SEC. 3.232. PROHIBITION ON USE OF PUBLIC FUNDS FOR PRINTED GREETING CARDS.

San Francisco prohibits the use of public funds to design, produce, create, mail, send, or deliver printed greeting cards that celebrate or recognize holidays. The Controller of the City and County has sole discretion to determine whether a payment violates this prohibition, and the Controller's decision is final.

The city cannot spend public money on printed cards that celebrate holidays. This includes designing them, making them, mailing them, or delivering them. The Controller (the city's chief financial officer) decides what counts as a greeting card under this rule, and their decision cannot be appealed.

• Could be simpler:The definition of 'greeting card' is quite narrow ('celebrates or recognizes a holiday') but the Controller has unchecked discretion to interpret whether a payment violates the rule, creating potential ambiguity about what cards are actually prohibited.
• Controversial:Restrictions on city spending are often debated; some may view this as appropriate fiscal prudence while others may question whether it meaningfully affects city budgets or constrains legitimate holiday communications.

AI-generated · claude-haiku-4-5 · informational only, not legal advice.