The San Francisco Democratic County Central Committee - April 21, 2010 Meeting

BOMA San Francisco Members:

Your BOMA San Francisco Advocacy Team attended the monthly meeting of the San Francisco Democratic County Central Committee (DCCC) on April 21, 2010. The DCCC is, as detailed on the Committee’s website, the governing body of the County Democratic Party and is comprised of local Democrats elected by voters in Assembly Districts 12 and 13, as well as partisan-level Democratic elected officials and nominees. You can view a complete list of the current members of this elected body, here. If you’re interested in attending a meeting, they are open to the public. Click here for the meeting schedule.

The DCCC is somewhat enigmatic to the voting public and doesn’t receive much attention by the local media--the Chronicle's C.W. Nevius wrote a great article about the DCCC on April 24, 2010. As such, we took it upon ourselves to sit in on a committee meeting to gain a better understanding of how the DCCC functions and who are the key movers and shakers on that body. And, apparently, the business community is a threat. BOMA San Francisco and the San Francisco Coalition for Responsible Growth were the two organizations from the business community in attendance.

It’s no secret that BOMA San Francisco and the greater business community have been watching the DCCC for some time, especially after it turned hard left two years ago by electing several additional so-called 'progressives' and electing Aaron Peskin (one of the most anti-development supervisors in modern San Francisco history) as its chair. The DCCC is the first step for many local politicians, and its slate card endorsements are particularly important as San Francisco is overwhelmingly Democratic. Indeed, their slate card helped a number of progressive candidates get elected to the current Board of Supervisors in 2008. If the San Francisco business community is to ever regain its voice in the local political arena, it must start with the DCCC.

The following is a synopsis of the meeting (click here for an agenda):

The Committee heard from candidates running for Superior Court Judge, seats 6 and 15.

• Seat 6 (open)
• Linda Colfax 
• Received the endorsement from the DCCC.   
• Harry Dorfman
• Rod McLeod
• Rob Retana
• Seat 15 
• Dan Dean
• Michael Nava
• Received the endorsement from the DCCC.
• Richard Ulmer Jr. (incumbent, an Independent, could not receive the endorsement and was not in attendance).

The Committee also considered three resolutions at this meeting.

• PASSED – Robert Haaland’s resolution opposing the Mayor’s proposed Sit/Lie Ordinance currently making its way through City Hall (click here to read our blog post on this measure).
• There were a number of community residents who spoke in opposition to this measure; many DCCC members also spoke intelligently, and at length, on their view of the proposed ordinance.   
• Click here to listen to Mr. Haaland's presentation of the resolution.
• Click here to watch the Committee members vote on the DCCC Sit/Lie Resolution. 
• NOT PASSED –Scott Wiener’s resolution supporting the expansion of the Community Justice Center into other districts in San Francisco.
• Click here to watch Mr. Wiener's presentation of the resolution.
• Click here to watch Supervisor Chris Daly's remarks against the resolution.  
• PASSED – A resolution condemning the Hornblower Cruise lines for not allowing their workers to unionize. 

The committee members boldly defended their respective positions on various issues.  It was an impressive display of passion and pontification. However, the DCCC is the most influential political body in town, and the business community can no longer afford to ignore its importance and influence on the city’s voters.