SF Mayor Lurie Dismisses 6 Innovation Staffers as 49ers Move to 7-1

Across the Bay Area and Sacramento, municipal governance, state fiscal policy, and regional athletics delivered major developments over the weekend. In San Francisco, Mayor Daniel Lurie's administration dismissed 6 of the 10 employees in the Mayor's Office of Innovation less than nine months after securing a $7 million grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies. In Sacramento, Governor-elect Xavier Becerra held his first post-election press conference to place housing, health care, and energy affordability atop the incoming legislative agenda, while in Santa Clara, the San Francisco 49ers forced 5 second-half turnovers to defeat the Las Vegas Raiders 38-17 at Levi's Stadium.

Lurie Administration Dismisses Six of Ten Innovation Office Staffers

According to reporting by The San Francisco Standard, 6 of the 10 staff members in the Mayor's Office of Innovation lost their jobs on Friday, as first reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, without receiving severance. The office was expanded under a $7 million contribution from Bloomberg Philanthropies—unanimously approved by the Board of Supervisors in February 2026 after an expedited hiring request in December—which Lurie's administration described in January as the single largest grant Bloomberg had ever awarded to its network of city innovation teams.

Under a draft agreement filed with the board, a second payment of up to $2.38 million scheduled for Nov. 1 was contingent on San Francisco meeting fundraising targets and demonstrating satisfactory progress, alongside a requirement to raise $2.33 million in matching funds (half due by the end of September, with the office previously projecting $1.5 million to $2 million in fundraising and up to $1 million in existing spending, noting $5.5 million in permitting software at the Department of Building Inspection). The mayor's office declined to say whether it received the Nov. 1 payment or notified Bloomberg of the personnel changes, stating instead that no positions have been eliminated and new job descriptions will be posted in the coming days. Spokesperson Charles Lutvak said the office should use cutting-edge technology to improve city services, and officials stated the dismissals have no impact on PermitSF, led by Liz Watty. Following former director Florence Simon's departure in March and chief of strategy Jessica MacLeod stepping down on Sept. 30, current director Eufern Pan—named in August—reports to health and human services chief Kunal Modi as priorities shifted toward the Good Neighbor Policy, housing production, safe streets, Tenderloin youth safety, and Chinatown illegal dumping.

Governor-Elect Xavier Becerra Pledges Focus on California Affordability

In Sacramento, ABC7 News reported that California Governor-elect Xavier Becerra pledged Thursday to make affordability a top priority of his incoming administration. Appearing at his first news conference since winning Tuesday's election alongside Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas and Senate President pro Tempore Monique Limón—as Democrats prepare to enter the next legislative session with expanded supermajorities in both chambers—the three leaders identified housing, health care, and energy costs as key priorities.

Rivas stated that the election was a mandate to do things differently, while Becerra did not rule out considering tax cuts similar to those proposed by his defeated Republican opponent, Steve Hilton, saying that everything should be on the table. However, Becerra declined to make specific commitments regarding Medi-Cal coverage adjustments until he has a clearer understanding of the state's financial outlook. Hilton, speaking outside the Capitol, wished Becerra well and offered support if the administration lowers the cost of living during the next four years.

49ers Force Five Turnovers in 38-17 Victory Over Raiders at Levi's Stadium

On Sunday in Santa Clara, the refreshed San Francisco 49ers came off their bye week to defeat the Las Vegas Raiders 38-17 in Week 9, improving to 7-1 overall and 5-0 at Levi's Stadium while dropping Las Vegas to 4-5, according to NBC Bay Area and The San Francisco Standard. Quarterback Brock Purdy, 26, completed 17 of 25 passes for 232 yards and 2 touchdowns with 1 interception to Treydan Stukes, adding 31 first-half rushing yards, a 1-yard scoring run, and his 100th career regular-season touchdown pass—a 37-yard third-quarter strike to second-year receiver Jordan Watkins (who also had a 24-yard catch). With Mike Evans and Deebo Samuel sidelined, Demarcus Robinson caught 2 passes for 16 yards, KhaDarel Hodge added 1 catch for 17 yards, Brandin Cooks had a 13-yard grab, and Jacob Cowing drew an end-zone pass interference penalty.

Running back Christian McCaffrey, recovered from a Week 7 hamstring strain against the Atlanta Falcons (a game in which San Francisco lost a 14-3 lead in a 29-20 defeat on Oct. 25), carried 18 times for 68 yards with a 1-yard touchdown run and caught 2 passes for 19 yards, including a 12-yard touchdown with 5:15 left in the first half—the 36th touchdown catch of his career, surpassing Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk for the most by a running back in the Super Bowl era. Having led by at least 10 points in each of their past 6 games, the 49ers—who entered ranked No. 29 in the NFL with 7 takeaways in 7 games against a Raiders defense ranked No. 29 in expected points added ahead of next week's matchup with the Dallas Cowboys' No. 31 unit—forced 5 second-half turnovers in less than 30 minutes of game time, including 3 in the third quarter. Fifth-round rookie linebacker Jaden Dugger (6-foot-5, making his fourth start) intercepted Kirk Cousins on the first play of the second half and returned it 29 yards for a touchdown just 17 seconds into the period for a 28-10 lead. Linebacker Fred Warner forced his fifth fumble of the season against Brock Bowers (with Dre Greenlaw also recovering a fumble), cornerback Upton Stout punched the ball from tight end Michael Mayer at the 1-yard line for Warner to recover in the end zone, and after Ji'Ayir Brown pushed Bowers out at the 1-yard line following a 33-yard catch and Warner stuffed Cousins for a 2-yard loss, Renardo Green and Malik Mustapha each intercepted Cousins in the fourth quarter to seal the 38-17 win ahead of the 6-1 Minnesota Vikings' Monday game, though rookie defensive tackle Gracen Halton was carted off late with a leg injury requiring an air cast.