San Francisco's Municipal Transportation Agency, facing what is described as an "existential" budget crisis, laid off a dozen managers Wednesday, including the chief strategy officer, Jonathan Rewers, as part of a major restructuring aimed at streamlining the organization and addressing a looming $322 million deficit. The SFMTA, which oversees the city's transit systems, parking, and other transportation services, is working to mitigate the financial shortfall that threatens to cripple public transport services, reported The San Francisco Standard.
All dismissed employees were members of the San Francisco Municipal Executive Association, a top managers' union, and held at-will positions, with the transit agency's board recently approving cuts to bus services and increased parking meter fees in their scramble to address these pressing fiscal challenges, but despite those efforts, estimates project the deficit will balloon to $320 million by the 2026-27 fiscal year. Jonathan Rewers, who had served as the chief strategy officer since late 2020 and had been with SFMTA since 2009, confirmed his layoff in a text message; he previously held the position of chief financial officer and oversaw the design and management of major agency programs, stating, "As the chief financial officer during the pandemic years, I of all people understand that difficult decisions need to be made," he said, per The San Francisco Standard.
The shakeup follows last year's mayoral election, after which Jeffrey Tumlin stepped down in December; Mayor Daniel Lurie appointed Julie Kirschbaum as the acting director in January, who has since restructured SFMTA's staff, dissolving the chief strategy officer’s division, with functions being consolidated. In an email to staff on Wednesday evening, Kirschbaum acknowledged the layoffs will raise questions among employees, stating, "These changes are necessary to reduce duplicative roles and the confusion that comes from overlapping and unclear responsibilities," the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
SFMTA's financial straits come despite measures already taken to reduce hiring, freeze positions, and slash one-time investments; the agency has shortened some bus routes and turned others around at Market Street to save costs. In addition, the agency increased fare inspections and added transit-only lanes to make bus services more efficient. They have adopted new technologies such as license plate readers and an online tow hearing scheduler to cut expenses further, as detailed by the San Francisco Chronicle. With these changes, SFMTA officials stress that the dire situation could have been worse with a potential deficit of up to $440 million had they not taken these proactive steps.
