Yes on Proposition N
First responder student loan forgiveness program
What is it?
Proposition N creates a First Responder Student Loan Forgiveness Fund. This fund will incentivize hiring certain City employees, including police, firefighters, paramedics, and nurses, by offering up to $25,000 for student loans and job-related education expenses to new employees.
The fund can be funded through private donations or through budget appropriations by the Mayor or Board of Supervisors. Notably, no budget appropriation is required by this law, so we expect most, if not all, of the money to come from private philanthropic donors looking to boost public safety employment in the City.
The fund will only become active once it reaches $1,000,000 in contributions.
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Fiscal impacts
Prop N would have zero to a small impact on City finances. It depends on if the Mayor and Board of Supervisors decide to appropriate money to the fund, and whether (and how much) private donors contribute. The fund does not pay out until it has at least $1 million in it, so that could be considered a reasonable estimate for its yearly cost if it is funded without private donations.
Why is this on the ballot?
This was placed on the ballot by six or more members of the Board of Supervisors. It could have been passed by the Board of Supervisors, but they decided to take it directly to the voters. Typically, this is done by Supervisors who are facing re-election and want to use the ballot measure to boost their name recognition, and often to bypass campaign contribution limits for their own campaigns. It needs simple majority of 50% + 1 to pass.
- Sponsor: Supervisor Ahsha Safai
- Co-Sponsors: Supervisors Shamann Walton, and Matt Dorsey
- Placed on ballot by: Supervisors Connie Chan, Matt Dorsey, Joel Engardio, Dean Preston, Ahsha Safai, and Catherine Stefani
- Opposed by: Supervisors Rafael Mandelman, Myrna Melgar, Aaron Peskin, and Hillary Ronen
- Absent: Supervisor Shamann Walton
Why vote Yes?
San Francisco has a critical shortage of first responders so we have to come up with innovative solutions to boost recruitment. Prop N is an idea worth trying.
It lets donors and philanthropists contribute to a City fund that will help new first responder recruits, like EMTs, police, and 911 dispatchers, to pay off up to $25,000 in student loans or job training costs.
We don't know if it will work, but since it doesn't cost the taxpayers anything, we might as well find out!
There are three retirement-related measures on the ballot aimed at addressing the recruitment and retention crisis among first responders, but those measures primarily focus on retaining existing personnel rather than attracting new recruits. Proposition N is the only measure that could actually impact recruitment.