When will we say enough with corrupt commissioners?

Sign our petition calling for Kathrin Moore’s immediate resignation.

Commissions are composed of appointed citizens (either by the Mayor or the Board of Supervisors) who are meant to provide civilian oversight for city agencies. However, time and again, we’ve seen that San Francisco’s commission system has unintentionally opened the door on instances of grift, corruption, and violations of public confidence.

And herein lies the story of Kathrin Moore, appointed by then-Supervisor Aaron Peskin to the Planning Commission in 2006, on which she’s served ever since. (An aside: the fact that we can have someone serve as a commissioner for nearly two decades should be alarming to all San Franciscans.) The Planning Commission oversees the Planning Department, and has the power to approve or deny development projects in San Francisco. 

On July 3, the SF Standard reported that Moore had been receiving income from her former employer, Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill (SOM), a major architecture and design firm that regularly has business before the city. Moore failed to recuse herself from several votes approving SOM projects. This is clearly a conflict of interest.

Then the SF Standard’s Gabe Greschler published a follow-up article this week with something far more damning: Moore had been advised in a 2012 letter from the City Attorney to recuse herself from any SOM-related business before the Planning Commission, as her receiving payments from SOM constituted her having a material financial interest in the firm. Because of these payments, there was a clear conflict with her impartiality obligations as a city commissioner. Despite this clear legal guidance, there were many instances where she voted in favor of SOM-affiliated projects.

When a commissioner representing city government fails to follow ethical guidelines and lessens the image of the government, the public’s faith is eroded. Deeply entrenched political appointees like Moore should be held accountable to the same standards as our elected officials. 

For her callous disregard of city ethics laws and legal guidance, Moore is unfit to continue serving as a commissioner and should resign immediately. By remaining in her role, she casts a shadow over the objectivity and professionalism of the Planning Commission.

If you believe in a government that works for the citizens that elect it, it’s critical that we hold bad-actors accountable.