 2:00 pm in City Hall Room 416. For further information, please feel free to contact the Ethics Commission at ethics.commission@sfgov.org or (415) 252-3100