Mayor Daniel Lurie signs ordinance creating dedicated fund to implement 2023 advisory committee recommendations, but no initial taxpayer money allocated as city faces $1 billion deficit

January 01, 2026 | SAN FRANCISCO — A new Reparations Fund aimed at addressing historical harms to Black San Franciscans officially takes effect today, following the unanimous approval by the Board of Supervisors and signing by Mayor Daniel Lurie late last year.

The ordinance, signed on December 23, 2025, establishes a dedicated fund administered by the city's Human Rights Commission to support implementation of recommendations from the 2023 African American Reparations Advisory Committee (AARAC) report. That sweeping plan included proposals such as one-time $5 million lump-sum payments to eligible Black adults, income supplements, debt forgiveness, and prioritized housing access to remedy decades of systemic discrimination, including urban renewal projects that displaced thousands in neighborhoods like the Fillmore District.

However, the fund launches with no initial city funding, relying instead on potential private donations, foundations, corporations, and future appropriations. Mayor Lurie emphasized the city's fiscal challenges, stating that amid a projected $1 billion budget deficit, no taxpayer dollars would be allocated at this time.

"This legislation recognizes the important work of community members and the unanimous support from the Board," Lurie said in a statement. "But my focus remains on San Francisco's recovery—making our streets safer and cleaner—without committing public funds we don't have."

Supervisor Shamann Walton, who authored the measure and previously chaired the AARAC, hailed the fund as a shift "from apology to action." The city issued a formal apology for racist policies in 2024. "This creates a mechanism for resources to flow toward repairing generational harms," Walton said, expressing hope for philanthropic support to kickstart efforts.

The Black population in San Francisco has declined sharply from over 13% in the 1970s to about 5% today, while disparities persist in homelessness, health, and wealth. Approximately 46,000 Black residents live in the city, though eligibility criteria for any future distributions—requiring proof of harm from city policies or descent from enslaved persons—remain to be finalized.

Critics, including some conservative commentators and even local NAACP leader Rev. Amos C. Brown, have questioned the approach. Brown called an unfunded mechanism insufficient, arguing "an apology without action and a fund without allocation are not reparations."

No disbursements are expected immediately, and any use of public money would require separate legislation. Advocates view the fund as a foundational step, potentially the first in California to channel resources toward Black reparations, while opponents decry it as symbolic amid pressing city needs.