SAN FRANCISCO PUBLIC LIBRARY COMMISSION

Minutes of theRegular Meeting of DECEMBER 18, 2025

The San Francisco Public Library Commission held a regular meeting DECEMBER 18, 2025, atthe Koret Auditorium, Main Library and virtually on Zoom.

The SFPLCommissionmeeting was called to order at 4:30 PM.

Commissioners Present: Wolf, Huang, Lomax Ghirarduzzi, Lopez, Bolander, Jones and Calhoun. President Wolf presented the ancestral homeland acknowledgement ofthe Ramaytush Ohlone.
AGENDA ITEM NO. 1 GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT

Public Comment

Peter Warfield, Executive Director of Library Users Association: Libraryusers2004@protonmail.com, PO Box 170544, San Francisco California 94117-0544, said the author talk was the fullest he has ever seen it, there was a lot of interest and he got a clear impression from the author of the book; she was not neutral about AI.

Emily Garvie, Executive Director, Friends of the Library: congratulated the Library for the One City One Book program and said the Friends is wrapping up its Annual Fund appeal and Mission Branch renovation campaign is in the home stretch.

Nicky: said Public Comment is perfunctory and he is not supportive of AI or the Library promoting it.

Jason Gibbs, former SFPL Librarian: Coming to these meetings again, I sometimes feel a little bit like a Rip Van Winkle. I actively participated in Commission meetings in the early 1990s. It may seem quaint now, but back then we opened the meetings by standing up, placing our hands over our hearts, facing the flag in the Lurie Room in the old building (yes, that Lurie family), and reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. This gesture of solidarity between commissioners and the public took 15 seconds. 

Out of curiosity, I recently had the notion to research the evolution of the Bylaws of the Library Commission—particularly concerning public comment. One statement has remained constant in the bylaws: “The Commission shall hold meetings open to the public and encourage the participation of interested persons.” Attending these past few meetings, I have seen that each of you is accomplished, intelligent, dedicated, and attentive, and truly wants to support the library and its users. I hope you would assume that the “interested persons” who attend these meetings share your outlook. There is always a barrier of sorts between the public and government, and the exhortation to “encourage participation” is the way to lower that barrier. In the early 1990s, when I began attending meetings, the bylaws stated no time limit for public comment. By the mid-1990s, the Commission adopted a 4-minute time limit, which by the end of the decade dropped to 3 minutes. In March 2024, the Commission acted to amend the Bylaws. Four present members cast votes to do so. The current amended Bylaws continue to state that each member of the public can address the Commission “for up to three minutes.” 

The Bylaws are a legal document vetted by the City Attorney’s office. Every meeting I have attended, the Commission has violated its own bylaws— bylaws that current commissioners approved. If you cut me off before 3 minutes have transpired, you are violating your own rules. You must either follow your bylaws or amend them. The public should learn your rationale for limiting public participation. If you amend the bylaws to shorten the time limit, you could also amend the statement about encouraging participation. But I cannot believe that you really want to discourage participation. The people who stand on this side of the microphone are not enemies of the library or of the Commission. Everyone here supports the San Francisco Public Library.

AGENDA ITEMNO. 2 APPROVAL OF MINUTES – NOVEMBER 20, 2025

Peter Warfield said he is concerned about the Library’s continual shrinking of privacy of the patrons, and he commented on a variety of other issues.

Jason Gibbs said there have been complaints of the minutes of the meetings have been brief and he looked up in the city charter what are required of minutes. Public comment 67.16 says that a summary of each statement should be included, that varies from one line to 5 lines. I don't know that is being violated here.

Commission Discussion

Motion: Motion by Commissioner LOMAX GHIRARDUZZI to approve the minutes with three changes seconded by Commissioner LOPEZ to approve the NOVEMBER 20, 2025, Commission Minutes.

Action: AYES 7-0 (Wolf, Huang, Lomax Ghirarduzzi, Lopez, Bolander, Jones and Calhoun)

AGENDA ITEM NO.3 FYS 2027 & 2028 ANNUAL BUDGET

Mike Fernandez, CFO, presented an overview of FYs 2027 & 2028 Budget Priorities including the three phases of the Budget process, the Budget calendar, how the priorities align with Vision 2030, the Budget environment and revenue outlook.

Public Comment

Jason Gibbs said the presentation was great, page 14 is interesting, and is curious about services of other departments, how that works and asked for cost savings breakdown and where the zero number for equipment came from.

Peter Warfield said he was stunned by $8 million in the category of community programs and partnerships and remember when they broke 1 million and they were amazed by that and asked about improving access to print of all kinds including improvements in the catalog and the speed with which print arrives.
Commission Discussion

Commissioner Bolander said there is a2.5 million delta between the approved budget and the estimate, the funding seems worse than last year.

Fernandez said they are seeing at the end of the last year there was a lot of momentum over there and all indications that it will continue. A lot of larger events are happening in the city and the surrounding areas that are onetime events that would indicate a good reason for positive outlook.

Vice President Huang asked what numbers on slide 15 could potentially change next time.

Fernandez said 27 through 29 will get revised as they get new information.

Commissioner Calhoun asked about the delta between full employment and actual employment. Where would they see that in the presentation.

AGENDA ITEM NO. 4 CITY LIBRARIAN’S REPORT

Michelle Jeffers, Chief of Community Programs and Partnerships, presented on the SF Drag Laureate and the Drag Story's 10th Anniversary. The 2025 Drag Laureate, Per Sia, was the first reader to perform a Drag Queen Story Hour a decade ago. They hosted the 10th Anniversary celebration at the Main Library, which included multiple story hours happening throughout the day, a parade through the building, crafts, play, food, and fun. Ten years ago, the City Librarian and Deputy recognized the importance of delivering and celebrating this community with an innovative and inclusive idea that was brought to the Library by Radar Productions. The Library does this because Drag Queen Story Hour sparks imagination and serves audiences with joyful, glamorous, and proudly queer role models. Kids are particularly able to see people who defy rigid gender restrictions, and they can be their authentic selves. City Librarian Michael Lambert reported on his trip to Taiwan at the invitation of the National Taiwan University Dean of the School of Learning and the Graduate Institute of Library and Information Studies. He served as the keynote speaker for the Library Association of the Republic of China (Taiwan) conference and visited many of the newly constructed and most innovative libraries in Taiwan, which are far ahead of SFPL. The reason they invited SFPL is because of how our libraries operate as social infrastructure—anchoring our communities, fostering shared experiences to bring our community together, encouraging civic engagement, amplifying culture, and celebrating diversity.

Public Comment

Peter Warfield said he wondered how books are pushed out from a vending machine device and asked where people browse the books, noting that's one of the ways people find materials of interest.

Jason Gibbs said he had the opportunity to go to National Taiwan University to present a paper, though he never made it into the library. He noted that Taiwan is a very impressive society and that they do not have some of the societal problems that we experience here in terms of its public. It is a very different society.

Commission Discussion

Commissioner Lopez congratulated Jeffers, noting that this work is challenging. She stated that Jeffers does a great job, does not give up, and keeps pushing; her initiative in dealing with everything the process entails is not easy, as there are people in this world who do not have an open mind. She also thanked the City Librarian for representing the San Francisco Public Library across continents, noting it is inspiring to learn what other libraries are doing. Commissioner Calhoun said the ten years of history is remarkable and asked where that history lives. Jeffers stated that the Hormel Center is the keeper of that history.

Commissioner Lomax Ghirarduzzi said Jeffers was the best in the nation, noting that no one does community work like her.

Commissioner Jones said it was incredible what Jeffers does during these moments where the Library is making history. As the budget gets leaner, he asked how one doubles down and leans into history-making moments—focusing on being the best at a few things versus doing many things. He also wondered about the role of merchandise when celebrating these milestones. Commissioner Jones thanked Lambert for showing them incredible libraries across the world, noting it pushes the Commission forward.

AGENDAITEM NO. 5 2026 COMMISSION MEETING CALENDAR Public Comment

Peter Warfield stated that cutting the second meeting in February is a pity and noted that there is no break in the summertime.

Commission Discussion

Motion: Motion by Vice President HUANG to approve the 2026 Commission Meeting Calendar seconded by Commissioner CALHOUN.

Action: AYES 7-0 (Wolf, Huang, Lomax Ghirarduzzi, Lopez, Bolander, Jones and Calhoun) 

AGENDAITEM NO. 6 ELECTION OF 2026 OFFICERS

Public Comment

Peter Warfield stated that it is a pity the Commission does not have nominations prior to public comment, as this requires members of the public to address everyone generally rather than speaking to specific nominees. Commission Discussion

Commissioner Lopez nominated President Wolf to be the 2026 Commission President, which Wolf accepted. Action: AYES 7-0 (Wolf, Huang, Lomax Ghirarduzzi, Lopez, Bolander, Jones and Calhoun)

Vice President Huang thanked the Commission for the opportunity to serve and nominated Commissioner Calhoun as the 2026 Vice President; the nomination was accepted by Calhoun.

Action: AYES 7-0 (Wolf, Huang, Lomax Ghirarduzzi, Lopez, Bolander, Jones and Calhoun)

THE MEETING ADJOURNED at 6:23 PM

Margot Shaub, Commission Affairs Analyst

Commission Affairs Analyst, Main Library, San Francisco, CA 94102-4733