January 27, 2010

 

COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

5:00 PM

City Hall, Room 408

1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place

San Francisco, CA 94102

Members Present Staff Present

President Andrea Shorter Executive Director Emily Murase, PhD

Vice President Kay Gulbengay Policy Director Ann Lehman

Commissioner Carolene Marks Administrative Analyst Laura Marshall

Commissioner Katherine Munter Policy Analyst Anu Menon

Commissioner Julie Soo Grants Administrator Carol Sacco

Commission Secretary Cynthia Vasquez

Excused: Commissioner Carolene Marks

I. CALL TO ORDER/ AGENDA CHANGES

President Shorter called the meeting to order at 5:10 pm and asked that the agenda to be amended to have the Executive Directors Report at the end of the agenda.

Action: Approved amended agenda.

m/s/c (Keehn/Gulbengay/Unanimous)

No public comment.

II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

President Shorter asked Commissioners to review the minutes from December 16, 2009.

Action: Approved amended minutes from December 16, 2009.

m/s/c (Keehn/Munter/Unanimous)

No public comment.

III. CONSENT AGENDA

All matters listed hereunder constitute a Consent Agenda and are considered to be routine by the Commission on the Status of Women. They will be acted upon by a single roll call vote of the Commission. There will be no separate discussion of these items unless a member of the Commission so requests, in which event the matter shall be removed from the Consent Agenda and considered as a separate item. Members of the public may speak on each item listed on the Consent Agenda.

A. Resolution Recognizing Sandy Mori

B. Resolution Supporting Public Financing of Campaigns

C. Resolution Recognizing the Importance of the SF General Hospital Trauma Recovery Center to the Health and Safety of Women

D. Resolution Recognizing the 5^th Anniversary of the Filipino Community Center

Action: To sever Item B from the Consent Agenda.

m/s/c (Gulbengay/Munter/Unanimous)

Item B was discussed at the December Commission meeting. Commissioners requested new language to the Item B resolution to reflect neutral language not specifying a political party.

Action: To approve the Consent Agenda.

m/s/c (Keehn/Gulbengay/Unanimous)

Caryl Ito, former President of the Commission on the Status of Women, accepted the recognition on behalf of Sandy Mori who served as a Commissioner on this Commission under Mayor George Moscone. She urged the Commission to continue its important work, despite difficult budget times. She recounted prior budgetary challenges that the Commission weathered under her tenure.

Dr. Alicia Boccellari, Director of the Trauma Recovery Center, thanked the Commission for the recognition. She stated that, while the proposed mid-year cuts to the Center were reversed, she expects that additional cuts will be proposed later in the fiscal year. She urged continued support for the cost-effective, life-saving program.

IV. NEW BUSINESS

A. United Nation Global Compact Center

Kelly Pretzer, Office of Economic and Workforce Development, gave a slide presentation on a new project planned for the Hunter’s Point Shipyard, the "United Nations Global Compact Sustainability Center." The Center is a strategic policy initiative for businesses that are committed to aligning their operations and strategies with 10 universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labor, environment and anti-corruption. The Center would likely include a clean tech business incubator, offices of the UN Global Compact, and a retreat/conference center to facilitate the exchange of sustainability best practices and other innovations related to combating global warming. The Commission will explore ways to highlight the San Francisco Gender Quality Principles which is also connected to the UN Global Compact.

Dr. Murase explained the connection between the project and the Department's Gender Equality Principles (GEP) Initiative, which was created in partnership with Calvert Asset Management, and Verité.

Commissioner Keehn stated that she is working on a book highlighting women leaders in the environmental arena and has found a surprising dearth of women recognized in the field.

Commissioner Soo urged that social and environmental justice also be incorporated into the project since it is people of color who are more likely to live in toxic areas. She explained that the Golden Gate University School of Law has a robust Law and Social Justice Center and is the only Environmental Law Center.

Dr. Murase asked whether the Center’s Advisory Board has been convened as she urged that women leaders be included. Ms. Pretzer stated that they are still in the early planning process and the Advisory Board has not yet been appointed. She stated that she will seek the input and collaboration from local community organizations.

Public Comment

Nova Sayers, board member of the Women's Intercultural Network, stated that she is very interested in participating in the UN Global Compact Sustainability Center. She pointed out that considerable data shows that involving women in projects of this nature reaps tangible benefits to families in the local community.

B. FY10-11 Proposed Budget

Dr. Murase reviewed the proposed budget for FY10-11. The City is anticipating a budget deficit of $522.2 million, Dr. Murase stated that significant reductions will have to be considered in order to meet budget targets.

On January 7, the Department held a meeting with Partner Agencies to discuss the various scenarios for implementing the required cuts requested by the Mayor’s Office. From the Department’s $3.5 million budget, she is required to propose $1 million in cuts. The Partner Agencies provided verbal and written feedback of the impact of budget cuts on their programs. Department staff has also agreed to take a $10,000 cut in salaries to assist with meeting the Mayor’s target goal.

Dr. Murase reported that the Governor has zeroed out the $16 million in State funding for domestic violence shelters in his proposed budget. Senator Leland Yee is currently working on legislation to increase the marriage license fee by $10 to ensure that domestic violence shelters receive secure funding.

Commissioner Soo voiced her concern of how the cuts will be crippling to the agencies, specifically the smaller agencies. Dr. Murase reported that, based on Partner Agencies feedback, any funding from the Department is helpful in leveraging funds from other funding resources.

Public Comment

Ken Theisen of Bay Area Legal Aid and one of the founders of the Cooperative Restraining Order Clinic discussed his collaboration with the Commission, including the Veena Charan and Claire Joyce Tempongko domestic violence homicide investigations. He urged the Commission to vote against the proposed allocations. He stated that some domestic violence survivors are sometimes turned away because of needier clients.

Imelda Herrera of the Mission Girls RAICES program explained that the program hosts violence prevention workshops in various high schools. She stated that the proposed cuts would mean that the current 400 service hours would be reduced to 250-300 hours. This reduction would mean fewer hours raising awareness about alcohol, drugs, and relationship abuse to at-risk girls. She emphasized the need to give youth in underserved communities service opportunities to excel in life.

Marisa Castro of Mission Girls Neighborhood Services stated that her program is about saving lives. By providing youth positive role models and culturally appropriate community education, the program meets the needs of neighborhood girls who learn how to maintain healthy relationships, time management skills, nutrition and exercise habits.

Jennifer Grant, Shelter Program Director of La Casa de las Madras, stated that, last fiscal year, the 3 domestic violence provided 21,555 bednights, serving 366 women and 340 kids. Despite these numbers, La Casa alone had to turn away 987 women due to lack of space. La Casa also has a teen program, staff located on-site at the Police Department, and serves 2,000 women in drop-in counseling. Last year, La Casa operated over capacity. She reported that the Governor's proposed budget reduction means that each shelter is likely to lose $200,000 in state funding.

Ruby Garcia, Case Manager at La Casa de las Madres, asked the Commissioners to vote no. She explained that case managers have to turn potential clients away, with nowhere to go.

Emberly Cross of the Cooperative Restraining Order Clinic stated that her agency received $250,000 of Department funding and served 1,038 survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault last year. The proposed reductions would mean turning away 80 - 125 victims

Beverly Upton, Executive Director of the Domestic Violence Consortium, thanked the Commission for having an open and inclusive process. She pointed out that, unlike other city programs, the domestic violence programs have not enjoyed increased funding over the years. She urged the Commission, the Board of Supervisors, and the Mayor to protect safety net services for women and their families.

Aiko Pandorf, the incoming Executive Director of the Asian Women's Shelter, joined by Vanessa Flores, thanked the Commission for their work and recognized President Shorter and Dr. Murase for including the agencies in a candid discussion about the proposed cuts. She stated that the agency is already challenged by about $250,000 in reductions from other local, state, and federal funding. The proposed cuts would represent a loss of 215 shelter bednights and 163 hours of service, including vital legal and social services. She stated that the shelter currently operates at full capacity.

Amanda Heier, Executive Director of the Mary Elizabeth Inn, stated that her agency provides permanent supportive housing, meals, and social services for 250 women, with dedicated slots for domestic violence survivors. The proposed cuts would force her to reduce the substantial subsidies the agency offers to extremely low income women who are residents of the Inn.

Mari McKeever, Volunteer Legal Services Program of the Bar Association of San Francisco, discussed the continuum of services from the shelters to the Cooperative Restraining Order Clinic run by her agency. By protecting this continuum, burdens on repeat crises, child counseling, and the court system, can be avoided. Another impact is on the attorneys who wish to volunteer. Without staffing, these pro bono services will not be available to clients.

Jessica Arevalo of LYRIC reported that the program has served 62 girls, averaging 9 girls per week. The goal is to create a safe space for queer girls. Fong stated that she is a queer educator at LYRIC. She explained that sometimes school can be hostile but, at LYRIC, there are community agreements that create a family atmosphere.

Former Commissioner Caryl Ito who now serves on the Airport Commission stated in the 12 years since she served as a Commissioner on the Status of Women, she has observed how the Commission and the Department represents a model for effectiveness, efficiency, and transparency.

Ms. Ito urge the Commission to not support the proposed cuts. Ms. Ito stated her support for the Commission, which was created with the help of at least 100 women community leaders, including Roberta Achtenberg.

Kathy Black, Executive Director of La Casa de las Madres, stated that compared to other shelters in the City, she feels that the domestic violence shelters are severely underfunded. A cut in funding to La Casa would mean that 42 women and their children would lose 5 weeks of services. Ms. Black stated the devastating cuts La Casa is facing at the State and Federal levels.

Esther Leong of the Asian Pacific Islander Legal Outreach (APILO) echoed the sentiment expressed by prior speakers. The proposed cuts represent 315 hours of comprehensive legal service work, including immigration, child support, child custody cases, and to women who are monolingual. She reported that California is 22nd in the country in terms of legal services funding. There are only 745 out of 165,381 attorneys dedicated to legal services in this area. This means that every 8360 clients get 1 attorney. In 2005 APILO was able to leverage $450,000 in federal funding, and grants from the California Endowment, the Women's Foundation, and the San Francisco Foundation.

Yolanda Quan, Director of Social Services at Cameron House, stated that the agency has been around for over 100 years, with a focus on helping women and their families. The agency provides comprehensive social services in multiple languages. Ms. Quan stated emphasized the importance of having a network of services and service providers, exemplified by the domestic services providers in San Francisco.

Maria Chavez, the new Executive Director of the Riley Center, stated that the agency provides 7,168 bednights in the emergency shelter, and provides transitional housing. With the proposed cuts, the Riley Center will turn away 569 women and 202 children from emergency shelter, and an additional 132 women and 188 children from transitional housing. Ms. Chavez discussed the need to protect the network of services the Partner Agencies provide.

Commissioner Keehn felt that she did not want to take formal action on the grants allocation. Commissioner Gulbengay stated her opinion that it would be important to provide guidance to the Executive Director on the general direction of the grant allocations. Commissioner Gulbengay also suggested making attendance at Partner Agencies mandatory to get a complete view Department funded services. Commissioner Shorter stated that the Partner Agencies have presented to the Commission, providing information on their programs.

Action To not adopt the allocations for the FY10-11 Violence Against Women Grants Program

(m/s/vote) Shorter/Munter/Keehn/Soo (Support); Gulbengay (Oppose).

Action: To not adopt the budget for FY10-11.

m/s/c (Gulbengay/Shorter/Unanimous).

V. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT

A. Executive Director's Report

Dr. Murase directed Commissioners to her written report. Dr. Murase reported that Ms. Menon, Ms. Lehman and she have been invited by the Non-Governmental Organization Committee on the Status of Women, New York to present at 3 workshops as part of the UN Commission on the Status of Women Non-Governmental Organization Parallel Sessions. The first is entitled "CEDAW Goes Local -- San Francisco Plus Ten Years" and will review the last decade of local implementation of CEDAW. The second is called "Violence Against Women: Perspectives from Bahrain, Ecuador, Iran, and the US," a collaboration among the women they met at the UN Training Institute in Atlanta last fall. The final workshop is called “Gender Responsive Budgeting in the US: A Tale of Two Counties,” conducted with Fulton County (Atlanta).

Dr. Murase reported that the Department supported the Office of Language Services, now under the Office of Civic Engagement and Immigrant Affairs, in acquiring grant funding to implement a pilot language fluency training program for City employees with a focus domestic violence responses called “Bridges to Freedom.” The Department has partnered with OCEIA on completing the terms of the grant, from January 2010 through June 2010. The Department has issued a Request for Qualifications to begin recruitment for language instructors and domestic violence advocate/trainers.

Dr. Murase thanked Commissioner Soo for her leadership in reinstating funding to the Trauma Recovery Center at General Hospital.

Dr. Murase announced that the San Francisco Collaboration to End Human Trafficking (SFCAHT) has been busy planning a month-long awareness campaign. The campaign was launched with a successful press event featuring Mayor Newsom, DA Kamala Harris, Supervisor Carmen Chu, Senator Leland Yee, Police Chief Gascon, Nancy Goldberg, a co-chair of SFCAHT, and Sandra Dominguez, a survivor of human trafficking. Theresa Sparks, Director of the Human Rights Commission and Dr. Murase also provided remarks. Dr. Murase thanked President Shorter and Commissioners Keehn, Munter and Soo fo r attending. SFCAHT is planning a final event for the Awareness Month, a panel discussion about how members of the community can take action when they suspect trafficking for Tuesday, February 9. This event will also be a celebration of the first Modern Day Abolitionist Award winners. Dr. Murase encouraged Commissioners to participate.

On February 22, the San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Municipal Fiscal Advisory Committee is hosting the Good Government Awards at 5:30 pm in City Hall. Ms. Lehman and Ms. Menon are nominees for the prestigious award.

The Friends of the Commission on the Status of Women continue to recruit new members and are planning for the March 30 Women’s History Month Event at City Hall. Dr. Murased asked Commissioners to be sure to calendar this event.

Announcements

Commissioner Gulbengay reported that Supervisor Avalos is drafting legislation on local hiring that would impact women. She also reported that Clare Murphy, long-time director of the Retirement Board, will be honored at a party on February 26 in City Hall, North Light Court.

Commissioner Soo stated that, at the urging of Sharen Hewitt of the Community Leadership Academy & Emergency Response Project, she and Commisioner Keehn have signed up for the "Adopt an Angel" program to sponsor needy families.

VI. PUBLIC COMMENT

None

VII. Adjourn

Commissioner Gulbengay requested that the meeting be adjourned in memory of Thomas Hayes, father of Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White.

Action: Motion to adjourn in memory of Thomas Hayes.

m/s/c (Gulbengay/Shorter/Unanimous)

The meeting adjourned at 7:05 pm in memory of Thomas Hayes.

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