San Francisco, CA— Mayor Edwin M. Lee today announced over the next two years the City will contribute and invest $728 million in programs for children, youth and families, representing a 13 percent growth over the next two years compared to FY 2015-16 spending. This includes contributions to the San Francisco Unified School District, Preschool for All, Children and Youth Fund, the Children’s Baseline, and the Transitional Age Youth Baseline to improve educational outcomes and success.

“The best investment we can make in our future is an investment in our children and families,” said Mayor Lee. “With these new investments, we continue our commitment in education to help all families succeed in our City and prepare our youth for a job in the 21st Century economy. We will continue to ensure that our public schools are among the best in the world.”

Mayor Lee’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2016-17 and 2017-18 proposed balanced budget reflects his continued commitment to prioritize children and youth in San Francisco, and invests an additional $72 million in San Francisco’s children and youth compared with current fiscal year spending. This increase will bolster many existing programs and includes the following additional new funds for key initiatives:

• Early Care and Education: an additional $11.2 million will be invested in the care and education of infants and children 0-5 years of age. $6 million of this new funding is from the Children and Youth Fund and will help childcare facilities serving the City’s neediest families provide better quality care and maintain and increase slot availability. The investment will also provide subsidies for families to help offset the high cost of childcare in the City. The remaining $5.2 million represents increased support for the Preschool for All program.
• Family Engagement: $2.1 million in additional funding will improve families’ ability to navigate the myriad of children and youth services offered by the City, which will include the addition of a services navigation specialist within the Our Children Our Families Council and the build-out of an online services inventory. Furthermore, up to 750 families will directly benefit through additional funding for children’s services providers to increase their capacity for family engagement activities.
• Summer and Afterschool Programming: building on previous investments in this area, an additional $2.6 million will further expand summer and afterschool programs to keep an additional 2,000 San Francisco children and youth engaged and learning outside of school time.
• Youth Workforce Development: $2 million will create 250 new slots in City Youth Workforce Development programs; provide funding for financial literacy training for 2,500 youth, and increase funding for the Mayor’s Youth Jobs+ initiative, connecting an additional 1,000 youth to private sector employment opportunities. These services benefit youth aged 14-24. An additional $1.7 million has been allocated for targeted workforce and education programs, specifically addressing needs of disconnected Transitional Aged Youth, building upon program investments begun in FY 2015-16.
• Violence Prevention Collaborative: $3.1 million in new investment will fund a new African American Violence Prevention Collaborative (AAVPC), which forms part of the Mayor’s recently announced comprehensive violence prevention initiatives. This is a community-driven systems reform initiative dedicated to transforming the health and safety outcomes of the most disconnected African American youth up to 24 years of age in San Francisco. By enabling the AAVPC to serve as a culturally competent, community centered and results driven funding stream for local non-profit partners, the City hopes to see the same impactful work that is also occurring with the Mission-based Roadmap to Peace collaborative.
• Service Provider Capacity: $1.4 million will be invested in improving the capacity of children’s service providers throughout the City. This includes technical assistance and the creation of an opportunity fund that grantees can access to address unbudgeted emergency or capacity-building needs.

The Mayor’s FY 2016-17 and 2017-18 proposed budget includes $150 million in Public Education Enrichment Funds (PEEF) going to the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD), through the PEEF baseline and contribution, an 11 percent increase in funding over the next two years compared with the current fiscal year. Approved by San Francisco voters as part of November 2014’s Proposition C, half of the PEEF SFUSD contribution explicitly supports sports, libraries, the arts and music. The other half can be used for other general uses and has been used in the past to fund programs including Wellness Centers, Family Support, and Safe and Clean Schools.