SEC. 47.1. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

Based on the information presented to the Board of Supervisors in Board of Supervisors File No. 150622, staff presentations, and public testimony, the Board of Supervisors makes the following findings:

(a) In 2008, the City enacted Ordinance 232-08, to establish a preference in occupying units or receiving assistance under all City affordable housing programs to Residential Certificate of Preference Holders under the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency's Property Owner and Occupant Preference Program. In 2013, the City enacted Ordinance 277-13, to establish a second preference in occupying units or receiving assistance under all City affordable housing programs to certain San Francisco residents displaced by an eviction under the Ellis Act, California Government Code Section 7060 et seq .

(b) From 2010 to 2014, eviction notices filed with the Rent Board for all causes (not just evictions under the Ellis Act) increased 45% Citywide. Within specific neighborhoods, including the Mission, the Sunset/Parkside, the Outer Richmond, the Tenderloin, and the Castro, the percentage of eviction notices recorded was significantly higher than the Citywide average.

(c) From 2010 to 2014, average residential rents increased 54% Citywide. Moreover, rents in those neighborhoods with the highest number of eviction notices filed have risen by a greater percentage over the same time period, including the Castro (145%), the Outer Richmond (137%), the Sunset/Parkside (121%), and the Mission (by 108%). (d) While current market rate rents in San Francisco are unaffordable to more than 60% of all rental households in the City, current market rate rents are unaffordable to 100% of all low- and moderate-income San Francisco households earning less than 120% Area Median Income.

(e) San Francisco tenants are being displaced through evictions, and current market rate rents are unaffordable to the majority of San Francisco renters. Thus, when displacement now occurs, remaining in San Francisco and paying market rate rent is not a viable option for most San Francisco residents, especially low and moderate income households.

(f) Affordable housing in San Francisco is a scarce resource with limited availability. In addition, production of affordable housing in San Francisco has not kept pace with population growth, nor have the Regional Housing Needs Allocation goals for affordable housing been met.

(g) A preference in qualifying for affordable housing for residents who have been, or are about to be, displaced is necessary to achieve the important public purpose of increasing opportunities for those residents to continue to live in San Francisco even as market rate rents rise.

(h) 2010 data show that overcrowding is an issue faced by San Franciscans Citywide, and that there are specific neighborhoods, including the Mission, Chinatown, and the Tenderloin, in which the percentage of overcrowded households is close to double that of the Citywide average.

(i) Compounding the problem of overcrowding, nearly half of all San Franciscans are currently rent burdened, paying more than 30% of household income toward rent. Approximately 22% of San Francisco renters are severely rent burdened, meaning they pay more than 50% of their household income toward rent.

(j) The high cost of housing is a significant factor in causing low- and very-low income households to leave the City: 63% of people who moved out of San Francisco between 2011-2013 were members of low- or very-low income households.

(k) It is a necessary and important public purpose to provide relief for these economic and social ills arising from the housing challenges facing most San Franciscans. But because of the trends in current San Francisco market rate rents, moving low- and very-low income households into market rate housing in San Francisco is not a viable option.

(l) A limited preference for existing neighborhood residents that can be applied to a portion of new affordable housing developments in San Francisco will provide an opportunity to current low- and very-low income residents that are living in overcrowded housing configurations to move into appropriately sized units without leaving the community. This preference will also help provide relief for rent burdened low- and very-low income households while allowing them to benefit from new affordable housing development within their communities.

(m) In addition, it is in the City's interest to assist residents in preserving their existing community-based safety nets, such as access to schools, after school programs, stores, community centers, places of worship, and health care providers. A neighborhood preference will help to preserve community webs that serve as efficient safety nets and enhance the quality of life for neighborhood residents.

(n) Developers, community advocates, and residents have a long history of collaboration on housing development in San Francisco. A neighborhood preference for current low income residents for a portion of new affordable housing opportunities acknowledges this collaboration and will help increase participation in this process, which will in turn help generate additional support for, and contribute to, the successful approval of more affordable housing development in San Francisco.

(o) Many below market rate units under the City’s affordable housing programs are rented to households who earn between 50% to 80% of AMI. Based on the findings in the ordinance in Board File No. 220642 amending this Chapter 47, prioritizing eligible veterans who qualify for an existing housing preference under this Chapter in the City’s affordable housing programs will support low-income veterans (50% to 80% of AMI) transitioning into stable housing and economic self-sufficiency and mitigate the risk of homelessness faced by many veterans in San Francisco. (Added by Ord. 204-15 , File No. 150622, App. 12/3/2015, Eff. 1/2/2016; amended by Ord. 175-22, File No. 220642, App. 8/4/2022, Eff. 9/4/2022)