Cops and firefighters are San Francisco’s superheroes. And like Marvel’s Avengers, they cost a fortune to keep in uniform — $1 billion a year.
Labor negotiations this year for firefighter and police contracts will be hugely consequential for the city’s coffers for years to come, according to a new report (opens in new tab) from the urbanist think tank SPUR. The outcome of the deliberations will determine how roughly $1 billion is spent annually. Perhaps more important, it will give 31,000 other city employees whose contracts are coming up for renewal next year a point of comparison in arguing for wage increases.
“If you are a registered nurse, a laborer, or a bus driver, and you see a police officer a year before got an X percent increase, when you sit at the table with the city, you say ‘I want what they got,’” said SPUR CEO Sean Elsbernd, who served as chief of staff for former Mayor London Breed. “That is a valid argument: ‘If you could do it for them, why can’t you do it for us?’”
The report comes as Mayor Daniel Lurie and the Board of Supervisors grapple with a $877 million budget shortfall, which has spurred 500 job cuts and is likely to lead to reductions in city services, including community grants. It marks the second year in a row that Lurie is forced into austerity mode as President Donald Trump’s federal cuts (opens in new tab) target healthcare funding and certain tax revenue streams remain low as businesses and commercial real estate continue to feel the pain of the pandemic.
SPUR’s report, released Wednesday, shows that spending on the San Francisco Police Department and Fire Department is taking up a large share of the city’s discretionary spending. The city’s total budget is around $16 billion, and the mayor’s office can reallocate $2 billion each year, with the rest earmarked through voter initiatives and charter amendments. The police and fire departments account for half of that discretionary spending, leaving less for other priorities, such as street cleaning and parks.
SPUR’s findings offer three scenarios for policymakers who are involved in negotiations over police and fire contracts. The “austerity” route — which means no wage increases — would result in a $91 million reduction to the deficit. Police recruitment, which has been a problem for years, would likely take a hit in such a scenario. With fewer recruits joining the force, officers would likely have to accrue more overtime, which has significant fiscal impacts.
The “status quo” route, in which wages are increased commensurate with the consumer price index — 3% to 3.3% — would keep the deficit unchanged.
The “aggressive” option would have the police and fire departments receiving wage increases of 2% more than CPI. That would increase the deficit by $58 million, lead to decades of higher pension costs, and result in even more service cuts in other city departments. Police recruitment could improve in this scenario.
“There are no easy choices,” the report states. “Every course of action involves difficult trade-offs.”
Negotiations for police and fire will wrap up by May, the report states.
The report makes a number of other findings:
San Francisco’s firefighters are among the highest-paid in the region when holiday pay and training/education are factored in. Police pay is average compared to peer jurisdictions.The Fire Department has a “staffing misalignment”: While 68% of employees are assigned to fire suppression, 68% of the dispatch calls are for emergency medical services. “This practice drives up costs without improving operational efficiency. As a result, the Fire Department has far more fire engines than ambulances, even though most calls are medical emergencies,” the report states.The police and fire unions both have contract provisions that “add significant complexity and cost” to the city, the report states. For example, firefighters with a bachelor’s degree earn more, as do police officers who are assigned to the bomb squad or SWAT team, or both.
SPUR’s findings met with strong reactions from the police and fire unions.
“San Francisco shouldn’t take fiscal advice from the man who steered London Breed’s corrupt administration into a $1 billion hole,” said Sam Gebler, president of the firefighters union, Local 798. “The SPUR logic is simple: If you’re a high-priced consultant or former chief of staff, you’re an ‘investment.’ But if you’re a firefighter working 24-hour shifts to keep our city safe, you’re a ‘fiscal burden.’ We aren’t going to let a guy with a guaranteed city pension tell us we aren’t worth ours.”
Gebler provided The Standard with a 531-word response he sent to SPUR, which asserts that the report contains “significant fallacies and methodological biases.”
Louis Wong, president of the San Francisco Police Officers Association, also conveyed skepticism about the report. “Any attempt to suppress wages or reduce compensation will only deepen the staffing shortage, increase overtime costs, and ultimately strain the city’s budget further,” he wrote. “The most cost-effective path forward is a fully staffed police department — not one forced to backfill vacancies with expensive overtime shifts.”
He added that “any agreement must recognize the realities our officers face and provide compensation that allows San Francisco to attract and retain the qualified professionals our residents deserve.”
The mayor’s office declined to comment.
In addition to police and fire, costs for keeping City Hall staffed have grown enormously over the last 15 years: While the workforce has increased by 25%, spending on these personnel has skyrocketed by 100%. The city has about 34,000 employees. Labor makes up 46% of city spending.
On Wednesday, the Budget and Finance Committee will vote on whether to approve $34.4 million in overtime for police, including costs associated with the Super Bowl.
SPUR has played an important role in shaping the Lurie administration’s cabinet and policies. The mayor hired Alicia John-Baptiste, the think tank’s former leader, as his policy chief overseeing infrastructure, climate, and transportation. The group has also been important in Lurie’s charter reform efforts, drafting a November report that has been an inspiration for many of the changes the mayor is proposing to the city’s constitution.