Whoever is elected this Nov. 8 to become San Francisco’s next mayor might be glad to hear about the $325,000 included in Mayor Ed Lee’s proposed $6.8 billion budget to “cover administrative and staffing costs to enable the successor mayor the flexibility needed to assemble their own mayoral staff and allow a smooth transition of responsibilities,” the Mayor’s Office said, according to a report from Budget Analyst Harvey Rose on the proposed budget.

How it would work is that some time after Jan. 10, the mayor would submit a so-called “Mayor’s Transition Plan Project” to the City Controller, which would then transfer the funds to the Mayor’s Office. The Board of Supervisors would have no say on how that money was spent. If all that money is spent on staff for the remaining six months of the fiscal year, Rose notes that if those positions remained in the subsequent year it would double to $650,000.

The Board of Supervisors Budget and Finance Committee kicked off its review of Lee’s proposed budget Monday. It’s unclear, as the board looks to offset cuts to vital services, if it will approve of this $325,000 item.

jsabatini@sfexaminer.com