Protesters rally at City Hall against senior and disability cuts

A $8.9 million cut to senior and disability programs would mean fewer meals, rides, case managers and wellness checks for some of San Francisco’s most vulnerable residents, protesters warned at City Hall. More than 50 people gathered Monday morning outside Mayor Daniel Lurie’s office and then moved from supervisor to supervisor, carrying hundreds of notes from seniors across the city and demanding that the reductions be fully restored.

The demonstration added to pressure on Lurie’s proposed budget, a nearly $17 billion plan for fiscal years 2026-27 and 2027-28 that he submitted to the Board of Supervisors on June 1. Advocates say the cuts land especially hard because the Department of Disability and Aging Services says people over 60 make up about 23% of San Francisco’s population, a share expected to rise. For older adults and residents with disabilities, that means the fight over a line item in City Hall could quickly become a fight over whether help arrives at home, in the neighborhood, or not at all.

The cuts under dispute would hit case management, community outreach, legal aid and workforce development. Golden Gate Senior Services said its Community Bridge Program would lose $92,000 over two years, or half its budget, threatening outreach that includes wellness checks and food deliveries. Advocates said those losses would be felt first by extremely low-income seniors, people with disabilities, and Cantonese-only speakers who rely on culturally specific support to stay connected to services and to one another.

Monday’s action followed a larger protest on April 16, when roughly 200 people packed City Hall to object to the same round of reductions. That earlier crowd, like the one on Monday, reflected broader opposition from the People’s Budget Coalition, a network of nonprofits, unions, community groups and advocates that has been organizing against the mayor’s budget cuts.

City officials have said the reductions are driven by the deficit and that no department is being spared. The overall budget gap has been described in city reporting as roughly $643 million, while earlier coverage of the senior and disability slice put the two-year deficit tied to those programs at about $234 million. Advocates continue to urge the city to use reserves instead of trimming services, as supervisors move into hearings and negotiations ahead of public comment day on June 24.