Oakland lawsuit settlement opens door for landlords to pass trash increases to tenants
Dispatches from Oakland, San Leandro, Emeryville, and chatter about the county administrator's robust salary
CITY NEWS
OAKLAND
—TRASH FEES, RENT HIKES—The settlement of a lawsuit that started with opposition to the legality of franchise fees paid to Oakland by Waste Management and California Waste Solutions, could allow property owners the ability to pass-on waste hauling rate increases to Oakland renters.
—In 2022, the California Supreme Court allowed the plaintiffs to challenge whether the franchise fees paid by Oakland’s garbage and recycling companies constituted an unapproved tax on residents.
—Last December, the city and the property owners reached a settlement. As part of the deal, city leaders pledged to place a proposed amended ordinance before the Oakland City Council that allows property owners to petition for rent increases based on the rising costs of garbage and recycling rates.
—Although, discussion of the proposed amended ordinance on Tuesday is part of the settlement, the council can reject it without penalty, according to city staff. However, as part of the settlement, the plaintiffs will receive $720,000.
—Oakland city staff is recommending the amended ordinance, but added, approval will likely increase stress on the city’s Rent Adjustment Program due to an expected increase in petitions for rate increases.
—Incidentally, the co-owners of California Waste Solutions are David Duong and Andy Duong. The father and son duo was indicted in January on federal charges of bribery, conspiracy, and fraud, that also includes former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao and her partner, Andre Jones.
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—SAFETY VS. SOLVENCY—A new report released by the Bay Area Council earlier this month, warns that Oakland faces a critical juncture as concerns about crime and a massive budget deficit threaten its economic future.
—The Bay Area Council is hosting a policy briefing this afternoon in Oakland to discuss the report.
—Oakland continues to rely on outdated public safety strategies, according to the report, which calls for a restructured investment in policing to improve safety, restore public trust, and stabilize the city's finances.
—“While high crime rates and a budget deficit are not new challenges for Oakland,” the authors wrote, “this report argues that with a new approach—one that places investments in public safety front and center—Oakland can finally move toward a future as a safe city with fiscal stability.”
SAN LEANDRO
—REEFER MADNESS—San Leandro’s abrupt redirection to expanding the number of retail cannabis permit in the city and potentially removing regulatory barriers will be discussed at a special Rules Committee meeting this morning.
—San Leandro quickly approved a fourth retail cannabis permit for one of its existing permit holders in April. The move triggered complaints from the other two permit holders, leading to the city opening discussions about making more permits available in addition to tweaking the map of allowed locations for retail cannabis dispensaries.
—City staff also intended to gauge the desire of the committee to get rid of conditional-use permit altogether, the current process for vetting interested cannabis groups.
EMERYVILLE
—FAULT LINES & FRONTLINES—The Emeryville City Council is set to authorize a $2.42 million contract on Tuesday night with a vendor to prepare an Environmental Impact Report for the proposed Sutter Health Hospital project at 5300 Chiron Way, with all costs reimbursed by the hospital giant.
—In the meantime, signs that labor unions will hold Sutter Health and the Emeryville city officials to the fire are becoming clear.
—Representatives for health care workers returned to the Emeryville City Council last week to reiterate concerns that Sutter Health’s proposed plans to build new facilities in Emeryville will amount to fewer beds and reduced safety net services.
—In tandem, Sutter Health plans to close Alta Bates Hospital in Berkeley and repurpose the property for other medical services.
—Sutter Health has provided few specifics about its plans for the proposed Emeryville hospital since an announcement earlier this year, said Doug Jones, a political organizer for SEIU/United Healthcare Workers. Sutter has also refused to meet with employee groups, he added.
—Furthermore, there are concerns about a three-year period between state-mandated seismic retrofitting for Alta Bates in 2030, and a proposed 2033 completion date for the new Emeryville hospital.
—“If there is a three-year lag time between the period of time in which hundreds of beds in Berkeley become non-operational and the completion of the rebuild here,” Jones said, “obviously we might be tremendously short on impatient beds.”
COUNTY NEWS
—SUSAN’S SOARING SALARY—Like the cicada, chatter about Alameda County Administrator Susan Muranishi’s robust salary, reenters the local political discourse every 5-6 years.
—According to sources at the county, reporters are poking around, readying a report sure to rekindle public outrage over Muranishi’s total compensation. She may now be the highest-paid public employee in the state.
—As of 2022, Muranishi earned $888,735 in total compensation, including base salary, benefits, and bonuses.
—When the iconic reporting duo of Phil Matier and Andrew Ross first wrote about Muranishi’s salary for the San Francisco Chronicle in 2013, it triggered outrage across the local political scene. (Point of personal privilege: The East Bay Insiders newsletter is 100% inspired by the work of Matier & Ross.)
—The article was framed to show that Muranishi was set up to earn $400,000 a year in pension benefits for the rest of her life. That’s $9 million total compensation based on the average lifespan of a woman, the chair of the Alameda County Republican Party exclaimed at the time.
—The Chronicle resurrected Muranishi’s salary in 2019 for an article about public employees who will earn more in retirement than they do while on the job.
—Muranishi, who the Alameda County Board of Supervisors named their county administrative building after last year, runs the county with an iron fist. Be certain, nobody in the entire county will entertain a reporter’s questions about Muranishi’s salary.
CAMPAIGN FINANCE
337 days to Election Day
—DEM DUO—Two major Democratic Party donors spread $70,800 across six local legislators last week, including the entire East Bay Assembly caucus.
—Patty Quillin, the Santa Cruz philanthropist who typically supports criminal justice reforms; and Elizabeth Simons, a prolific donor to several progressive causes, made identical maxed-out $5,900 contributions to the campaigns of Assemblymembers Buffy Wicks, Liz Ortega, Mia Bonta, Rebecca Bauer-Kahan, and Alex Lee.
—East Bay State Sen. Tim Grayson also received contributions from Quillin and Simons. The contributions to Grayson are curious. He is not viewed as a progressive, and his 2030 account is likely a placeholder account for future use.
—Quillin is married to Netflix founder Reed Hastings. Simons is the daughter of billionaire hedge fund manager James Simons.
—It’s unclear the impetus for the cluster of contributions. Perhaps, last week may have been the time of year for these individuals and other criminal justice reform groups to write campaign checks?
—💰MONEYBALL—Form 497 large campaign contributions filed on June 23 through June 29:
STATE LEGISLATURE
STATE ASSEMBLY
—Buffy Wicks for Assembly 2026, Kaitlyn Krieger of Palo Alto, $5,900; Patty Quillin of Santa Cruz, $5,900; Elizabeth Simons of Atherton, $5,900; PayPal, $2,000. TOTAL: $19,700.
—Liz Ortega-Toro for Assembly 2026, California State Pipe Trades Council PAC Small Contributor Committee, $7,500; Patty Quillin of Santa Cruz, $5,900; Elizabeth Simons of Atherton, $5,900; California Applicants' Attorneys Association PAC, $5,900; California Applicants' Attorneys Association Small Contributor Committee, $5,900. TOTAL: $31,100.
—Mia Bonta for Assembly 2026, Faculty for our University's Future, a committee sponsored by the California Faculty Association, Small Contributor Committee, $6,800; Association of California School Administrators PAC Small Contributor Committee, $5,900; Patty Quillin of Santa Cruz, $5,900; Elizabeth Simons of Atherton, $5,900; Cigna Holding Company, $5,000. TOTAL: $29,500.
—Rebecca Bauer-Kahan for Assembly 2026, Patty Quillin of Santa Cruz, $5,900; Elizabeth Simons of Atherton, $5,900. TOTAL: $11,800.
—Alex Lee for State Assembly 2026, Patty Quillin of Santa Cruz, $5,900; Elizabeth Simons of Atherton, $5,900; Steamfitters Local 342 PAC, $5,900. TOTAL: $17,700.
STATE SENATE
—Aisha Wahab for State Senate 2026, California Building Industry Association PAC, $5,000; California Nurses Association PAC Small Contributor Committee, $5,000. TOTAL: $10,000.
STATEWIDE
STATE TREASURER
—Rob Bonta for Attorney General 2026, Kazan, McClain, Satterley & Greenwood, A Professional Law Corporation, $10,500; Kaitlyn Krieger of Palo Alto, $10,500; SEIU Local 1021 Candidate PAC Small Contributor Committee; $10,000; Reza Abbaszadeh of Aspen, Colo., $10,000; Smart Justice California Action Fund, $9,800;
Sara Sedlacek of Los Angeles, $9,800; UA Local 38 COPE Fund, $5,800; Adam Elsesser of Alameda, $5,500; Chetan Puttagunta of Woodside, Calif., $5,400; Shuo Wang of Medina, Wash., $5,400; Teamsters Local Union 350 PAC, $5,000; Jeremy Stoppelman of San Francisco, $5,000; Alisa Mallari Tu of Redwood City, $5,000. TOTAL: $97,800.
—Libby Schaaf for Treasurer 2026, Caleb Roope of Eagle, Idaho, $9,800; Robert Nibbi of San Francisco, $5,000; Isaac Abid of Oakland, $5,000; Amanda Monchamp of Oakland, $5,000. TOTAL: $19,800.
—Tim Grayson for State Controller 2030, American Council of Engineering Companies Administrative Trust, $9,800; Patty Quillin of Santa Cruz, $5,900; Elizabeth Simons of Atherton, $5,900. TOTAL: $21,600.
