San Francisco’s ban on taxpayer-funded travel to states with anti-LGBTQ laws and doing business with companies based there is coming to an end. It will certainly add momentum to state lawmakers’ push to also end California’s travel ban policy for such states.
As expected, the city board of directors voted 7-4 at its Tuesday meeting to repeal the policy known as 12X. First enacted in 2016 to cover states that have enacted laws restricting LGBTQ rights, it has been expanded to include states with restrictions on abortion access and voting.
It led to the 12X policy, which covered 30 states, almost two-thirds of the country. It also sparked a growing backlash, as critics argued it was ineffective at promoting the city’s liberal values in other states.
Instead, they argued that 12X merely made city contracts more expensive because fewer companies could bid on them. Mayor London Breed signed an amendment to the law in late March that would allow construction companies across the 30 states to re-bid for public contracts in the city.
Regulators had voted 7-4 for the change, signaling that there was also support for scrapping 12X entirely. Rafael Mandelman, Supervisor of Gay District 8, wrote the relevant ordinance, with Supervisors Ahsha Safaí of District 11, Hillary Ronen of District 9, Catherine Stefani of District 2, and Board Chairman Aaron Peskin of District 3 signing on as co-sponsors.
Safaí drafted the ordinance that ended the ban on construction contracts. Gay District 6 supervisor Matt Dorsey also signed on as a co-sponsor of Mandelman’s ordinance.
The seventh vote of goodbye at the April 25 board meeting came from District 4 gay supervisor Joel Engardio, who also came on board as a co-sponsor. The board must pass it a second time at its May 2 meeting before sending it to Breed, who will shortly thereafter sign the 12X repeal into law.
When it came up before the regulators’ rules committee last week, Mandelman noted, “Some say it’s a white flag — I don’t.”
This week, Mandelman again emphasized that 12X is “not achieving the goal” it was supposed to and instead is “making our government less efficient.”
But District 10 Supervisor Shamann Walton reiterated his concerns about the policy’s scrapping without having more study and analysis on how it will impact the local LGBTQ community and small business owners in the city.
“This could really backfire on our small businesses,” Walton said.
Supervisors Myrna Melgar of District 7, Dean Preston of District 5, and Connie Chan of District 1 agreed with Walton and voted to keep the 12X policy. Chan said she is trying to see how she can achieve “intent” on the travel and contract bans once they are lifted.
It comes as lawmakers in other states continue to pass anti-LGBTQ legislation this year. A major LGBTQ rights group in Florida has even issued a travel warning for the Sunshine State because lawmakers there are repealing the rights of LGBTQ people.
Nonetheless, a bill to end California’s travel ban policy for such states is making its way through the legislature. Pro-Lesbian Senate President Toni Atkins (D-San Diego) introduced Senate Bill 447 to repeal it and replace it with a marketing effort to support LGBTQ rights in conservative states. How much money will be made available for this or where the funding will come from has yet to be determined.
Although it is expected to pass the state Senate, it could face opposition in the assembly as the bill’s author, gay Rep. Evan Low (D-Cupertino), raises concerns about its repeal. Also not yet committed to supporting SB 447 is Congregational Member Matt Haney (D-San Francisco).
“I haven’t checked the bill yet. This is the first time I’ve heard of it,” Haney told the Bay Area Reporter during an April 21 phone interview.
The former San Francisco supervisor joined the board after the city’s “no-fly list” for anti-LGBTQ states was already in place. But he voted to extend the scope to include states that blocked access to abortion in 2019 and restricted voting rights in 2021.
“I think it was well intentioned,” Haney said of the city’s 12X policy. “But I think it makes perfect sense for the board to evaluate the policy and make appropriate changes to ensure we can keep contract costs down and whether it’s also having a real impact on reactionary politics across the country.”
A spokesman for Rep. Phil Ting (D-San Francisco), who has served in Sacramento since 2012, did not respond to the BAR’s request if he supports Atkins legislation known as the BRIDGE Project, an acronym for Building and Reinforcing Inclusive, various , Gender Equality.
The city’s third representative in the Legislature, gay state Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), wrote the city’s 12X policy while he was a member of the board of directors. He advocated full repeal in February and also supports SB 447.
“As attacks against LGBTQ people soar to the most extreme levels in generations, it is imperative that California strikes back. This bill provides a great opportunity to do that,” Wiener said earlier this month after exiting its first Senate committee.
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