District 11 Supervisor Chyanne Chen is leading the push to create a public bank.
Chen requested that a charter amendment be drafted to create a municipal financial corporation and public bank, she announced on Tuesday. The amendment is intended to go before voters in November.
“San Franciscans need and deserve bold solutions to address housing affordability, small business vibrancy and climate sustainability, and this is the right time to advance solutions that lead towards a just economic recovery for all San Franciscans,” Chen said in a statement.
A public bank would allow San Francisco to “develop financing tools and lending products that will benefit three of San Francisco’s most consistent priorities: affordable housing, small business, and climate sustainability,” according to a news release.
Public banks are not a new concept. The Bank of North Dakota has been in operation for over a century. And San Francisco has made a number of moves, many of which were enabled by a new state law, to advance the idea.
The San Francisco Public Bank Coalition began advocating for a public bank many years ago. Jackie Fielder, the District 9 supervisor, was among its leaders.
Ingleside native Della Duncan, host of the Upstream Podcast and Co-lead of the San Francisco Doughnut Economics initiative, was involved with the project in its early days.
“Right now, most cities bank with large corporations, which means public money leaves the community as shareholder dividends and often makes loans misaligned with public values,” Duncan said. “A San Francisco public bank would keep that money local — transparent, accountable to the people and invested in the well-being of our communities and ecosystems.”
