San Francisco Police Officers Ass'n v. City & County of San Francisco

*500 Opinion

The City and County of San Francisco and others appeal from a judgment granting petitions for writ of mandate; petitioners were the San Francisco Police Officers Association and the San Francisco Fire Fighters Local 798. The principal question is whether the city’s board of supervisors must include a wage increase granted to Los Angeles police and fire personnel, effective July 1, 1977, in the data upon which the board based the compensation fixed for San Francisco police and fire personnel for the fiscal year July 1, 1977, through June 30, 1978.

I

The salaries of San Francisco’s police and fire department members are determined pursuant to section 8.405 of the city’s charter. Not later than August 1 of each year, the civil service commission is to survey and certify to the board of supervisors “rates of compensation paid police officers or patrolmen” employed in police departments in all cities of 350,000 population or over in the state. The rates contained in the certification shall be the “average of the maximum rates paid to each police officer or patrolman classification performing the same or essentially the same duties as police officers or patrolmen” in San…