YC Response 050626

City Hall 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, Room 244 BOARD of SUPERVISORS San Francisco 94102-4689 Tel. No. (415) 554-5184 Fax No. (415) 554-5163 TDD/TTY No. (415) 554-5227 M E M O R A N D U M TO: Joy Zhan, Interim Director, Youth Commission FROM: Monique Crayton, Assistant Clerk, Public Safety and Neighborhood Services Committee DATE: April 1, 2026 SUBJECT: LEGISLATIVE MATTER INTRODUCED The Board of Supervisors’ Public Safety and Neighborhood Services Committee has received the following ordinance request, introduced by Supervisor Matt Dorsey on March 17, 2026. This item is being referred for comment and recommendation. File No. 251003 Ordinance amending the Administrative Code to state that it is City policy to expand the availability of Site-Based Permanent Supportive Housing (“PSH”) that prohibits on-site illicit drug use among residents (“Drug-Free PSH”) to meet the demand of people experiencing homelessness who prefer such a residential option; bar the City from funding new Site-Based PSH for people experiencing homelessness that prohibits evictions on the basis of drug use alone (“Drug-Tolerant PSH”), except where operation of the housing as Drug-Free PSH would conflict with standards imposed by law or by a condition of other funding, or the Board of Supervisors has waived the funding prohibition based on specific findings; and require the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing (“HSH”) to survey residents of Site-Based PSH to assess their interest in living in either Drug-Tolerant PSH or Drug-Free PSH and report on the survey findings and HSH’s strategies to meet PSH residents’ demands. Please return this cover sheet with the Commission’s response to Monique Crayton, Assistant Clerk, Public Safety and Neighborhood Services Committee. *************************************************************************************************** RESPONSE FROM YOUTH COMMISSION Date: _05/05/2026_________________ ____ No Comment _X_ Recommendation Attached C: Office of Chair Dorsey _____________________________ Chairperson, Youth Commission YOUTH COMMISSION MEMORANDUM TO: Board of Supervisors CC: Monique Crayton, Assistant Clerk Angela Calvillo, Clerk of the Board Alisa Somera, Legislative Deputy Director FROM: 2025-2026 Youth Commission DATE: Tuesday, May 5, 2026 RE: SUBJECT: YOUTH COMMISSION LEGISLATION REFERRED 04/01/26 At the Youth Commission’s in-person meeting on Monday, May 4, 2026, the Commission discussed and took action on BOS File No. 251003: 1. The Youth Commission negatively recommends this legislation to the full Board of Supervisors and the Mayor’s Office with a vote of 12 ayes, 2 nays, and 3 absent. 2. The Youth Commission supports the increased options of permanent supportive housing and the expansion of sober housing. 3. The Youth Commission has the following concerns regarding the legislation: ? Due to the fiscal analysis and the fiscal constraints of the City, there is the possibility of pitting resources against each other, which could halt future permanent supportive housing development. ? There is a lack of an outline of how people would be evicted and a lack of uniformity of eviction criteria, since the Commission wants better protections for tenants. 4. In its current legislative form as of May 4, 2026, while the Youth Commission sees the benefit of the legislation and letting young people access sober living options, the Commission hopes to see the legislation improved to address the concerns above. Please do not hesitate to contact Youth Commissioners or Youth Commission staff at (415) 554-7112 with any questions. Thank you. FILE NO. 251003 SUBSTITUTED ORDINANCE NO. 3/17/26 Supervisor Dorsey; Mandelman, Sherrill, Sauter, Mahmood BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Page 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 [Administrative Code -Expanding Drug-Free Permanent Supportive Housing] Ordinance amending the Administrative Code to state that it is City policy to expand the availability of Site-Based Permanent Supportive Housing (“PSH”) that prohibits onsite illicit drug use among residents (“Drug-Free PSH”) to meet the demand of people experiencing homelessness who prefer such a residential option; bar the City from funding new Site-Based PSH for people experiencing homelessness that prohibits evictions on the basis of drug use alone (“Drug-Tolerant PSH”), except where operation of the housing as Drug-Free PSH would conflict with standards imposed by law or by a condition of other funding, or the Board of Supervisors has waived the funding prohibition based on specific findings; and require the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing (“HSH”) to survey residents of Site-Based PSH to assess their interest in living in either Drug-Tolerant PSH or Drug-Free PSH and report on the survey findings and HSH’s strategies to meet PSH residents’ demands. NOTE: Unchanged Code text and uncodified text are in plain Arial font. Additions to Codes are in single-underline italics Times New Roman font. Deletions to Codes are in strikethrough italics Times New Roman font. Board amendment additions are in double-underlined Arial font. Board amendment deletions are in strikethrough Arial font. Asterisks (* * * *) indicate the omission of unchanged Code subsections or parts of tables. Be it ordained by the People of the City and County of San Francisco: Supervisor Dorsey; Mandelman, Sherrill, Sauter, Mahmood BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Page 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Section 1. The Administrative Code is hereby amended by adding Chapter 12K, consisting of Sections 12K.1 through 12K.7, to read as follows: CHAPTER 12K: PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING; DRUG-FREE PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING SEC. 12K.1. FINDINGS. (a) Permanent Supportive Housing (“PSH”) plays a significant role in San Francisco’s response to homelessness by combining affordable housing assistance with voluntary support services intended to address the myriad needs of chronically homeless people, including families with children, seniors, and persons with chronic disabilities. These support services are intended to build independent living and tenancy skills, and connect people with community-based health care, treatment, and employment services. (b) With few exceptions, San Francisco’s PSH sites currently adhere to the drug-tolerant policies reflected in California’s current implementation of the “Core Components of Housing First,” as set forth in California Welfare and Institutions Code Section 8255. These policies apply to statefunded PSH, and provide that “use of alcohol or drugs in and of itself, without other lease violations, is not a reason for eviction,” and that supportive services must be “informed by a harm-reduction philosophy that recognizes drug and alcohol use and addiction as a part of tenants’ lives.” Some – but not all – of San Francisco’s PSH is state-funded, and subject to the state’s current Housing First mandates. To the extent locally funded PSH in San Francisco adheres to drug-tolerant provisions, however, it does so as a voluntary policy choice subject to revision by the Board of Supervisors. Supervisor Dorsey; Mandelman, Sherrill, Sauter, Mahmood BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Page 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 (c) The near universality of drug-tolerant policies in San Francisco’s PSH portfolio fails to serve the needs of many PSH residents seeking to stabilize their lives as they exit homelessness. This is especially true for those residents who are in recovery or seeking to recover from substance use disorders (“SUDs”), but it is similarly true for those supportive housing residents not in recovery who would prefer to avoid the myriad harms and risks associated with living in a residential community where the use of illicit drugs is expressly tolerated. (d) Moreover, many of the externalities that arise from residents’ illicit drug use overburden the City’s public health and public safety resources because of elevated acuity and drug-related behavioral health challenges, diminishing San Franciscans’ confidence in their city government’s response to homelessness overall. According to data from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, between June 2024 and July 2025, 26% of overdose deaths occurred in PSH, a higher percentage than in shelters, hospitals, private homes, or on the street. Drug-related behaviors and associated lawlessness lead to public nuisances that routinely rob law-abiding PSH residents and neighbors of the quiet enjoyment of their own residences and neighborhoods. Just one PSH facility alone generated 654 police calls for service in a single year — averaging nearly two calls per day. A sample of 15 PSH sites showed 5,872 police calls for service during that same time frame. (e) Drug-Free PSH operates as a residential community free of illicit drug use, avoiding the multitude of negative externalities of illicit drugs that bedevil many Drug-Tolerant PSH sites in San Francisco. As compared to Drug-Tolerant PSH, drug-free housing options would also better support individuals exiting homelessness who are in recovery from addiction or alcoholism as well as those at elevated risks to develop SUDs. The 2025 Homelessness Needs Assessment, published by the Our City, Our Home Oversight Committee in accordance with Business and Tax Regulations Code Section Supervisor Dorsey; Mandelman, Sherrill, Sauter, Mahmood BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Page 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 2810(e)(2)(B), reported that 53% of single adults and 28% of families served through HSH’s housing programs had substance use or mental health disorders. (f) As of March 2026, the choices afforded to program participants are insufficiently prioritized in San Francisco’s current operation of PSH. More Drug-Free PSH options would add an important new choice for PSH residents exiting homelessness, and would broaden the City’s array of evidencebased solutions to more effectively address homelessness and substance use disorders that are so visible on City streets. By removing barriers to drug-free options for formerly unhoused persons and honoring the choice of some PSH residents who would prefer to live in a drug-free residential community, the policies advanced in this Chapter 12K would better serve many PSH residents, who include families with children, seniors, and individuals at all stages of recovery from SUDs and at heightened risk of suffering harms associated with illicit drug use. SEC. 12K.2. DEFINITIONS. For purposes of this Chapter 12K, the following definitions apply: “City” means the City and County of San Francisco. “Drug-Free Permanent Supportive Housing” or “Drug-Free PSH” means Site-Based PSH where on-site illicit drug use is prohibited and is grounds for eviction, provided that participation in Medication-Assisted-Treatment, administered by a licensed healthcare provider in accordance with applicable laws and medical guidance, shall not be deemed illicit drug use. “Drug-Tolerant Permanent Supportive Housing” or “Drug-Tolerant PSH” means Site-Based PSH where the use of illicit drugs, without any other lease violation, is not a basis for eviction, and applicants are accepted regardless of their sobriety or use of substances, completion of treatment, or Supervisor Dorsey; Mandelman, Sherrill, Sauter, Mahmood BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Page 5 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 participation in recovery services. “Illicit drug use” means the use of a controlled or regulated substance in a manner that is unlawful under state or federal law, including use without a valid prescription or outside the scope of lawful medical or other legally permitted use, regardless of whether the substance itself may be lawfully possessed or used under other circumstances. “PSH Resident Survey” means the survey described in Section 12K.5. “Site-Based Permanent Supportive Housing” or “Site-Based PSH” means subsidized rental housing where 100% of the units are for individuals and households with a history of homelessness, in a building that is owned or master leased by the City or a non-profit organization funded by the City, that imposes no time limit on occupancy, and provides supportive services to help residents maintain housing. “Site-Based Permanent Supportive Housing Portfolio” means the total number of Site-Based PSH units that are operated or funded by the City at a given time. SEC. 12K.3. DECLARATION OF POLICY. It shall be City policy to expand the availability of Drug-Free PSH to meet the demand from individuals in need of Site-Based PSH who prefer that option as an alternative to Drug-Tolerant PSH. The goal of this policy is to promote long-term housing stability and minimize returns to homelessness. SEC. 12K.4. USE OF CITY FUNDS FOR DRUG-TOLERANT PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING PROHIBITED EXCEPT WHERE DRUG-FREE HOUSING MODEL CONFLICTS WITH LAW OR FUNDING CONDITION.