More than 200 San Francisco workers and residents gathered Saturday morning to officially launch the Yes on Prop D campaign, kicking off a citywide effort to protect vital public services by asking the largest corporations doing business in San Francisco to pay their fair share.

Supporters, including SEIU 1021 members, rallied together with before fanning out across neighborhoods to canvass voters and discuss what is at stake in the June election: funding for safety-net hospitals, homelessness prevention programs, mental health services, and home care for seniors and people with disabilities.

Speakers at the kickoff emphasized that Prop D, also known as the Overpaid CEO Act, is about protecting the services thousands of San Franciscans rely on every day while ensuring that small businesses and working families are not asked to shoulder the burden of the city’s budget challenges. San Francisco Supervisors Bilal Mahmood, Connie Chan, Myrna Melgar attended in support. According to City officials, San Francisco is facing a billion dollar deficit and orders have already been given to cut more than $40 million in the Department of Public Health.  Prop D is the only solution being offered to stop such cuts.

“As a registered nurse at SF General, everyday I see firsthand how many people rely on San Francisco’s safety-net health system,” said Brittany Hewett, a registered nurse with SF General and an SEIU 1021 member. “From emergency care to mental health services to home care for seniors and people with disabilities, these programs are essential to the health and stability of our communities. Prop D helps ensure that those services remain available by asking the largest corporations doing business in San Francisco to contribute a modest share so our hospitals and care systems can continue serving the people who depend on them.”

Community members and small business owners also spoke about the importance of protecting services that support the city’s economic recovery and neighborhood stability.

Campaign organizers said the strong turnout reflected growing momentum behind the effort and underscored the urgency voters feel about protecting essential services.

Volunteers left the rally to begin the campaign’s first canvass, knocking on doors and speaking directly with residents about why voting Yes on Prop D will help safeguard the programs and services that support San Francisco’s recovery and protect the well-being of thousands of residents.

“I’m out here in San Francisco on a Saturday morning because it’s super important for voters to vote yes on Prop D and make sure the wealthiest corporations pay their fair share in taxes,” said Dawn Surratt, a nurse practitioner at SF General Hospital and SEIU 1021 member. 

While Prop D is a straightforward solution to help protect vital services, large corporate interests and Silicon Valley billionaires have committed to spend millions of dollars to fund opposition efforts.

We will need all hands on deck to pass Prop D! Stay tuned for opportunities to talk to voters. 

For more information on Prop D, visit CareNotGreed.org.

Read more about the Prop D kickoff from the San Francisco Chronicle here.