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The Director of Elections shall determine the title and letter designation of each measure. The Director of Elections shall assign letter designations according to the procedures set forth in this Section.
First, bond measures shall be assigned letter designations. The bond measure involving the largest amount of money shall be assigned the letter designation "A." The bond measure involving the second largest amount of money shall be assigned the letter designation "B." This process shall continue until each bond measure is assigned a letter designation with successive letters of the alphabet.
Second, Charter amendments shall be assigned letter designations. The order of designation of Charter amendments shall be determined by random lottery. The first, randomly selected Charter amendment shall be assigned the next available letter of the alphabet. This process shall be repeated until each Charter amendment is assigned a letter designation with successive letters of the alphabet.
If there are two or more Charter amendments that concern the same subject matter, the order of designation of Charter amendments shall be determined by random lottery with a limited exception. Once the first of the related Charter amendments is randomly selected and assigned a letter designation, the related Charter amendment(s) shall be removed from the lottery and assigned the next successive letter(s) of the alphabet. The random lottery shall then resume until each Charter amendment is assigned a letter designation with successive letters of the alphabet.
Third, ordinances shall be assigned letter designations. The order of designation of ordinances shall be determined by random lottery. The first, randomly selected ordinance shall be assigned the next available letter of the alphabet. This process shall be repeated until each ordinance is assigned a letter designation with successive letters of the alphabet.
If there are two or more ordinances that concern the same subject matter, the order of designation of ordinances shall be determined by random lottery with a limited exception. Once the first of the related ordinances is randomly selected and assigned a letter designation, the related ordinance(s) shall be removed from the lottery and assigned the next successive letter(s) of the alphabet. The random lottery shall then resume until each ordinance is assigned a letter designation with successive letters of the alphabet.
Fourth, declarations of policy shall be assigned letter designations. The order of designation of declarations of policy shall be determined by random lottery. The first, randomly selected declaration of policy shall be assigned the next available letter of the alphabet. This process shall be repeated until each declaration of policy is assigned a letter designation with successive letters of the alphabet.
If there are two or more declarations of policy that concern the same subject matter, the order of designation of declarations of policy shall be determined by random lottery with a limited exception. Once the first of the related declarations of policy is randomly selected and assigned a letter designation, the related declaration(s) of policy shall be removed from the lottery and assigned the next successive letter(s) of the alphabet. The random lottery shall then resume until each declaration of policy is assigned a letter designation with successive letters of the alphabet.
(Added by Ord. 429-97, App. 11/17/97)
(a) Format. Except as provided in subsection (c) of this Section 510, the City Attorney shall prepare a general statement of any ballot measure to be submitted to the voters, followed by the words “yes” and “no,” so arranged that voters may indicate a choice upon the ballot. The general statement or question shall not exceed 30 words, except where the subject measure is unusually complex, in which case the general statement or question shall not exceed 100 words.
(b) Deadline. The general question or statement for any measure shall be transmitted to the Director of Elections no fewer than 85 days prior to the election to which it relates, for printing and inclusion in the voter information pamphlet.
(c) Bond Measures. The City Attorney shall not prepare the general statement of a bond measure where the Board of Supervisors approves a general statement of the measure by ordinance or resolution. The general statement of a bond measure shall not exceed 100 words.
(d) List of Supporters and Opponents of Measure.
(1) Except as provided by subsection (d)(2), the names of supporters and opponents of each local ballot measure to be submitted to the voters shall be listed in the general statement or question in accordance with Section 9170(a) of the California Elections Code.
(2) For any election in which the Director of Elections determines that compliance with subsection (d)(1) will cause the ballot to consist of more than six ballot cards, the City elects to not include a list of supporters and opponents in the general statement or question for local ballot measures submitted to the voters for that election, as authorized by Section 9170(d) of the California Elections Code. The Director of Elections shall provide written notice to the Board of Supervisors and the Mayor and shall post such notice on the Department of Elections website for elections when applying this subsection (d) to authorize the City to opt out of the requirements of Section 9170(a) of the California Elections Code.
(a) The Ballot Simplification Committee shall prepare a digest of each measure submitted to the voters. Each digest shall include four subsections. These four subsections shall be entitled and shall appear in the following sequence in the voter information pamphlet: The Way It is Now, The Proposal, A "Yes" Vote Means, A "No" Vote Means.
(b) No digest shall exceed 300 words, exclusive of the title for each subsection provided for in Subsection (a) of this Section, unless the Ballot Simplification Committee determines that a longer digest is required because of the complexity or scope of the proposed measure.
(c) In preparing the digest of any measure, the Ballot Simplification Committee shall achieve the closest proximity to the eighth grade level of readability as possible. The Committee may utilize any nationally accepted standard for estimating readability.
(d) The digest for any measure shall be transmitted to the Director of Elections no fewer than 85 days prior to the election to which it relates, for printing and inclusion in the voter information pamphlet.
(Added by Ord. 429-97, App. 11/17/97)
(a) The Controller shall prepare an impartial financial analysis of each measure submitted to the voters. The Controller's financial analysis shall include the amount of any increase or decrease in the cost of City and County government. The Controller's financial analysis shall also include the effect of the measure upon the tax rate.
For any general obligation bond measure placed on the ballot, the Controller’s financial analysis shall include an explanation of the City’s legal debt limit, as well as the impact of the proposed bond measure on that limit. The Controller’s financial analysis for a general obligation bond measure placed on the ballot, including general obligation bond measures submitted by the San Francisco Unified School District or San Francisco Community College District, also shall include an explanation of the passthrough of the change in a landlord’s property tax resulting from the repayment of such indebtedness provided in Administrative Code Section 37.3(a)(6), and an explanation of the impact of that passthrough as it relates to the proposed bond measure.
(b) The Controller's financial analysis shall be in a form appropriate for inclusion in the voter information pamphlet.
(c) The Controller's financial analysis of any measure shall be transmitted to the Director of Elections no fewer than 85 days prior to the election to which it relates, for printing and inclusion in the voter information pamphlet.
(Added by Ord. 429-97, App. 11/17/97; amended by Ord. 202-00, File No. 001156, App. 8/18/2000; Ord. 252-06, File No. 061183, App. 10/11/2006; Ord. 92-24, File No. 240174, App. 5/10/2024, Eff. 6/10/2024, Oper. 7/1/2024)
(a) Purpose. The ordinance is adopted to promote the policy contained in Administrative Code Section 3.26.
(b) Controller's Statement. Whenever a proposed appears on the ballot that includes a Set-Aside as that term is defined in Administrative Code Section 3.26, the Controller shall prepare and the Director of Elections shall caused to be printed in the voter information pamphlet a statement analyzing the impact of the measure on the City's budget and finances during the term of the measure, considered alone and in combination with existing Set-Asides. The Controller's statement shall inform the voters of both the policy that this section of the Charter adopts and whether the proposal identifies a specific adequate new funding source for the proposed Set-Aside so that the implementation of the Set-Aside will not cause any anticipated reduction in discretionary funding that the Mayor and Board of Supervisors may allocate in the budgetary process. The Controller may include any other material in the statement that he or she deems useful and appropriate.
(Added by Proposition S, 11/4/2008)
(a) The Director of Elections shall, between the ninetieth day and the eighty-first day prior to any election, publish, on three separate occasions, a notice in the official newspaper that arguments may be submitted for or against any measure to be voted upon at said election. Said notice need not include a description of said measures.
(b) The Director of Elections shall also distribute a news release relating to the submission of arguments to such other newspapers and radio and television stations as he or she deems will best inform persons of their right to submit such arguments, and to examine such arguments for a 10-day period as provided by California Elections Code Section 9295 and Section 590 of this Article.
(Added by Ord. 429-97, App. 11/17/97; amended by Ord. 291-06, File No. 061375, App. 11/29/2006)
(a) Rules for Submission. These procedures shall govern the submission and publication of ballot arguments for or against any measure submitted to the voters.
(b) Authorship. Subject to the provisions of Section 535, the Board of Supervisors, or any member or members of the Board of Supervisors authorized by that body; the Mayor; any proponent of an initiative measure or a referendum; any individual voter who is eligible to vote on the measure, or group of such voters; or association or organization; or any combination thereof, may submit a written argument for or against any measure for publication in the voter information pamphlet. When the Board of Supervisors authorizes a member or members of that body to submit and sign a written proponent's or opponent's argument for or against any measure for publication in the voter information pamphlet, or assigns that right to another person pursuant to Section 550 of this Code, the Board shall provide such authorization by motion and need not take any further action, including voting on or otherwise approving the actual text of the argument before it is submitted for publication.
(c) Form. To ensure that all ballot arguments are filed in a uniform format, the arguments shall be submitted in a manner specified by the Director of Elections.
(d) Authorization Signatures Required. A ballot argument shall not be accepted unless accompanied by the signature or signatures of the person or persons submitting it, or, if submitted on behalf of an association or organization, the name of the association or organization and the signature of at least one of its principal officers who is a registered San Francisco voter. The association or organization submitting the argument must clearly indicate whether it wishes the name of the officer submitting the argument to be printed as part of the argument. The names of additional associations, organizations, or individuals who are registered San Francisco voters may be submitted as co-authors of the argument. The names and titles of all co-authors, and the name and title of any other person to be included in the text of the argument as printed in the voter information pamphlet, shall be counted against the 300-word limit specified in Section 575 of this Article. Such names and titles shall be subject to the per-word fee specified in Section 830 of this Code.
(e) Consent Required. A ballot argument which includes in its text the name of a individual or entity, other than a co-author of the argument, which is represented as being for or against a measure, or which is represented as supporting, opposing, or endorsing the views expressed in the argument, shall not be accepted unless the argument is accompanied by a statement of consent signed by such individual or entity. The consent of an entity shall be signed by an officer or other duly authorized representative.
(Added by Ord. 429-97, App. 11/17/97; amended by Ord. 44-03, File No. 021996, App. 4/3/2003; Ord. 183-03, File No. 030652, App. 7/25/2003; Ord. 291-06, File No. 061375, App. 11/29/2006; Ord. 102-14
, File No. 140341, App. 7/2/2014, Eff. 8/1/2014)
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