Quality of life citations are issued for infractions like sleeping and camping on the street, loitering, panhandling, and many others. For the full list of citations that are eligible for dismissal, click here: 

Oftentimes, people who are homeless receive these citations. 

If you are experiencing homelessness or are at risk of homelessness and received any of the citations listed here, you may be able to have the citation dismissed by receiving help from a caseworker or social service provider.

To apply for the dismissal, print out this form and bring it to any approved community organization and social service provider, listed here. After you receive at least 20 hours of assistance, the social services organization or your attorney may submit the verification form on your behalf to the District Attorney’s Office, and will request that the citation be dismissed. The District Attorney’s office will let the social service provider know if your citation has been dismissed.  

You may choose from any of the approved list of service providers, located here. These providers offer support in accessing food, housing, mental health counseling, employment, drug and alcohol services, and more.

If your organization is not on the approved list, the organization may submit the form, along with a description of their services and a copy of their 501c3 status to the District Attorney’s Office. The District Attorney’s office cannot guarantee that any organization will be added to the list but will consider such requests.

You may still be eligible for a reduction on your citation through the San Francisco Superior Court. Please visit the Court’s “Can’t Afford to Pay” website for eligibility and options that may be available to you.

If you received a Traffic Court ticket, which includes traffic violations and/or quality of life citations, you may be eligible for a reduction on your citation through the San Francisco Superior Court. Please visit the Court’s “Can’t Afford to Pay” website for eligibility and options that may be available to you.

If you do not respond by the date on your citation, you may be charged a $300 assessment fee. If you are worried you will not complete your hours by the date listed on your citation, you can have your service provider alert the District Attorney’s Office that you intend to resolve your ticket through services. Your service provider can email SFDA.CONNECT@sfgov.org with your name and citation number, and the court will extend the deadline by 60 days. If you have already received a $300 civil assessment, you can still submit your form and request that the late fee is waived. 

You can submit the form without a copy of your citation if necessary. Make sure you complete all of the fields in the form, including the citation number, your name, date of birth, and California Driver’s License/Identification number if available. The District Attorney will complete necessary paperwork and contact the Court with the information provided, and the Court will verify the citation number against their records. If the citation number is correct, the citation will be dismissed. If the citation number does not match their records, the court will reply all to the email request and let the social service provider know the request has been declined for that reason.

If you don’t know your citation number, you can look it up at in the Hall of Justice at 850 Bryant Street, room 145 in San Francisco, CA.

The District Attorney will accept one form verifying 20 hours of social services to clear multiple Quality of Life citations. The District Attorney reserves the right to not process the petitions for individuals that have an excessive number of citations within a short timeframe, according to their discretion.

The District Attorney’s office is able to process these requests if you complete your twenty service hours and the form is turned in within 60 days from when the citation was given. If you turn in a form after 60 days, the District Attorney staff will submit a request that the ticket, and any corresponding late fees or civil penalties, to be suspended by the Superior Court.

Your service provider can complete one form that lists all of your citations numbers, regardless of whether or not the citations are current or past-due.

Yes. You should submit your form, and indicate that you received a civil assessment on the form.

If it is not past the due date on your ticket, you should not have a late fee. If it is 20 days after your due date, you may have gotten a notice in the mail. If you are unsure, go the San Francisco Court and go to room 145. The court is located in the Hall of Justice at 850 Bryant Street in San Francisco. You can also contact one of the community advocates on this list. Community advocates are listed on the last page of this list.

To be eligible for the program, you must be experiencing homelessness or at imminent risk of homelessness. This includes individuals living in shelters, Single Room Occupancy hotels (SROs), or individuals without a permanent nighttime residence.

When people experiencing homelessness are unable to access this program, the consequences that result from these citations can create barriers to employment and housing. Their unpaid citations – and the added on $300 civil assessments for missing court dates – can add up to court debt that can damage their credit score, make it hard to secure housing, and can limit access to some supportive programs. This program allows individuals struggling with homelessness to get the assistance they need, and frees up needed resources at the Court and the District Attorney’s Office.