In a bold move to tackle the issue of family homelessness in San Francisco, Supervisor Jackie Fielder has announced her intention to introduce legislation aimed at ending the city’s policy that restricts family shelter stays to just 90 days.
“No child should ever worry about where they will sleep at night,” Fielder stated in a message on X.
She emphasized that city officials and shelter providers should focus on strategies to end family homelessness, rather than punishing families for systemic failures in providing viable options for affordable housing.
Fielder has voiced her concerns to Mayor Daniel Lurie and his administration multiple times, urging them to reconsider this policy, which affects several hundred children and their families living in shelters throughout the city.
Since taking office in January 2023, Fielder has made family homelessness and the right to shelter central to her agenda.
The existing policy, which had been paused during the COVID-19 pandemic, was reinstated in December 2024, mandating a maximum shelter stay of 90 days, with only limited extensions available.
According to the policy, families can receive an automatic extension of 30 days, and with case worker approval, maximum extensions can last up to six months.
Recent reporting by Mission Local highlighted the plight of approximately two dozen homeless families who were at risk of eviction from various city shelters after exceeding the 90-day limit.
In a prior meeting with Mayor Lurie, these families expressed their fears of homelessness, leading the mayor to offer assurances that they could remain in shelters as long as they were demonstrating “positive progress” toward securing permanent housing.
In some cases, families facing imminent eviction received last-minute extensions just before their deadlines.
Vilma Arias, a mother of two from Honduras, recounted her distressing experience with the policy.
Arias and her husband received a stern warning from St. Joseph’s Family Center, their shelter, that police would be involved if they did not vacate on their scheduled date.
Their eviction notice was particularly troubling as it came just ten days before they were set to meet with a city service provider, Compass Access Point, regarding a rental subsidy program.
One of the critical issues underpinning the policy is that San Francisco’s shelter system lacks the capacity to accommodate all families seeking assistance.
The Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing (HSH) reported having 318 families on its shelter waiting list as of March, in addition to over 500 individual homeless people.
“Every night, our shelter system is full, and yet more than 300 families are waiting for a spot,” Mayor Lurie acknowledged in remarks made to the Chronicle.
He further expressed that the administration is committed to working closely with supervisors to expand the system’s capacity in order to provide better options for those living on the streets.
Lurie stated, “We must help families move into permanent housing, putting them on the path to stability and opening up much-needed shelter space.”
Looking ahead, the mayor indicated his eagerness to work collaboratively with Supervisor Fielder and the Board of Supervisors.
In contrast to the administration’s emphasis on moving families toward permanent housing, Fielder argues that the existing policy is inhumane and is determined to see her legislation codified into law.
This path forward will hinge on the moderate-majority board’s willingness to either confront HSH or maintain the existing policy framework.
“I will continue working with everyone at the table to house all the families in our shelter system and on our waitlist,” Fielder said.
She added, “San Francisco is one of the wealthiest cities in the world, meaning that family homelessness is not an issue of lack of resources, but of political will.”
image source from：https://sfist.com/2025/04/15/sup-jackie-fielder-challenges-city-policy-that-limits-shelter-stays-for-families/
