Newly appointed supervisor steps down amid allegations about former business
San Francisco's newest supervisor, 29-year-old Beya Alcaraz, resigned Thursday night, one week after Mayor Daniel Lurie appointed her to the post, following reporting by ABC7 that raised fresh questions about her conduct as the former owner of a Sunset neighborhood pet-supply store.
Allegations and evidence
The store's new owner, Julia Baran, provided ABC7 with video showing unsanitary conditions she says she discovered after taking over earlier this year — including hundreds of dead mice, piles of trash and cages covered in urine and feces. When asked about those conditions, Alcaraz did not categorically deny the report and instead cited the challenge of running a small business in San Francisco.
Financial records and text messages
ABC7 obtained profit-and-loss statements for the Animal Connection indicating the business reported tens of thousands of dollars in losses from 2020 through 2023. At the same time, text messages verified by the station show Alcaraz telling the new owner that she had minimized tax liabilities and used certain expense categories to benefit herself personally.
"The business can be very lucrative, but if you can outsource some work, it would become even more," Alcaraz wrote in a March text. In other messages she said she spent personal money in categories such as "meals and entertainment, office meals, travel, etc." and described using non-cash revenue to support her personal life.
According to the records obtained by ABC7, Alcaraz logged $15,659.92 in meals, entertainment and related categories in 2023 while reporting a $20,748 net loss for the business that year on tax filings. Texts also include an exchange in which Alcaraz appears to tell Baran that she had been "paying people under the table," which she later described in an interview as cash payments to college-aged summer hires.
On-the-record interview
After waiting more than four and a half hours outside Alcaraz's City Hall office, ABC7 reporter Monica Madden secured a five-minute interview. When asked directly whether she had paid employees "under the table," Alcaraz said she hired college students and paid them cash so they could have extra money. On whether those cash payments were reported to the IRS, Alcaraz emphasized the difficulties of keeping a small business open and asserted, "First, I don't owe any taxes."
Expert reaction and legal risks
CPA and certified financial planner Larry Pon told ABC7 that treating personal expenses as deductible business costs and paying employees off the books can be illegal. "You cannot use your business account to pay for personal expenses and deduct them on your tax return," Pon said. "You have to report all your income — and if you have employees, you have to put them on payroll. Generally, first you're hit with civil penalties. And if it's really bad, it could be referred to criminal penalties."
Mayor's response and next steps
Mayor Daniel Lurie said he spoke with Alcaraz late Thursday night and that she told him of her intention to resign. In a statement he said the new information about her conduct would be a "significant distraction" from the work of representing District 4. At a Friday press conference, Lurie accepted responsibility for the appointment and pledged a review of the vetting process: "This is not the first time that I have gotten something wrong. It won't be the last. But what I commit to all of you — to the people of San Francisco — is that I'm going to learn from this, and I'm going to grow." He did not provide a timeline for selecting a replacement.
Political context
The vacancy comes as the mayor navigates contentious local issues, including upzoning proposals in the neighborhood and debate over the Great Highway — controversies that previously influenced the recall of Supervisor Joel Engardio. City Hall insiders told ABC7 they had not seen such a rapid fallout and critics are questioning how the mayor's office missed the red flags during vetting.
What remains unresolved: Investigations or audits could arise if authorities review tax filings or employment records. For now, Alcaraz has resigned, the mayor has pledged to re-evaluate vetting procedures, and the city must move quickly to fill the District 4 seat amid fraught local politics.
