San Francisco’s transparency watchdog will get a chance to come back to life Monday, when the Board of Supervisors considers appointments to nine of the 11 voting seats on the Sunshine Ordinance Task Force — seats that have been vacant since June, leaving the body without a quorum just as it was pursuing a complaint over Mayor Daniel Lurie’s cagey handling of his October 2025 phone call with President Donald Trump. The packed week ahead will also have lawmakers pondering a proposed freeze on new data centers, Lurie’s new tenant-protection package, wages for street-cleaning contractors and civil grand jury reports, including on the city’s troubled homelessness system.
On Monday, the supervisors’ Rules Committee will consider appointments to nine of the 11 voting seats on the Task Force, a body that advises the supervisors on violations of open government laws. Those nine seats have been vacant since June, so the task force has been unable to conduct business.
Some open government advocates allege the board has effectively “shut down” the Task Force, preventing it from weighing in further on a phone call Lurie had in October 2025 with President Trump. The call took place as San Francisco was bracing for a planned federal immigration enforcement surge, similar to those ordered by Trump in several other cities that have resulted in unrest. The next day, Trump backed off the planned deployment.
No questions have been set for the mayor, but it’s likely that he will discuss his declaration of a “rent emergency,” spurred by the recent dramatic spike in rents, and a new package of legislation aimed at protecting tenants from being priced out of their homes.
Lurie has said the roughly half-hour conversation helped persuade the president that San Francisco did not need federal intervention, but did not disclose the details of the call. That sparked the Task Force’s ire, which found that Lurie was breaking open government laws and referred the case to the city’s Ethics Commission for enforcement.
But the commission sent the case back, asking the Task Force to consider whether any violation Lurie committed was willful. By that time, the nine seats had termed out, leaving it without a quorum. Critics have also alleged that a recently enacted “holdover rule,” imposing a 60-day limit on commissioners remaining in “lame duck” status after their terms expire, was also applied inappropriately.
There are 15 applicants for the nine vacancies, giving the Rules Committee the chance to rebuild the task force with some new members. Some former members allege that some Supervisors, like Board President Rafael Mandelman, want to defang the body. Mandelman has told reporters he wants at least some members to recognize that frivolous or abusive sunshine complaints can place an undue burden on government.
The committee will also consider appointing Malea Chavez, chief program officer at the Mission Economic Development Agency (MEDA), to the Planning Commission.
Later at noon, Bayview Supervisor Shamann Walton, along with colleagues Connie Chan, Jackie Fielder, and Chyanne Chen, will hold a press conference to announce the introduction of what they call an “urgent” ordinance to impose a 45-day freeze on data centers in the city, with future plans for a permanent ban.
Two data centers have already been built in Walton’s district, one of which is planning expansion, and there are plans to build one along with a high-density parking garage and emergency helipad at the Cow Palace in Daly City, right across the street from the district. Meanwhile, Theo Ellington, a candidate to succeed Walton in the upcoming election, has also proposed a moratorium, followed by more regulation.
The next day, Mayor Lurie will address the supervisors as part of regularly scheduled policy discussions at the board’s regular meeting. No questions have been set for the mayor, but he will likely discuss his declaration of a “rent emergency,” spurred by the recent dramatic spike in rents, and a new package of legislation aimed at protecting tenants from being priced out of their homes.
The package includes an increase in Ellis Act relocation payments, more money for eviction legal defense, rental subsidies for about 650 low-income households, and a cap of 10 percent on banked rent increases on rent-controlled units, as well as support for a bill from Fielder that would bar eviction for unpaid rent when the amount owed is less than one month’s fair-market rent.
In addition to Walton’s data center ban, Tuesday’s roll call for new business is set to include Sunset Supervisor Alan Wong’s resolution and hearing request on what transit nerds refer to as “micromobility” vehicles — electric bikes and mopeds, scooters, one-wheels, and similar conveyances. Wong wants stronger enforcement of laws where such vehicles are abused, as well as more safety education for operators.
Wednesday, the Budget and Finance Committee will consider the Clean Streets and Fair Pay Act, sponsored by Westside Supervisors Myrna Melgar and Connie Chan, which would require prevailing wages for city street-cleaning services. Essentially, it would require contractors that provide ancillary street services, like ambassadors, to pay wages similar to those earned by city-employed union workers.
The bill has been bouncing around City Hall since the beginning of the year, and Board President Mandelman voiced concerns when it was first introduced. The city administrator put together a report of recommendations on the ordinance in March, which will likely be a source of amendments.
The Elections Commission is also meeting Wednesday. It will hear a report on election preparations and voter outreach and likely vote to approve the official plans for the November 2026 election.
On Thursday, the Government Audit and Oversight Committee will hold hearings on and mull responses to several civil grand jury reports, including one on homelessness services we reported on in June. That report called for significant reforms, including creating a dedicated safety and compliance unit and increasing contract oversight and training. In August, Lurie rejected the recommendations, but by month’s end released a plan to restart all homeless services contracts with new outcome-based approval requirements.
