January 21, 2020
Contact: Pat Ford (415) 252-3100
- Chair Chiu called the meeting to order at 2:01 pm. With Vice-Chair Noreen Ambrose and Commissioners Lateef Gray, Yvonne Lee, and Fern Smith and in attendance, a quorum was present.
- Under Item 2, provided the opportunity for public comment on matters appearing or not appearing on the agenda.
- Under its Consent Calendar, Item 3, unanimously (5-0) adopted a motion by Vice-Chair Ambrose and seconded by Commissioner Smith, to approve the following item:
- Item 3, Draft Minutes of the Commission’s December 20, 2019 regular meeting.
- Under Item 4, pursuant to provisions of Ethics Commission Bylaws Article IV, unanimously elected Vice Chair Noreen Ambrose to serve as Ethics Commission Chair for a one–year term of office beginning March 1, 2020, and elected Commissioner Yvonne Lee to serve as Vice Chair for a one– year term of office beginning March 1, 2020.
- Item 5 heard arguments and rebuttals by the parties in a Show Cause Hearing In the Matter of Ray Hartz v. President Norman Yee, Sunshine Ordinance Task Force File No. 19042. Following the opportunity for public comment and discussion, the Commission voted unanimously 5-0 to adopt a motion proposed by Chair Chiu and seconded by Commissioner Lee that Board of Supervisors President Norman Yee did not violate Administrative Code sections 67.16 and 67.31 and that the legal interpretation of the Ethics Commission is that there is no legal requirement under the Code that public comment be placed in the body of the minutes.
- Under Item 6,unanimously (5-0) adopted a motion by Chair Chiu and seconded by Commissioner Smith to revise Ethics Commission Bylaws Art. VII Section 4 to provide for a Regular Meeting Schedule on the second Friday of the month beginning at 9:30 a.m. in City Hall Room 400, as amended, beginning in May 2020.
- Under Item 7, unanimously (5-0) adopted a motion by Chair Chiu and seconded by Vice Chair Ambrose to approve amendments to regulations related to Article III, Chapter 1 of the Campaign and Governmental Conduct Code to institute electronic filing of the Form 700 Statement of Economic Interests for all designated City filer and establish related procedures for the administration of those filings.
- Under Item 8, heard and discussed the monthly Staff Policy report. No action was taken as it was provided for informational purposes only.
- Under Item 9, heard and discussed the monthly Staff Enforcement Report. No action was taken as the item was provided for informational purposes only.
- Under Item 10, discussed the Ethics Commission budget proposal for FY2021. No action was taken as the item was provided for informational purposes only.
- Under Item 11, heard and discussed the monthly January 13, 2020 Executive Director’s Report. No action was taken as the item was for informational purposes only.
- Under Item 12, regarding items for future meetings, no action was taken.
- Under Item 13, provided the opportunity for additional public comment on matters appearing or not appearing on the agenda.
- Under Item 14, adjourned the meeting at 4:32 pm.
Draft Minutes for the January 17, 2020 regular meeting will be available upon their completion and will be included on the Agenda for the Commission’s next meeting. The next meeting of the Ethics Commission is scheduled for Friday, February 21, 2020, at 2:00 p.m. 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.
SFGovTV provides a continuous archive of selected Commission, council and board meetings that allows viewers to watch those meetings online in full at the viewer’s convenience. Video, audio, and closed-captioning archives of Ethics Commission meetings may be accessed here.