The San Francisco Ethics Commission is a public agency tasked with maintaining city bylaws [clarification needed, there is no "city" bylaws, each Board or Commission or policy body has its own bylaws] in San Francisco, California.[1] The commission specifically files and audits campaign finance disclosure statements, handles campaign consultant registration and regulation.[2] They also handle lobbyist registration and regulation along with the filing of officer for statements of economic interest and the administration of the Whistleblower program.[2] Lastly, they mitigate investigations of ethics complaints, enforce education and training and provide advice and statistical reporting.[2]
The San Francisco Ethics Commission oversees multiple good governance policies for the City & County of San Francisco. Issues covered include oversight and public reporting of campaign finance; the registration of campaign consultants, lobbyists, and permit expeditors; and conflicts of interest reporting. [3]
It also enforces these issues, including by issuing fines. The Commission can also issue policy recommendations and directly place relevant measures on the ballot.The Commission appoints an Executive Director who, in turn, hires staff to carry out the agency’s day-to-day work. [4]
The Ethics Commission was placed on the ballot by seven members of the Board of Supervisors. Supervisors Angela Alioto, Sue Bierman, Terrance Hallinan, Kaufman, Susan Leal, Carol Migden, and Kevin Shelly supported it. Supervisors Conroy, Hsieh, Willie B. Kennedy, and Bill Maher opposed it.
The measure was placed on the November 1993 ballot, known as Proposition K.
The measure was supported by the county Democratic Party, the Chamber of Commerce, the Labor Council, Common Cause, and many other political leaders.
It was opposed by a committee named Citizens Against Putting the Foxes in Charge of the Hen Coop and the San Francisco Taxpayers Association. The latter included future Ethics Commissioner Quentin Kopp, then a State Senator, who authored the ballot handbook’s paid argument against Proposition K. Regardless, the measure passed.[5]
Kamala Harris faced a campaign finance ethics violation in 2003 when she broke a voluntary $211,000 spending cap for the San Francisco district attorney's race. The Ethics Commission found that the violations appeared to be unintentional and levied a penalty of $34,000, reduced from the potential maximum penalty of $65,000.[6] [7]
The commission conducted an extensive investigation into official misconduct charges against Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi stemming from a domestic violence incident with his wife Eliana Lopez in 2012. The commission held multiple hearings, reviewed evidence, and heard testimony from both sides over several months.[8] [9]
In August 2012, after lengthy deliberations, the commission found by a 4-1 vote that Mirkarimi had engaged in official misconduct by inflicting physical violence on his wife and pleading guilty to false imprisonment charges. However, the commission rejected other allegations leveled by Mayor Ed Lee, who had suspended Mirkarimi from office.[10]
The commission's findings were forwarded to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, who had the ultimate authority to decide whether to permanently remove Mirkarimi as sheriff. After further review and public hearings, including Mirkarimi's own testimony asking for redemption,[11] the Board of Supervisors voted 7-4 in October 2012 to reinstate him as sheriff, allowing him to keep his job.[12]
Mark Farrell, a San Francisco supervisor, faced an ethics violation related to his 2010 campaign for supervisor. The issue centered around illegal coordination between Farrell's campaign and an independent expenditure committee called Common Sense Voters.[13] [14]
The violation occurred when Farrell's campaign consultant, Chris Lee, coordinated with the independent committee, which received large donations from Thomas Coates ($141,000) and Dede Wilsey ($50,000).[14] Campaign laws prohibit such coordination between independent and candidate committees, as candidate committees have $500 contribution limits and different reporting requirements.[14]
Initially, the San Francisco Ethics Commission levied a $191,000 fine against Farrell in 2015. However, Farrell refused to pay this fine, arguing through his attorney that he had done nothing wrong and that the action was barred by the statute of limitations.[14]
The resolution of this issue went through several stages:
Former Supervisor Eric Mar was fined for accepting tickets to events in public lands in his District. [18] He later admitted to not understanding the rules. [19]
Mayor London Breed was fined $22,792 for a series of ethics violations, including misusing her title as mayor for personal gain and violating laws on accepting gifts and campaign contributions.[20] Breed agreed to pay fines for these violations, acknowledging responsibility for her actions.[21] This case marked the first time a sitting mayor in San Francisco settled such a matter, highlighting the significance of the penalties imposed by the Ethics Commission.
The specific ethics violations that led to Breed's fine included three incidents:[22] [23]
In August 2024, Neighbors for a Better San Francisco Advocacy, a prominent political action committee in San Francisco, was fined nearly $54,000 by the Ethics Commission for failing to disclose campaign payments during the recall of former District Attorney Chesa Boudin. The group, led by Jay Cheng and backed by Republican donor William Oberndorf, was a major financial supporter of the recall effort, contributing $4.7 million out of a total $7.25 million raised.[24] [25] The Ethics Commission found that Neighbors for a Better San Francisco did not report $187,084 in payments to Riff City Strategies, a public relations firm that provided media relations services for the recall campaign. These payments were not disclosed as required by city law, which mandates that any expenditures made on behalf of a campaign be clearly labeled and made available to the public.[26] The investigation revealed that the consulting firm's work for the recall campaign was substantially similar to the services it provided for Neighbors for a Better San Francisco, which should have been reported as contributions to the recall effort. Although the commission found no wrongdoing by Riff City Strategies or its president Jess Montejano, the failure to disclose these payments violated San Francisco's campaign finance disclosure laws.[27]