Ordinance authorizing settlement of the lawsuit filed by Californians For Equal Rights Foundation, Ruth Parker, and Ellen Lee Zhou against the City and County of San Francisco for $50,000 and non-monetary terms; the lawsuit was filed on May 31, 2023, in San Francisco Superior Court, Case No. CGC-23-606796; entitled Californians For Equal Rights Foundation et al. v. City and County of San Francisco et al.; the lawsuit involves Plaintiffs’ allegation that the City participated in one or more guaranteed income program the terms of which violated the Equal Protection Cause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, the equal protection guarantee in Article I, section 7 of the California Constitution, and/or Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.

This ordinance authorizes the City and County of San Francisco to settle a lawsuit filed by Californians For Equal Rights Foundation, Ruth Parker, and Ellen Lee Zhou for $50,000 in attorney's fees and costs. The lawsuit, filed on May 31, 2023 (Case No. CGC-23-606796), alleged that the City's guaranteed income programs violated equal protection laws. As part of the settlement, the City agrees not to fund or renew certain challenged programs (Black Economic Equity Movement (BEEM), Guaranteed Income For Transgender People (GIFT), Abundant Birth Project 1.0 (ABP 1.0)) with their prior eligibility criteria. The City also agrees not to operate Abundant Birth Project 2.0 (ABP 2.0) with its challenged criteria unless deemed lawful by ongoing litigation against the state.

The City will pay $50,000 in public funds to settle this lawsuit, and future guaranteed income programs will be designed without the specific race- or identity-based eligibility criteria that were challenged, potentially affecting who can participate.

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