To help support efforts to launch fair chance campaigns, we’ve compiled the campaign materials developed by the lead sponsors of the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance.  Included in this publication are a factsheet, a request for endorsement, an endorser form and template letter of support, postcard flyer, and a tribute poster. Please note that facts cited in the materials were developed in 2013 and are out-of-date.

Directly Impacted People Led the Efforts in San Francisco

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously passed the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance in February 2014.  Mayor Ed Lee held a signing ceremony for the new law on March 4, 2014.  The ordinance removed questions about convictions from applications for private employers, city contractors, and affordable housing providers and postponed such inquiries until later in the application process.  The ordinance also included provisions to ensure background checks were used fairly.

The lead co-sponsors were Supervisors Jane Kim and Malia Cohen. The ordinance garnered the support of the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, the Human Rights Commission, and the San Francisco Reentry Council, which includes law enforcement leaders such as the District Attorney, the Chief Adult Probation Officer, and the Public Defender.

Lead sponsors were the National Employment Law Project, Legal Services for Prisoners with Children, All of Us or None, Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area, and Community Housing Partnership.  Dozens of organizations endorsed the legislation.  The excellent media coverage included a front-page story in the San Francisco Chronicle, “Push to Ban Crime Box on Job Applications Expands” (Dec. 10, 2013).