Protect the vital Free City College program from deep cuts by the City

San Francisco – The City and County of San Francisco may soon be making cuts to the Free City College program, which is funded by Proposition W, a municipal tax on property transfers worth over $5 million that was adopted into law in 2016. Although the tax generates $30 to $38 million per year for the City and County of San Francisco – and the Free City College program currently receives only about half that amount – the City is considering further reducing its contribution to the program. Under a proposal by the City and County of San Francisco, starting in 2025 only certain courses that contribute to specific educational plans may be eligible for free enrollment. Exact details will be proposed later this year by the City. Furthermore, proposed city budget cuts, if approved, could reduce Free City College funding from $18.9 million in 2023-24 to just $9.3 million in 2024-25 and $7.2 million by 2025-26. Reserve funding for the Free City College program, which has previously been used for student debt relief, is also on the chopping block. Negotiations in 2019 led to the adoption of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between City College and the City and...