Visit the Contra Costa-Solano Food Bank website to find a drop off location near you. Or host your own food drive! Call 925-771-1315.

August 31—September 6 Tuna Week
September 7—13 Peanut Butter Week
September 14—20 Baby Week (baby food or gift cards for formula)
September 21—27 Cereal Week (iron-rich cereal)
September 28 – October 4 Soup Week (canned soup)

For more information about Hunger Action Month, these events, or just the Food Bank in general, please call 925-676-7543, email info@foodbankccs.org or visit us on the web at www.foodbankccs.org.

With an eye toward similar potential disaster in Contra Costa County, some wonder if it’s even possible to void such contracts. One observer opined that pro-union Democrat legislators have helped install safeguards against such
action, while another informed source quoted the California League of Cities, saying it was possible.

Meanwhile, an Open Letter that appeared in a recent edition
of Police Pay Journal, defends firefighters and police against poor municipal management and bad PR.

According to far flung reports around the world, “Fearful of contagion, municipal officials across the US are looking with nervousness at the precedent-setting experience of Vallejo, a city of about 120,000 people, 30 miles north of San Francisco. in a region that was once synonymous with economic prosperity”.

Indeed, Vallejo’s motto was and may yet be,”City of Opportunity.”

Many schools and organizations in Contra Costa County are offering free, nutritious meals and snacks throughout the summer including sites in Antioch, Concord, Pittsburg, Bay Point, Richmond, and San Pablo. Summer food programs work by providing free meals and snacks to children and teens ages 18 and younger when school is not in session.

Of the students eligible to receive free or reduce priced meals during the school year, 66.7% in Contra Costa are NOT participating in the Summer Food Program. Nationally, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that more than 17 million children received free or reduced-price school meals during the 2007 school year, but only 3.3 million children received summer meals.

Visit www.foodbankccs.org and click on the link for more information about summer lunch to find a location near you.

Because so few public entities have declared bankruptcy, no one’s sure how labor contracts will be affected. Vallejo’s public safety unions have vowed to fight the proceedings, arguing that the city has plenty of money stashed in hidden accounts and is using bankruptcy to avoid paying police and fire fighters what they’re owed.

The unions commissioned a report by Harvey Rose auditing firm in San Francisco that concluded the city has other ways to balance its budget besides slashing salaries, staffing and benefits, union leaders said. The report has not been made public because it’s part of ongoing labor negotiations.
Meanwhile, the unions would like an independent state audit of Vallejo’s books.

“We don’t believe they’re insolvent,” said Vallejo police Detective Mat Mustard, vice president of the police union. “But by declaring bankruptcy, they’ve taken a financial crisis and turned it into a catastrophe. It’s like using an elephant gun to shoot an ant.”

It’s very possible a judge will void Vallejo’s labor contracts, George said. When airlines began filing bankruptcy several years ago, judges allowed them to renegotiate their union contracts, making bankruptcy an attractive option across the airline industry, he said.

Even so, bankruptcy is an extreme measure for a public entity, he said. Thousands of cities across the United States are in the same boat as Vallejo, but nearly all of them find other ways to avoid Chapter 9. They cut and outsource services, share services with neighboring cities, sell property and raise taxes and fees.

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