IN APPROVING A 2002 proposition to give members of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors a pay raise of tens of thousands of dollars each, and give their jobs full-time status, voters expected that the supervisors would in return devote their full attention to their duties. Unfortunately, as Examiner political editor Adriel Hampton reported this week, when it comes time to cast votes on the business of the board, too many supervisors are absent too often.

Some members of the board were quite upset that their records were published, and others responded that attendance for votes is not the only factor in assessing the worth of a supervisor. That may be right, but it certainly is an important one and it matters to the people who vote and pay the taxes.

The members of the Board of Supervisors not only are paid sufficiently for a full-time job, but also are entrusted with special authority and responsibility by the people of San Francisco. It doesn't seem too much to ask that they go out of their way to attend all their meetings, show up for all the votes and listen attentively to what people have to say.