§ 530. BALLOT ARGUMENTS; PROCEDURES.

(a) Rules for Submission. These procedures shall govern the submission and publication of ballot arguments for or against any measure submitted to the voters.

(b) Authorship. Subject to the provisions of Section 535, the Board of Supervisors, or any member or members of the Board of Supervisors authorized by that body; the Mayor; any proponent of an initiative measure or a referendum; any individual voter who is eligible to vote on the measure, or group of such voters; or association or organization; or any combination thereof, may submit a written argument for or against any measure for publication in the voter information pamphlet. When the Board of Supervisors authorizes a member or members of that body to submit and sign a written proponent's or opponent's argument for or against any measure for publication in the voter information pamphlet, or assigns that right to another person pursuant to Section 550 of this Code, the Board shall provide such authorization by motion and need not take any further action, including voting on or otherwise approving the actual text of the argument before it is submitted for publication.

(c) Form. To ensure that all ballot arguments are filed in a uniform format, the arguments shall be submitted in a manner specified by the Director of Elections.

(d) Authorization Signatures Required. A ballot argument shall not be accepted unless accompanied by the signature or signatures of the person or persons submitting it, or, if submitted on behalf of an association or organization, the name of the association or organization and the signature of at least one of its principal officers who is a registered San Francisco voter. The association or organization submitting the argument must clearly indicate whether it wishes the name of the officer submitting the argument to be printed as part of the argument. The names of additional associations, organizations, or individuals who are registered San Francisco voters may be submitted as co-authors of the argument. The names and titles of all co-authors, and the name and title of any other person to be included in the text of the argument as printed in the voter information pamphlet, shall be counted against the 300-word limit specified in Section 575 of this Article. Such names and titles shall be subject to the per-word fee specified in Section 830 of this Code.

(e) Consent Required. A ballot argument which includes in its text the name of a individual or entity, other than a co-author of the argument, which is represented as being for or against a measure, or which is represented as supporting, opposing, or endorsing the views expressed in the argument, shall not be accepted unless the argument is accompanied by a statement of consent signed by such individual or entity. The consent of an entity shall be signed by an officer or other duly authorized representative.

(Added by Ord. 429-97, App. 11/17/97; amended by Ord. 44-03, File No. 021996, App. 4/3/2003; Ord. 183-03, File No. 030652, App. 7/25/2003; Ord. 291-06, File No. 061375, App. 11/29/2006; Ord. , File No. 140341, App. 7/2/2014, Eff. 8/1/2014)