One of the local-level campaigns to watch this November is San Francisco's Proposition B. If it passes, it puts the city on track to establish a public bank, the second in the country after the century-old Bank of North Dakota.
San Francisco Public Bank Coalition organizers kicked off the campaign on August 30 and are planning mobilizations in support between now and election day. You can check out their Facebook page for the latest, and learn more about the group, their vision, and principles at their website.
Proposition B would amend the city charter to authorize the establishment of a municipal finance corporation (MFC), which can make loans but not take deposits. If the MFC is successful, it will be able to transition to a public bank, capable of both taking city revenue as deposits and making loans. Like Bank of North Dakota and other proposed public banks, it won't provide retail banking services to individuals. And like Bank of North Dakota, it will finance to meet local needs. For San Francisco, this includes lending for affordable housing projects, green infrastructure, and small business.
The Alliance has long supported public banking as a key component of democratizing money and finance. Our Spring 2014 issue of Justice Rising focused on public banking, and council member Ruth Caplan has been active in local campaigns in both Washington DC and Boston, where she is currently a co-chair of the Massachusetts public bank campaign.
We are hoping for a win for the San Francisco Public Bank Coalition and for the people of San Francisco. A new and successful public bank won't just be a good thing for the city; it will also help advance other California public bank campaigns in East Bay, Los Angeles, and elsewhere, as well as state and city bank campaigns nationally.
You can read more about Proposition B here.
San Francisco Public Bank Coalition organizers kicked off the campaign on August 30 and are planning mobilizations in support between now and election day. You can check out their Facebook page for the latest, and learn more about the group, their vision, and principles at their website.
Proposition B would amend the city charter to authorize the establishment of a municipal finance corporation (MFC), which can make loans but not take deposits. If the MFC is successful, it will be able to transition to a public bank, capable of both taking city revenue as deposits and making loans. Like Bank of North Dakota and other proposed public banks, it won't provide retail banking services to individuals. And like Bank of North Dakota, it will finance to meet local needs. For San Francisco, this includes lending for affordable housing projects, green infrastructure, and small business.
The Alliance has long supported public banking as a key component of democratizing money and finance. Our Spring 2014 issue of Justice Rising focused on public banking, and council member Ruth Caplan has been active in local campaigns in both Washington DC and Boston, where she is currently a co-chair of the Massachusetts public bank campaign.
We are hoping for a win for the San Francisco Public Bank Coalition and for the people of San Francisco. A new and successful public bank won't just be a good thing for the city; it will also help advance other California public bank campaigns in East Bay, Los Angeles, and elsewhere, as well as state and city bank campaigns nationally.
You can read more about Proposition B here.
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