San Francisco County Municipal Code Ch. 4 Permit Application Processing

Sec. 3.400A. Findings. Sec. 3.400. Permit Application Processing. Sec. 3.403. Amendment or Repeal of this Chapter. Sec. 3.405. Definitions. Sec. 3.410. Permit Consultant Registration and Disclosures. Sec. 3.415. Penalties and Enforcement. Sec. 3.420. Electronic Filing of Disclosures.

The Board of Supervisors finds that bringing greater transparency to the City and County’s permitting process is essential to protect public confidence in the fairness and impartiality of that process. It is the purpose and intent of this Chapter 4 to impose reasonable disclosure requirements on permit consultants to provide the public with information about who is paying the consultants, the permits they are getting paid to obtain, the City employees with whom they have had contact in the course of obtaining the permits, and the political contributions they have made to City officials. (Added as Sec. 3.400 by Ord. 98-14 , File No. 130374, App. 6/26/2014, Eff. 7/26/2014; redesignated and amended by Ord. 6-17, File No. 161081, App. 1/20/2017, Eff. 2/19/2017; re-enacted by Proposition D, 3/5/2024, Eff. 4/12/2024, Oper. 10/12/2024) Editor's Note: This section was designated as "3.400" when enacted by Ord. 98-14. The section was redesignated by the codifier in order to avoid conflicting with previously existing material. Ord. 6-17 made the redesignation as “3.400A” official.

The voters may amend or repeal this Chapter 4. The Board of Supervisors may amend this Chapter 4 if all of the following conditions are met: (a) The amendment furthers the purposes of this Chapter; (b) The Ethics Commission approves the proposed amendment in advance by at least a four-fifths vote of all its members; (c) The proposed amendment is available for public review at least 30 days before the amendment is considered by the Board of Supervisors or any committee of the Board of Supervisors; and (d) The Board of Supervisors approves the proposed amendment by at least a two-thirds vote of all its members. (Added by Proposition D, 3/5/2024, Eff. 4/12/2024, Oper. 10/12/2024)

(a) If any permit consultant fails to submit any information required by this Chapter after any applicable deadline, the Ethics Commission shall, in addition to any other penalties or remedies established in this Chapter, impose a late filing fee of $50 per day after the deadline until the information is received by the Ethics Commission. The Executive Director of the Ethics Commission may reduce or waive a late filing fee if the Executive Director determines that the late filing was not willful and that enforcement will not further the purposes of this Chapter. The Ethics Commission shall deposit funds collected under this Section in the General Fund of the City and County of San Francisco. (b) Any person who violates this Chapter may be liable in an administrative proceeding before the Ethics Commission pursuant to Charter Section C3.699-13. In addition to the administrative penalties set forth in the Charter, the Ethics Commission may issue warning letters regarding potential violations of this Chapter to the permit consultant. (c) Any person or entity which knowingly or negligently violates this Chapter may be liable in a civil action brought by the City Attorney for an amount up to $5,000 per violation. (Added by Ord. 98-14 , File No. 130374, App. 6/26/2014, Eff. 7/26/2014; re-enacted and amended by Proposition D, 3/5/2024, Eff. 4/12/2024, Oper. 10/12/2024)

The Ethics Commission may require electronic filing of any disclosure required under this Chapter 4. (Added by Proposition D, 3/5/2024, Eff. 4/12/2024, Oper. 10/12/2024) (Former Sec. 3.420 added by Ord. 98-14 , File No. 130374, App. 6/26/2014, Eff. 7/26/2014; repealed by Proposition D, 3/5/2024, Eff. 4/12/2024, Oper. 10/12/2024)