San Francisco’s Democratic mayor, London Breed, is introducing a new measure where single adults already on or applying for welfare will have to be screened for illegal drug use before receiving payments.
Breed, who is facing a tough reelection, said Proposition F would make it more challenging for those with substance abuse problems to access illegal drugs such as fentanyl, and it would offer applicants treatment instead as an incentive to receive their cash assistance from the city, which at most is $700 a month.
“They said San Francisco makes it too easy for people to access and to use drugs on the streets of the city, and we need to do something a lot more aggressive,” Breed said inside an athletic store that has faced multiple burglaries in the city.
This is Breed’s latest effort to help combat the city’s drug problem, which claimed the lives of over 800 people last year. Black and immigrant neighborhoods, as well as drug recovery advocates, have been putting pressure on Breed, who is the city’s first black mayor, to be more aggressive in addressing San Francisco’s drug and crime surges.
Trent Rhorer, executive director of the San Francisco Human Services Agency, told the Associated Press that if substance abuse is detected upon screening, a specialist and the applicant would review treatment options such as individual counseling, replacement medication, or a 12-step program.
Chris Ballard, co-executive director of Coleman Advocates, which aims to improve opportunities for black and Latino youth in the city, told the outlet that forcing someone to receive treatment is not compassionate and that people struggling with addiction should not be treated like criminals.
“There are more ethical ways to address the issue aside from punitive measures, and that’s the proper way to take care of a community, to show true support,” Ballard said.
However, Rhorer disagreed with critics: “To give someone who’s addicted to fentanyl $700 a month, I don’t think it helps improve their lives,” he said. “In fact, I think it does the opposite.”
Rhorer added that if the applicant chooses treatment, there is no requirement that they be sober and that by attending their program, the hope is that “at one point a light bulb will go off.”
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Two out of three voters in San Francisco support the controversial measure, ABC7 reported.
While pushing Proposition F could set Breed apart from her challengers and help put her in a favorable position ahead of the November election, she faces a declining approval rating and a looming budget deficit. Breed has sold herself as a centrist who is strict on crime, which doesn’t sit well with the city’s progressive base.
