Senior Policy and Public Affairs Coordinator (5642) - Environment Department

The Senior Policy and Public Affairs Coordinator at the City and County of San Francisco is responsible for coordinating legislative activities, supporting policy development, and ensuring ethics compliance within the Environment Department. This role involves advocacy, media engagement, and liaison duties with various governmental bodies. The position will be remote from May 16 to November 15, 2024, after which it will follow a hybrid work schedule.
The 5642 Senior Policy and Public Affairs Coordinator serves as the operational hub for legislative and Commission activities at the Department. The position sits at the nexus between the Mayor’s Office, the Commission, the Board of Supervisors, other City agencies, and the Department’s Program Managers. Reporting to the Chief Policy and Public Affairs Officer, the Senior Coordinator helps develop, coordinate, and implement the Department’s legislative priorities, assists with formulating agendas for the Commission, staffs Commission meetings as Commission Secretary once a month, and ensures the Department meets its ethic compliance obligations. A typical day might feature morning engagement with representatives from the Mayor’s Office to advocate for the Department’s position on proposed environmental bills in the California State Legislature. Then, after lunch, a final meeting with direct reports and program staff to make last minute, crucial amendments to draft environmental legislation that is scheduled for introduction at the Board of Supervisors.

Job Duties

Policy
• Provide strategic guidance and governmental relations support to program staff when exploring new environmental policy that needs to be transformed and transcribed into potential ordinances;
• Coordinate with Department staff to advocate before the Mayor’s Office and the City’s State Legislative Committee for “support” or “oppose” positions on state and federal legislative bills;
• Engage reporters as an on the record spokesperson, assisting in fielding media inquiries, and providing strategic guidance and support to successfully execute press conferences;

Commission
• Serve as the Department’s official liaison to the Commission, Board of Supervisors, other public bodies, and partner organizations as appropriate;
• Lead a team of direct reports to schedule, organize, prepare agendas, develop talking points, draft meeting minutes, write resolutions, and staff monthly Commission meetings;

Ethics Compliance and Supervision
• Facilitate and track ethics compliance (Form 700, Form 801, gifts) throughout the Department with support from direct reports;
• Lead the response to sunshine or public information requests; and
• Supervise junior staff, fellows, interns, and contractors.

May include additional duties as assigned.
• Please note that the SF Environment Department is moving offices from 1155 Market St to 1455 Market St. The Department will be working remotely from May 16 to November 15, 2024. In November, the Department will resume its regular hybrid work schedule.