SF lawmaker proposes bill to penalize companies that seek to build Trump border wall

A San Francisco lawmaker proposed a bill Tuesday that would prohibit the city from doing business with construction companies that seek to work on President Trump’s border wall during the bidding process.

Supervisor Hillary Ronen said doing business with such companies would be out of line with the city’s values, according to KTVU.

“Stick to building bridges, not walls.” Ronen said.

Ronen was joined by Oakland City Councilman Abel Guillen and Berkeley Mayor Jesse Arreguin during a news conference outside the offices of international construction giant T.Y. Lin. The company had previously expressed interest in building the proposed border wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.

T.Y. Lin worked on the replacement of the eastern span of the Bay Bridge as well as the seismic retrofitting of five underground BART stations in San Francisco and Oakland, Ronen said.

Ronen identified Hensel Phelps Construction Co. and the Tutor Perini Corporation as company also interested in working on the border wall and have several contracts in San Francisco.

“By introducing this legislation, we are moving beyond symbolic protest and making it clear to companies interested in doing business with San Francisco, that we expect those companies to uphold basic principles of compassion and dedication to human rights,” she said.

Hensel Phelps signed a $1.1 billion contract to help build a new terminal at San Francisco International Airport, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Additionally, Tutor Perini has an $860 million contract with the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency to help construct a subway.

The bill would only affect future deals. 

Ronen’s bill has received strong support from San Francisco City Hall, KTVU reported.

“That wall is such a strong symbolism of division in our country that we don’t want to have anything to do with it including contractors that want to work for the city,” San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee said.