The San Francisco Board of Supervisors may soon repeal parts of a law that prohibits city-funded travel and contracting with 30 conservative states, according to Fox News.
In 2016, the city created the law, Chapter 12X, in the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s Obergefell v. Hodges ruling that legalized gay marriage. The ordinance targeted states that passed “anti-LGBTQ+ legislation” but was later changed to include states that passed abortion and voting restrictions (via Fox News):
A Feb. 10 report from City Administrator Carmen Chu’s office found the law has been costly and ineffective, with only one state being removed from the boycott list.
"Since 12X became operative, the number of banned states has grown from 8 states in 2017 to 30 in 2022. This increase suggests that the City's threat of boycott may not serve as a compelling deterrent to states considering restrictive policies," read the report.
It also found the contracting ban itself has raised San Francisco’s contracting costs by roughly 10-20% and could grow even higher if more states are added to the list.
The report proposed five alternatives, including repealing the ordinance entirely or repealing the contracting ban, but keeping the travel ban in place.
According to The Washington Examiner, as a result of the boycott, the city’s annual contracting costs have risen over 20 percent. If more states are added to the list, it could rise even higher.
On Feb. 13, Supervisor Ahsha Safai introduced legislation to exempt construction workers from the ordinance. And, Supervisor Rafael Mandelmanm told the San Francisco Chronicle that he will introduce legislation to repeal it entirely, according to Fox.
"It’s an ineffective policy that complicates the business of San Francisco government and makes it very likely that we pay more than we should for goods and services," Mandelman told the outlet.
