On Tuesday, District 5 Supervisor Bilal Mahmood unveiled the "Affordable Groceries Act," a package of legislation aimed at lowering food costs and expanding access to affordable groceries.
The proposal comes as grocery prices continue to rise, and as federal cuts to SNAP could leave more than 20,000 low-income San Franciscans at risk of losing food assistance by the end of next year, according to the San Francisco Department of Public Health.
The legislation would create a vacancy tax on what Supervisor Mahmood is calling “zombie stores”— or national chain corporations that are keeping storefronts vacant to allegedly block competition.
"No San Franciscans should have to travel across the city," said Supervisor Mahmood, "just to find an affordable head of lettuce."
The proposed tax would generate revenue that could be used to fund neighborhood markets that offer fresh, affordable produce and pantry staples.
At the Macedonia Baptist Church Food Bank, residents say rising food costs are stretching budgets across income levels.
"Bread price went high, high. You cannot get bread," Seema Sheikh, a mother and San Francisco resident said.
She said that even for her middle-income family, basic grocery items have become increasingly difficult to afford. "Before, you can get bread under four, five dollars. Now you can't get a $5 nothing. Especially milk and eggs. You know, basic things you buy for feeding your family, it's hard."
The legislation was inspired in part by New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani's efforts to open publicly owned grocery stores across the city's five boroughs.
Unlike Mamdani's proposal, the Affordable Groceries Act would not create city-run stores. Instead, it would establish a fund that could be used to convert corner stores into full grocery stores, provide rent subsidies to grocers already offering lower-priced goods, or help the city secure buildings that could be used for affordable food programs.
If approved by the Board of Supervisors in the coming months, the measures would show up on San Francisco voters’ ballots this November.
