SEC. 67.34. WILLFUL FAILURE SHALL BE OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT.
§ 67.34
Elected officials and department heads who willfully fail to follow the Sunshine Ordinance, Brown Act, or Public Records Act commit official misconduct; allegations of such violations are investigated by the Ethics Commission.
If a city official or department leader deliberately refuses to follow the rules about public records, open meetings, and transparency (set by the Sunshine Ordinance, Brown Act, and Public Records Act), that counts as official misconduct. When someone complains that an elected official or department head did this on purpose, the Ethics Commission handles the case.
- Complex:The section cross-references three different state and local laws (Sunshine Ordinance, Brown Act, Public Records Act) without defining them, making full understanding require knowledge of external legal sources.
- Controversial:Official misconduct findings and Ethics Commission investigations can be contentious matters in San Francisco public debates about government accountability and transparency.
AI-generated · claude-haiku-4-5 · informational only, not legal advice.
Official text
The willful failure of any elected official, department head, or other managerial city employee to discharge any duties imposed by the Sunshine Ordinance, the Brown Act or the Public Records Act shall be deemed official misconduct. Complaints involving allegations of willful violations of this ordinance, the Brown Act or the Public Records Act by elected officials or department heads of the City and County of San Francisco shall be handled by the Ethics Commission.
(Added by Proposition G, 11/2/99)