What You Need To Know
Here’s what happened around the city for the week of September 13, 2026:
- Proposition H Would Boost SF’s Economy by Up to $400 Million a Year
- Mail-In Ballots Safe From Trump’s Executive Order for November
- Dog Attack Shows San Francisco Needs a New Approach
- Melgar Proposes Housing Department and Co-op Program
- Overdose Deaths Fall 24% in 2026
- Sherrill Moves to Remove William Palmer From Sheriff Oversight Board
- Tenderloin Youth Center Reaches Nearly 100 Young People
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Proposition H Would Boost SF’s Economy by Up to $400 Million a Year
Published September 18, 2026
The Facts
Proposition H would boost San Francisco’s economic output by up to $400 million a year, on average over the next 15 years, compared with deep Muni service cuts, according to Chief Economist Ted Egan’s analysis. That estimate accounts for the cost of the tax, not just the benefits of preserving transit.
The measure would raise $184 million annually for Muni. Commercial properties would provide about 75% of that revenue. Most single-family homes and condominiums would pay $129 per year.
The Context
Without new revenue, Muni faces a $307 million deficit that could grow to $434 million within five years. The modeled cuts would eliminate routes, increase traffic, and add more than 15,000 hours of weekday travel delays; residential property values would fall three to five times more than under the tax, reports Garrett Leahy at The Standard.
The City’s Chief Economist reviews legislation and ballot measures and estimates how they would affect jobs, businesses, development, tax revenue, and the broader city economy. His analysis informs policymakers and voters; he does not approve or veto proposals.
The GrowSF Take
The numbers make the choice easy. A $129 annual tax is not free, but broken transit would cost residents and businesses much more. Reliable Muni expands access to jobs and keeps San Francisco moving.
GrowSF recommends Yes on Proposition H. Vote yes this November.
Mail-In Ballots Safe From Trump’s Executive Order for November
Published September 18, 2026
The Facts
The Supreme Court declined to lift the injunction against President Donald Trump’s new mail-ballot restrictions for November’s election, preserving existing state procedures, reports Lindsey Whitehurst of the Associated Press in the San Francisco Chronicle. The rules would have required redesigned envelopes and voter information uploaded to a federal portal.
The Context
This is not a final ruling on the restrictions’ legality. The Court denied emergency relief, leaving a lower-court injunction in place. Justice Brett Kavanaugh agreed officials lacked time to implement the rules for 2026, but left open whether similar requirements could be lawful later.
California counties must begin mailing ballots no later than October 5 for the November 3 election. That schedule leaves little room for a federal overhaul.
The GrowSF Take
Good. Making voting harder through last-minute paperwork is not election integrity. California Attorney General Rob Bonta deserves credit for helping stop it: he co-led the coalition of 24 attorneys general and Pennsylvania’s governor that secured the injunction and defended it through the administration’s appeals. Thank you to Bonta and his fellow challengers for protecting voters’ access to mail ballots this November.
Check your voter registration now so your ballot reaches the right address, and use our November voter guide to prepare.
Dog Attack Shows San Francisco Needs a New Approach
Published September 18, 2026
The Facts
A pit bull mauled a woman and left her with life-threatening injuries on September 8 on Larkin Street. Police apprehended the dog, which died after being restrained, and did not find its owner, according to Brad Hamilton at CBS News.
In response, Supervisor Bilal Mahmood introduced a dog-safety resolution that calls on city-funded shelters and supportive housing to keep pet registration and vaccination records and report attacks. It also calls for stable funding for dangerous-dog hearings, reports George Kelly at The San Francisco Standard.
The Context
San Francisco already investigates dogs that bite, lunge, or chase people. A hearing officer may order training, muzzling, or confinement, and city law requires a formally designated dangerous dog outside its enclosure to be muzzled and held on a short, heavy-duty chain under its owner’s direct control.
But City Hall let those hearings stop for ten months, creating a 66-case backlog, according to Jennifer Wadsworth at The San Francisco Standard.
The GrowSF Take
We don’t think these reporting requirements will do anything to prevent dangerous-dog attacks. San Francisco should require owners to keep pit bulls on-leash and muzzled in public, before they attack.
That would require a change in state law. San Francisco’s dangerous-dog hearings address individual animals, but California prohibits breed-specific rules. The state’s narrow spay/neuter and breeding exception does not let cities require muzzles for an entire breed.
San Francisco should ask state lawmakers to authorize breed-wide leash and muzzle requirements, so these precautions can apply to all pit bulls without a separate dangerous-dog hearing for each animal.
Melgar Proposes Housing Department and Co-op Program
Published September 18, 2026
The Facts
Supervisor Myrna Melgar announced Tuesday that she plans to turn the Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development into a standalone Department of Housing Development and Preservation covering both subsidized and market-rate housing, according to Alyce McFadden and contributor J.D. Morris at the San Francisco Chronicle.
Kelly Waldron at Mission Local reports that Melgar is working with the mayor’s office, and the mayor would appoint the director. Which existing functions and authority would move remains unresolved. Melgar is also drafting a program to finance new housing cooperatives and provide existing co-op boards with training and technical support. In co-ops, residents buy shares in the corporation that owns their building rather than individual apartments.
The Context
Housing responsibilities are divided: the mayor’s housing office finances subsidized housing, SF Planning controls zoning and review, and the Department of Building Inspection handles permits and enforcement.
A 2022 city report counted 1,580 homes across 11 limited-equity co-ops. Only one received city development funding, and many face deferred maintenance, board conflict, or financing problems.
The GrowSF Take
Melgar is right to push for this. San Francisco needs a housing department responsible for helping deliver homes at every price point. The Board should create the department and give the mayor and its director flexibility to set priorities and adapt its work, with clear accountability for results.
Overdose Deaths Fall 24% in 2026
Published September 17, 2026
The Facts
San Francisco recorded 351 accidental overdose deaths from January through August 2026, down 24% from 460 during the same period last year. The preliminary count puts the city on pace for its lowest annual toll since 2019, reports Maggie Angst at The Standard.
The Context
The decline is not uniquely local. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that nationwide overdose deaths fell 12.3% year over year through March 2026, while California fell 8%.
San Francisco’s Department of Public Health served 16,804 people through substance-use programs in fiscal year 2025, 15% more than the prior year. The department cited easier access to buprenorphine and methadone plus more treatment and recovery beds. Nationally, federal testing found that fentanyl purity declined throughout 2024. No single intervention explains the improvement.
The GrowSF Take
This is real progress, and the Department of Public Health, treatment workers, police, and federal drug investigators all deserve credit for their part. And we’re pleased to see SF outperform both California and the nation!
Sherrill Moves to Remove William Palmer From Sheriff Oversight Board
Published September 17, 2026
The Facts
Supervisor Stephen Sherrill introduced a motion to suspend William Palmer from the Sheriff’s Department Oversight Board and file 12 official-misconduct charges. If supervisors approve it next week, the Ethics Commission would hold a hearing before the Board decides whether to remove Palmer by a three-fourths vote. Michael Barba and J.D. Morris reported the process for the San Francisco Chronicle.
The Inspector General found 14 ethics-law violations, including invoking his title during two law-enforcement encounters, using city email to contact the District Attorney’s Office about a personal matter, and trying to use his position to reach a potential witness in a secure hospital ward. Palmer disputes the findings.
The Context
Palmer joined the board in 2021. His 31 years of incarceration and later reentry work were central to his appointment to a public seat, as GrowSF previously reported. Supervisors reappointed him in 2023 through March 2027.
Current law protects oversight-board members from removal except through this misconduct process. Proposition F would generally let appointing authorities remove their own commissioners without cause.
The GrowSF Take
Sherrill was right to act. The findings are detailed and damning. Someone charged with overseeing law enforcement cannot invoke that office to intimidate deputies or reach a potential witness against him.
But Sherrill should not have to assemble 12 charges and push them through months of legal machinery to remove an appointed official who has plainly lost the Board’s confidence. The Board should be able to remove Palmer directly. That is why Sherrill supports Proposition F, and why GrowSF supports it, too.
Tenderloin Youth Center Reaches Nearly 100 Young People
Published September 18, 2026
The Facts
Nearly 100 young people ages 15–24 have visited a new Tenderloin youth center at 518 Ellis Street in its first six months, reports Adriana Gutierrez at Mission Local. The privately funded pilot, run by the Tenderloin Community Benefit District and United Playaz, offers mentorship, homework space, and job preparation. Staff say seven of ten participants who were on probation have gotten off it. Renewal funding remains uncertain when the one-year pilot ends in early 2027.
The Context
Supervisor Bilal Mahmood announced the $200,000 pilot in November 2025, backed by private donors rather than city funding. The neighborhood organizations built a place where teenagers and young adults could find support close to home.
By May, the operators reported reaching 57 youth, with participation more than doubling in two months through word of mouth. These are encouraging participation figures and individual successes, not proof that the program has reduced neighborhood violence.
The GrowSF Take
A safe place after school and an adult who helps you land your first job are worth celebrating. Thank you to United Playaz, the Tenderloin Community Benefit District, and their donors for turning a modest investment into practical help.
Paid for by GrowSF Voter Guide. Not authorized by any candidate, candidate’s committee, or committee controlled by a candidate. Financial disclosures are available at sfethics.org.