Recent amendments to San Francisco’s Fair Chance Ordinance (FCO) go into effect on August 10, 2026, after which San Francisco employers will have to disregard certain additional criminal records. The recent amendments also require the employer to take action within certain time frames and increase potential penalties for failure to comply. The City's FCO limits how employers may use criminal history in hiring and other employment decisions. Recent amendments preclude employers from considering convictions and unresolved arrests related to abortion care, gender-affirming care, and drag performances, and add new deadlines to the adverse action process.
What the FCO Requires
The Board of Supervisors enacted the FCO in 2014, making San Francisco an early adopter of "ban the box" rules. It applies to employers with five or more employees located or doing business in the City, and covers any position involving at least eight hours of work per week in San Francisco.
Covered employers may not ask about arrest or conviction records before a conditional offer of employment. Covered employers may not ask about any of the following, even after a conditional offer of employment has been made:
- Arrests that did not lead to a conviction, other than unresolved arrests
- Diversion and deferral of judgment programs
- Convictions that have been dismissed or expunged
- Juvenile justice matters
- Infractions and other non-felony, non-misdemeanor offenses
- Convictions more than seven years old
- Convictions for conduct that has since been decriminalized
Even an arrest or conviction record an employer may consider under the FCO requires additional action. Before taking adverse action based on such record, the employer must notify the individual, identify the records behind the proposed decision, and provide a copy of the background check report, if any. The individual then has seven days to respond with evidence of inaccuracy, rehabilitation, or other mitigating factors. The employer must delay any adverse action for a reasonable period and reconsider it in light of that information
Employers also must state in job postings that qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records will be considered, and must conspicuously post the official FCO notice at each workplace.
Amendments Going Into Effect August 10
Under the amendments, employers may no longer use out-of-state convictions or unresolved arrests as a basis for adverse employment decisions where the underlying conduct is lawful under California law and related to:
- Abortion-related healthcare
- Drag performances
- Gender-affirming care
- Spontaneous abortion
The amendments also add requirements to the adverse action process:
- An employer that receives a timely response from the individual must confirm receipt within 14 days.
- The employer must then delay the adverse action for a reasonable period after sending that confirmation and reconsider the decision in light of what the individual submitted.
- If the individual makes a reasonable factual showing that the proposed action rests solely on a conviction unrelated to the job, the employer must withdraw the proposed adverse action.
- Notice of any final adverse action is due within 30 days after the employer receives the individual's response, or, if the individual does not respond, within 30 days of the employer's original notice.
These requirements have no counterpart in the California Fair Chance Act, the state law that restricts how employers throughout California may use arrest and conviction records in employment decisions. State law requires notice of a preliminary decision and consideration of any response, but it does not require an acknowledgment of receipt, does not compel the employer to reverse course, and sets no deadline for the final decision. The time an individual has to respond differs too: at least five business days under state law, with a five-day extension available, versus seven calendar days under the FCO.
Finally, the amendments increase administrative penalties for violations and the liquidated damages available in a lawsuit.
What Should San Francisco Employers Do?
San Francisco employers must comply with the new FCO requirements starting August 10, 2026. The requirements are more restrictive than the California Fair Chance Act, so San Francisco employers must ensure compliance with both laws. Because of the new time limits set forth in the FCO, San Francisco employers should make sure to have a process in place to comply within those time limits. Employers with questions about the amended FCO or related background check obligations should consult counsel promptly.
*Special thanks to CDF law clerk Grace Pating for her research and contributions to this article.
