Muni & Transit — A $307 Million Fiscal Cliff Barely Averted

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San Francisco's Muni system is in the worst financial crisis in its history, and the approved budget is a triage measure, not a recovery. The SFMTA Board in April 2026 unanimously approved a balanced two-year operating budget of $1.5 billion for FY 2026–27 and $1.6 billion for FY 2027–28, closing an immediate shortfall of $307 million in the first year — by eliminating 89 vacant positions and cutting $20 million in non-labor expenditures — while maintaining core service on 72 Muni lines and preserving free and discounted fares for youth, seniors, and people with disabilities. The longer-term solution requires voter action: a regional transit sales tax measure is on the November 2026 ballot, creating a half-cent sales tax in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties and a one-cent sales tax in San Francisco, which would provide stable ongoing funding for Muni and regional transit operators. Failure to pass the measure could result in 735 million fewer transit trips over five years.

Related cause: Transit

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