Serving San Francisco: Why you should join a commission

Citizenship is not a spectator sport.
- Robert Putnam, Bowling Alone

This is the second post in our series called Serving San Francisco, highlighting the ways you can help our city thrive.

In the first post, we talked about what a commission is. Now, we’ll demystify how you join one, and why you should.

What qualifications do I need to have to join a commission?

First, all commissions require members to be voting-age residents of San Francisco¹.

Second, many commissions have “seat-specific” qualifications. For example, Seat #8 on the Behavioral Health Commission must be a family member of a consumer (a consumer is defined as a person who has received mental health and/or substance use services in San Francisco from any program operated or funded by the City, From a State hospital, or from any public or private nonprofit mental health agency).

Though these qualifications can often be hyper-specific, the value of the specific expertise or experience to the work of the commission is usually clear. For others - well, not so much? Why do two seats on the Ballot Simplification Committee need to be nominated by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, Northern California Chapter or the Northern California Broadcasters Association? Last I checked these bodies were not the preeminent authorities on who communicates clearly and objectively.

Some qualifications are “floating” or general to the body itself. For example, if you want to join the SFTMA Citizens Advisory Commission, you must be a regular rider of MUNI.

Finally, our Charter states that every commission must reflect the diversity of the city of San Francisco. The City Attorney has written that “This requirement is general and aspirational in nature”² -, in practice, each Appointing Authority interprets and emphasizes this rule differently.

What is the time commitment for a commission?

Most commission “terms” are 2 or 4 years. Commissions generally meet on a monthly basis for ~2 hours, though some meet as much as once per week and as infrequently as once per quarter.

What are common "surprises" to people who join commissions?

There are typically few surprises for people who join a commission (at least, if they talk to us!) because they have done the work to attend the meetings of the commission they’re joining. But even then, there are some surprises:

• Some seats are eligible for health benefits, and compensation! This is to ensure there’s socioeconomic diversity on commissions.
• Some commissions, in both culture and tradition, play an active role in the community, serving as a kind of liaison to the community, and regularly responding to community complaints funneled to that commission. Police commissioners are, in practice, present on site of any homicide, to take questions, complaints, and to reassure the community.

How do I pick a commission to serve on?

First and foremost, pick a commission whose topic area overlaps with your interest and experience; this will ensure that your time and talent are well used. Second, and more practically, find a commission whose time commitment matches what you can give, consistently, over a 2-4 year period. Use our San Francisco Commission Tracker to find one that's right for you.

What makes a great commissioner?

You’ll be a great commissioner if you:

Care deeply about transparency, accountability, and public participation in government - If you understand and believe in the value of commissions, you’ll be a better steward of it.

Show up, and are deeply present - We’ve heard horror stories of commissioners falling asleep at commission meetings, of commissions not able to meet due to lack of quorum. It’s embarrassing to have to say that is completely unacceptable. Every potential commissioner who reads this blog post and decides to apply as a result should take a personal oath to show up, to be present and thoughtful, to ask thoughtful questions, to engage in discussion in good faith, and to know that, if you don’t, you should cede your seat to someone who will.

Can separate the vocal minority from the true majority, and advise accordingly - we feel this is becoming increasingly important for us to remind commissioners, and any other Appointed and Elected folks we talk to, that there will be people who regularly show up to the commissions to provide public comment, and voice extremist views. Should you take what they say as representative of the will of all San Franciscans? No. As a commissioner, you need to be able to parse the vocal minority from the true majority, and advise the city Department you’re working with accordingly.

How are commissions and commissioners held accountable to doing their jobs?

To wit - they’re not. Many commission meetings are live on SFGov, and commissions must, by law, post their Agendas and meeting minutes online. But there is no formal mechanism by which commissions, for example, report attendance of their commissioners, evaluate their work against the function of the body, there is no commissioner review process, no way in which the Dept and commissioners can evaluate their own relationship, no way they are held accountable by the public for the policies and budgets they advise on and the personnel decisions they make. How is it that bodies which can have so much power are accountable to… basically no one? We imagine the Commission on Streamlining will talk about this topic soon.

Who decides who joins a commission?

Every “seat” on a commission has a specific “appointing authority” - a person, persons, or office, who is responsible for filling that seat. The Mayor’s Office and the Board of Supervisors appoint the most seats. Each has their own application process, which we’ll get into later.

What does the application and appointment process look like?

It depends on who’s appointing. And even then, it depends on other factors unique to that commission. But, in general, there are two main appointing authorities with two processes:

• Mayoral appointments - Fill out an application. Speak with the Mayor’s Office (one or several conversations). Take the oath.
• BOS appointments - Fill out this pdf, email it to BOS-Appointments@sfgov.org. Go in front of the Rules Committee, who votes on your candidacy. Your appointment is voted on by the Board of Supervisors. You are sworn in.

But before you do that, get in touch! We can give you tips and help you build a strong application.

Some commissions, often those that are decision making or oversee the use of funds, require you to file something called Form 700. This form is confusing to fill out, and it makes all of your finances public - before you are appointed to that commission seat! By virtue of this, it can deter great people from desiring to join a commission. Please don’t let it! This form is in place for good reason. And there are people who can help you figure out how to fill it out.

But no, really - how do you get appointed?

Commissions have a reputation for being the place where an elected official, be it the Mayor or a Supervisor, could repay a favor or reward fealty. And that reputation was definitely earned. But we think this new Administration, and new Board, will emphasize merit over fealty and, hopefully, usher in an era of actually good governance.

What does the commission onboarding process look like?

It’s our understanding, reported to us by many commissioners, that this is basically nonexistent. The City Attorney’s office distributes the Good Government guide, but there is nothing, at least consistently, in the way of a formal onboarding on how to be a commissioner in general, let alone on the topics you’re expected to advise on as a commissioner - including deciding the policy for an entire City Department! Which is wild, if you think about the power that some of these commissions have. We hope this is something the commission on Streamlining looks at as part of their overhaul on commissions.

Ok. I’m ready to join a commission!

Amazing! If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to us at talent@growsf.org and we’d be happy to help answer any questions we can and support you through the process.