San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie takes aim at city's historic deficit with hiring freeze

New San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie wasted no time getting to business on his first full day on the job Thursday, ordering a citywide hiring freeze and other cost-saving measures to address the largest budget deficit in the city's history.

Lurie made the announcement Thursday morning during his first meeting with department heads. He additionally instructed departments to "realign programming and spending with the city's priorities with a focus on evidence and proven results." Those measures will include pausing new programs and contracts that have yet to be implemented.

Lurie was inaugurated in a public ceremony held in Civic Center Plaza Wednesday followed by festivities in Chinatown that stretched into the evening. During his inaugural address, the new mayor focused on the city's $800 million budget deficit. 

He noted that San Francisco "can no longer hide from our fiscal reality" and that bringing down the deficit would require "some painful decisions."

"We need to stop spending more than we can afford," he added. "We need to prioritize essential services and make the investments that are critical to getting San Francisco up and running again."  

In a release issued by the mayor's office about the cost-saving measures, it allowed that the instruction to department heads "exempts positions which are historically challenging to staff and that directly support public safety and health."

"San Francisco is making a comeback, and I intend to put us in the best possible position to drive that growth," Lurie was quoted as saying in the release. "Our city is facing a major budget deficit, and today, the era of band-aid solutions is over. We are committed to fiscal discipline, giving San Franciscans the accountability they demand, and focusing the government on doing the core things well."