Stand Up For Working Families

SF Retirement & Healthcare -- Adachi Initiative

Local 21 Toolkit: No on Prop. B

Judge Slams Key Section of Adachi Initiative as Violation of 1st Amendment Rights

Union Updates

Local 21 Toolkit: No on Prop. B

Fact Sheet: The Truth About Prop. B, 10 Things Adachi Doesn't Want You to Know
Don't be fooled by Adachi's sales pitch. What do you get when you mix bad legal advice, ignorance about benefits, a Grand Jury report manipulated by Adachi's campaign treasurer, and reckless ambition? A Very bad law for San Francisco. No on Prop B!
Fact Sheet: The Truth About Prop. B, 10 Things Adachi Doesn't Want You to Know

Prop. B Legislation: Read the full text for the proposed charter amendment
Prop. B Legislation

Actuarial analysis outlining the financial impact of health care premium increases on you and your family
Actuarial analysis

Memo on Prop. B, a basic outline of what the measure does
Memo on Prop. B

Judge Slams Key Section of Adachi Initiative as Violation of 1st Amendment Rights
Union's Legal Victory Results in Court Ordered Removal of Adachi "poison pill," Allows Flawed Measure to Stay on Ballot

On August 10, Local 21 and a group of other Unions filed a legal complaint against Adachi and Prop. B, asking the court to remove it from the ballot. Our filing outlined how proponents of the measure withheld required documentation and concealed the involvement of individuals who had a clear conflict of interest; the petition failed to disclose the full text of the legislation, causing voters to sign a petition without understanding its true impact; and the measure violates a rule stating that a measure can only deal with one subject, takes away vested retirement security rights protected by our State Constitution, and violates employees constitutionally protected right to due process via a poison pill clause which states that if the measure passes and is found unlawful, a five year freeze would be placed on employee compensation.

In what he called "an extraordinary" and unprecedented legal action, San Francisco Superior Court Judge Harold Kahn removed a key section from Jeff Adachi's proposed Proposition B, which the judge characterized as "one of the most draconian pieces of legal writing I have ever seen." In a hearing last Friday, the judge called the controversial section a "sledgehammer" which "violates the First Amendment, the right of access to the courthouse" for San Francisco families suffering the impact of Adachi's poorly drafted initiative. This represents an important victory for Local 21 and other public employees in what will undoubtedly be a long battle against Prop. B.

The section of the legislation struck down by the court was the infamous poison pill clause, which would freeze employee wages and benefits for five years should the measure pass and then be found legally invalid. Prop. B will still appear on the November ballot, but without the poison pill language. While this is an important victory for us and all working families, our work to defeat this measure is not done. We have a long road ahead of us between now and November, and it will take everyones involvement to stop Prop. B and let future career building Politicians know that public employees are not the scapegoat to build their careers on.

August 11, 2010, Court asked to review Adachi's deceptive efforts to mislead voters.
San Francisco working people and Stand up For Working Families released a legal complaint filed in San Francisco Superior Court late Tuesday that documents how Jeff Adachi cut corners and withheld critical information from the public in order to trick voters into supporting his anti-health care ballot measure
August 11, 2010, Court asked to review Adachi's deceptive efforts to mislead voters.

Fact Sheet: The Truth About Prop. B, 10 Things Adachi Doesn't Want You to Know
Don't be fooled by Adachi's sales pitch. What do you get when you mix bad legal advice, ignorance about benefits, a Grand Jury report manipulated by AdachiÕs campaign treasurer, and reckless ambition? A Very bad law for San Francisco. No on Prop B!
Fact Sheet: The Truth About Prop. B, 10 Things Adachi Doesn't Want You to Know

Adachi Measure Fact Sheets
Fact Sheet - Poorly Drafted & Ill-Conceived
Fact Sheet - Actuarial Manipulation FINAL
Fact Sheet - Retirement Benefits

Stand Up for Working Families Press Release 8.6.10
August 6, 2010, Stand up for Working Families, a coalition of city Unions including Local 21, released a press statement regarding an official memo from the Citys Health Services System citing that the Adachi measure will hurt working families. As part of the Ballot Simplification process, the San Francisco Department of Elections released a statement citing a memo received from Catherine Dodd, the Director of the Citys Health Service System. The memo, authored by Ms. Dodd, raises serious concerns about Jeff Adachis measure that has taken aim at working families in San Francisco.
Stand Up for Working Families Press Release 8.6.10

August 2, 1010, Stand up for Working Families, a coalition of city Unions including Local 21, filed a complaint with Jose Cisneros, the Citys Treasurer and Tax Collector, and requested that the City investigate Public Defender Jeff Adachis systematic failure to pay business taxes. Recent information has shown that while Adachi wants to double the cost of family health care benefits, he has repeatedly dodged his own tax obligations.

Stand Up for Working Families Press Release 8.2.10
Letter to Jose Cisneros 7.29.10
Follow-up Letter to Jose Cisneros 8.2.10

July 22, 2010 Stand up for Working Families, a coalition of city Unions including Local 21, held a press conference after delivering a letter to City Attorney Dennis Herrera asking for an investigation as to whether the Citys Grand Jury process was misused and utilized as a political vehicle for Jeff Adachi and Craig Weber.A letter, sent by Mr. Herrera to San Francisco Superior Court addressing his concerns, was distributed as well as a letter from Stand Up for Working Families to Mr. Herrera requesting an investigation into the appropriateness of Mr. Webers behavior. Mr. Weber served simultaneously as a committee chairperson of the Civil Grand Jury examining the Citys pension system and as Treasurer of a political committee to support a ballot initiative dealing with the same issue.

Stand Up for Working Families Press Release 7.22.10
Letter from Stand Up for Working Families Coalition to City Attorney Herrera
Letter from City Attorney Herrera to Judge McBride

Action Items

Adachi Measure Talking Points
A Solution in Search of a Problem -- Or How to Free Up More Money for Jeff Adachi to Fund the Public Defender's Office
Adachi Measure Talking Points

Adachi Wants Your Money
City and County of San Francisco members - Public Defender Jeff Adachi has jumped on the Republican bandwagon along with Arnold Schwarzenegger, and is pushing a Charter amendment that will make City workers pay more for their pensions and way more for their health care, pricing many working families out of dependent health care. Nevermind that you just agreed to a 4.6% pay cut a few months ago, or that you helped pass pension reform measures twice in the last two years, or that you have given back to the City 7 out of the last 9 years...
Adachi Wants Your Money

Latest News

SF's Pension Reform Measure Draws Notice in DC; September 1, 2010; Bay Citizen

Judge clears pension measure for SF ballot; August 31, 2010; San Jose Mercury
A San Francisco judge has cleared a measure for the November ballot that would require city workers to pay more for their benefits.
Judge clears pension measure for SF ballot; August 31, 2010; San Jose Mercuryn

San Francisco's bold ballot measure; August 31, 2010; Washington Post
A San Francisco judge has cleared a measure for the November ballot that would require city workers to pay more for their benefits.
San Francisco's bold ballot measure; August 31, 2010; Washington Post

Disputed pension reform cleared for Nov. 2 ballot; August 31, 2010; SF Examiner
A politically charged ballot measure that would force city workers to pay more for their benefits overcame one legal challenge and will stay on the Nov. 2 ballot.
Disputed pension reform cleared for Nov. 2 ballot; August 31, 2010; SF Examiner

Judge denies legal challenge to pension and health care measure; August 30, 2010; SF Chronicle
A San Francisco judge today ruled that a ballot measure to overhaul pension and health care benefits for city workers will go before voters in November, largely rejecting a legal challenge brought by major labor unions trying to remove it from the ballot.
Judge denies legal challenge to pension and health care measure; August 30, 2010; SF Chronicle

Judge Allows SF Pension Reform Ballot Measure; August 30, 2010; KTVUChannel 2
A San Francisco Superior Court judge Monday agreed to let a city pension and health care reform measure promoted by Public Defender Jeff Adachi onto the city's November ballot.
Judge Allows SF Pension Reform Ballot Measure; August 30, 2010; KTVUChannel 2

Key Portion of 'SF Smart Reform' Prop. B Struck Down by Judge; August 30, 2010; SF Weekly
A judge today struck down a portion of Proposition B - "SF Smart Reform" - that the measure's author, public defender Jeff Adachi, had claimed was critical for actually ensuring the legislation does what it aims to do: save the city hundreds of millions yearly via pension and health care reform.
Key Portion of 'SF Smart Reform' Prop. B Struck Down by Judge; August 30, 2010; SF Weekly

Court Approves Amended Pension/Healthcare Reform Measure for Ballot; August 30, 2010; For City Journal
A legal challenge to force the withdrawal of a controversial pension and healthcare reform measure from the November ballot has failed.
Court Approves Amended Pension/Healthcare Reform Measure for Ballot; August 30, 2010; For City Journal

Judge Strikes 'Poison Pill' from Prop. B; August 30, 2010; Bay Citizen
San Francisco Superior Court Judge Harold E. Kahn has stricken what unions had dubbed a "poison pill" provision in the Proposition B pension and health-benefit reform measure, but has otherwise cleared the initiative to appear on the ballot in November.
Judge Strikes 'Poison Pill' from Prop. B; August 30, 2010; Bay Citizen

SF Chamber weighs in on November ballot measures; August 26, 2010; SF Gate
The San Francisco Chamber of Commerce laid out its recommendations for initiatives in the November elections, and you'd have to say there were very few surprises. As usual, Mayor Gavin Newsom and the Chamber are on the same page, and for the most part the business organization supported his proposals and recommended defeat for those that Newsom opposed.
SF Chamber weighs in on November ballot measures; August 26, 2010; SF Gate

Newsom: I'm Already Reforming Pensions, My Way; August 26, 2010; Bay Citizen
In June, the San Francisco civil grand jury released a report about the city's mounting pension obligations. Entitled "Pension Tsunami," it warned that San Francisco's pension obligations could grow to $1 billion by 2014. The city's annual budget is about $6.5 billion. The city already must pay 13.5 percent of each employee's salary into the pension fund to cover the pension fund's yearly shortfall, and that figure may climb to as much as 30 percent of payroll in four years. If left unchecked, the grand jury report warned, pension and benefit costs could bankrupt San Francisco in the years ahead.
Newsom: I'm Already Reforming Pensions, My Way; August 26, 2010; Bay Citizen

Jeff Adachi: Tackling a budgetary problem no other city official will touch (By Jeff Adachi, OpEd Contributor); August 24, 2010; SF Examiner
Apparently it's a lot easier defending criminals than it is to defend your position on runaway government spending when your department is eating up a disproportionate share of San Francisco's budget.
Jeff Adachi: Tackling a budgetary problem no other city official will touch

Ballot creates security fray; August 24, 2010; SF Examiner
Apparently it's a lot easier defending criminals than it is to defend your position on runaway government spending when your department is eating up a disproportionate share of San Francisco's budget.
Ballot creates security fray; August 24, 2010; SF Examiner

Saying one thing, doing another; August 19, 2010; SF Examiner
Apparently it's a lot easier defending criminals than it is to defend your position on runaway government spending when your department is eating up a disproportionate share of San Francisco's budget.
Saying one thing, doing another; August 19, 2010; SF Examiner

Two steaming non-scandals; August 17, 2010; SF Bay Guardian
The political press is all over two of the big non-scandals of the day, Jerry Brown's pension and Jeff Adachi's budget. Let's start with ol' Jer'.
Two steaming non-scandals; August 17, 2010; SF Bay Guardian

Public defender's budget up - but attorneys' caseloads down; August 17, 2010; SF Gate (City Insider)
Public Defender Jeff Adachi has seen his budget and staff increase almost every year, and his attorneys' caseloads are lower than when he took over in 2003, city figures show.
Public defender's budget up - but attorneys' caseloads down; August 17, 2010; SF Gate (City Insider)

Future Of SF Pensions Questioned Ahead Of Vote; August 16, 2010; CBS 5
At a time when big public pensions are coming under intense taxpayer scrutiny, a former San Francisco Police Chief is defending his six-figure payout.
Future Of SF Pensions Questioned Ahead Of Vote; August 16, 2010; CBS 5

Chinese Hospital Workers Say No to Adachi's Pension Plan; August 16, 2010; New America Media / Bay Citizen
Chinese hospital workers are worried that an initiative on the November ballot could be bad for their pocketbooks, reports Iris Zheng for the Sing Tao Daily.
Chinese Hospital Workers Say No to Adachi's Pension Plan; August 16, 2010; New America Media / Bay Citizen

Who's responsible for $2.2 million legal bill?; August 16, 2010; SF Gate (City Insider)
Public Defender Jeff Adachi has seen his budget and staff increase almost every year, and his attorneys' caseloads are lower than when he took over in 2003, city figures show.
Who's responsible for $2.2 million legal bill?; August 16, 2010; SF Gate (City Insider)

Willie Brown gives his latest take on Adachi (near bottom); August 15, 2010; SF Gate (Willie's World)
Jeff Adachi, the public defender whose November ballot measure would reform pensions, has the unions going crazy.
Willie Brown gives his latest take on Adachi (near bottom); August 15, 2010; SF Gate (Willie's World)

Fighting Tooth and Nail, Unions Overstep; August 14, 2010; Bay Citizen / New York Times
Michael Moritz, one of Silicon Valley's most successful venture capitalists, keeps a low profile. An early backer of Yahoo and Google, Moritz avoids the press, though he was himself once a journalist. You never see him at industry conferences. While he has given money to President Obama and a few other politicians of both parties, he has no discernible political ambitions.
Fighting Tooth and Nail, Unions Overstep; August 14, 2010; Bay Citizen / New York Times

SF Workers Crash Prop B Fundraiser; August 13â 2010; Beyond Chron
"Shame on you!" was the cry reverberating in Pacific Heights last night as the black Mercedes and BMWs pulled up to the valet parking at Wall Street financier Michael Moritz's house. Their well-coiffed occupants scurried inside to write big checks for Prop B, Jeff Adachi's Charter Amendment that will double the cost of health care for San Francisco workers and their families. Some 300 of those workers, with kids in tow, gathered outside the stately mansion, waving oversized $1,000,000 bills and chanting while the Brass Liberation Orchestra provided a spirited musical backdrop.
SF Workers Crash Prop B Fundraiser; August 13â 2010; Beyond Chron

Jeff Adachi Lawyers Up; August 12, 2010; SF Weekly
As public defender, Jeff Adachi has provided legal services for countless defendants. But now that he's a defendant, he finds himself in the unfamiliar position of having to phone a lawyer.
Jeff Adachi Lawyers Up; August 12, 2010; SF Weekly

S.F. unions sue over Proposition B; August 11, 2010; SF Gate
San Francisco's largest city labor unions filed a lawsuit Tuesday asking a judge to strip a measure from the November ballot that would overhaul their pension and health care benefits.
S.F. unions sue over Proposition B; August 11, 2010; SF Gate

Suit seeks to block SF pension ballot measure; August 11, 2010; SJ Mercury
Labor unions representing San Francisco city employees are suing to block a measure that would change their pension and health care benefits from appearing on the November ballot.
Suit seeks to block SF pension ballot measure; August 11, 2010; SJ Mercury

Unions sue to block Adachi measure; August 11, 2010; SF Bay Guardian
Five city-employee labor unions have filed suit to stop Public Defender Jeff Adachi's "Sustainable City Employees Benefits Reform Act" (or Prop. B) from making it onto the November ballot.
Unions sue to block Adachi measure; August 11, 2010; SF Bay Guardian

Unions Sue Jeff Adachi, City to Keep Pension Reform Off Ballot; August 11, 2010; SF Weekly
Members of five city unions took the next step in labor's all-out battle against Public Defender Jeff Adachi's pension reform measure, suing Adachi and the city's election director in an effort to keep Proposition B -- nee "Smart Reform" -- off the ballot.
Unions Sue Jeff Adachi, City to Keep Pension Reform Off Ballot; August 11, 2010; SF Weekly

Adachi Responds to Labor Law Suit Over Pension, Healthcare Reform; August 11, 2010; Fog City Journal
In an effort to stop San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi's Sustainable City Employees Benefits Reform Act from getting on the November ballot, several city employee labor unions have filed a lawsuit. The suit, filed on August 10 by San Francisco Fire Fighters, Local 798, International Federation of Professional & Technical Engineers, Local 21, Service Employees International Union, Local 1021, the San Francisco Municipal Executives' Association, and the San Francisco Police Officers Association attempts to discredit the Civil Grand Jury, the Department of Elections, the City Attorney and the rights over 77,000 San Franciscan's who signed the petition and Adachi.
Adachi Responds to Labor Law Suit Over Pension, Healthcare Reform; August 11, 2010; Fog City Journal

SF Unions Sue to Halt Pension Measure: Suit claims Jeff Adachi's plan to increase their contributions is budensome, badly written; August 11, 2010; Bay Citizen
In an effort to stop San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi's Sustainable City Employees Benefits Reform Act from getting on the November ballot, several city employee labor unions have filed a lawsuit. The suit, filed on August 10 by San Francisco Fire Fighters, Local 798, International Federation of Professional & Technical Engineers, Local 21, Service Employees International Union, Local 1021, the San Francisco Municipal Executives' Association, and the San Francisco Police Officers Association attempts to discredit the Civil Grand Jury, the Department of Elections, the City Attorney and the rights over 77,000 San Franciscan's who signed the petition and Adachi.
SF Unions Sue to Halt Pension Measure: Suit claims Jeff Adachi's plan to increase their contributions is budensome, badly written; August 11, 2010; Bay Citizen

SF Pension Reform by Any OtherName; August 11, 2010; KCBS
A fierce fight over what to call San Francisco's controversial pension reform proposition has ended with the words "pension reform" erased from the ballot description. The Ballot Simplification Committee at the San Francisco Department of Elections has decided that Public Defender Jeff Adachi's pension reform measure will be called "Proposition B: City Retirement and Health Plans."
SF Pension Reform by Any OtherÊName...; August 11, 2010; KCBS

Adachi's Measure Gets a Name, and More Controversy; August 9, 2010; Bay Citizen
Health care--and the cost of providing it to nearly 36,000 city employees--is shaping up as another major issue in San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachis proposal to require city workers to contribute more to their pension and benefits costs. Adachi's measure got a name -- PropositionB -- and a plain-English 728-word description of its effects from the city's ballot-simplification committee on Friday. The measure will be on the ballot in November.
Adachi's Measure Gets a Name, and More Controversy; August 9, 2010; Bay Citizen

Memo: Pension measure would jeopardize $23 million a year; August 6, 2010; SF Gate
Public Defender Jeff Adachi's charter amendment to overhaul pension and healthcare benefits for city workers will jeopardize $23 million in federal health care funding for the city this year, hike insurance payments for workers and have other unintended consequences, according to a new memo from the director of the agency that oversees health benefits for city workers and retirees.
Memo: Pension measure would jeopardize $23 million a year; August 6, 2010; SF Gate

Hidden health care costs of Adachi's pension reform measure; August 4, 2010; San Francisco Bay Guardian
Hidden health care costs of Adachi's pension reform measure; August 4, 2010; San Francisco Bay Guardian New information about the health care costs associated with a pension reform measure backed by Public Defender Jeff Adachi suggests that the highest cost burden would fall to parents at the lowest end of the pay scale. An analysis of the Adachi measure estimates that city employees with two or more dependents could face monthly healthcare cost increases of $220 a month, which would bring their total monthly contributions to $448, $765, or $1,630, depending on the health care plan. Dental care would bring those costs up an additional $82 per month.
Hidden health care costs of Adachi's pension reform measure; August 4, 2010; San Francisco Bay Guardian

Unions Call Jeff Adachi a Tax Dodger; August 2, 2010; Bay Citizen
San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi is finding out just how unpleasant it can be to take on the city's powerful labor unions.
Unions Call Jeff Adachi a Tax Dodger; August 2, 2010; Bay Citizen

Adachi Pension, Healthcare Reform Measure Qualifies for November Ballot; August 2, 2010; Fog City Journal
A controversial pension and healthcare reform ballot measure sponsored by Public Defender Jeff Adachi has qualified for the November ballot.
Adachi Pension, Healthcare Reform Measure Qualifies for November Ballot; August 2, 2010; Fog City Journal

Adachi/Moritz Initiative Is a Fraud; August 2 2010; Beyond Chron
Since my July 7 story on the so-called pension reform initiative on San Franciscos November ballot, more disturbing facts have emerged. First, the Bay Citizen revealed on July 16 that the measure was almost entirely funded by a billionaire venture capitalist (Michael Moritz) and an ally of Governor Schwarzenegger (Stephen Crane), with Public Defender Jeff Adachi its public face. Second, while the initiative is being sold as pension reform, as much as 80% of its cost savings comes from steep increases in health care costs for city employees with dependents.
Adachi/Moritz Initiative Is a Fraud; August 2 2010; Beyond Chron

Matier & Ross; August 2, 2010; SF Gate
Political piata: Public employee unions and their friends at City Hall are coming down hard and heavy on Public Defender Jeff Adachi for his public pension reform measure. In a complaint filed Thursday, Robert Muscat, head of the city's Professional and Technical Engineers union, called on Tax Collector Jos Cisneros to investigate Adachi for allegedly failing to pay city taxes from a private publishing company that has made him at least $130,000 in the past three years.
Matier & Ross; August 2, 2010; SF Gate

Will Jeff Adachi save San Francisco? CA wants Gray Davis back; July 30, 2010; The Hill
Gertrude Stein famously said of the Oakland region, there is no there there. The question the Bay Area must ask today is this: Is there any there there yet? Recently, Jeff Adachi has been attempting to solve problems the old fashioned way, through self government. San Francisco is at a crossroads, writes Adachi. Theres a fiscal train wreck just around the corner. In fact, its already here. With our citys failing infrastructure and roads, a $787 million deficit next year, $1.2 billion in city employee pension costs that are projected to double in five years, the term go for broke takes on a new meaning. Will San Francisco become the next Vallejo?
Will Jeff Adachi save San Francisco? CA wants Gray Davis back; July 30, 2010; The Hill

City Pension Fund Battle Intensifies; July 29, 2010; Bay Citizen
Once obscure and perhaps forgotten even by the public officials who lobbied for its passage in 2002, Proposition H is becoming a hot-button issue in city politics.
City Pension Fund Battle Intensifies; July 29, 2010; Bay Citizen

Jury Volunteer Stirs Up a Pension Fund Tempest; July 24, 2010; New York Times / Bay Citizen
Two years ago, a San Francisco accountant, Craig Weber, noticed a flier posted at the Mission Bay public library. It sought volunteers for the civil grand jury, a panel of 19 citizens empowered to investigate local government.
Jury Volunteer Stirs Up a Pension Fund Tempest

Unions say grand juror unethically helped Adachi measure; July 23, 2010; San Francisco Bay Guardian
San Francisco's police and fire unions are taking a lead role in opposing Public Defender Jeff Adachi's November initiative to make city employees pay more of their pension and health care costs, despite the fact that both unions have recently renegotiated their contracts to exempt their members from paying those increased costs until 2013.
Unions say grand juror unethically helped Adachi measure

City Worker Coalition Attacks Credibility Of Grand Jury Report on Pension Reform; July 23, 2010; SF Appeal
A coalition of city workers Thursday attacked the credibility of a recent Grand Jury report that recommended pension reform for city employees by pointing to a key jury member who they say had a conflict of interest during the investigation.
City Worker Coalition Attacks Credibility...

Jeff Adachi's Pension Plan Comes Under Fire; July 22, 2010; ABC 7

Unions Take Aim at Adachi Supporters, Pension-reform backer accused of conflict of interest; July 20, 2010; Bay Citizen
A nasty and very personal battle is brewing over a controversial pension-reform proposal San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi has pushed onto the November ballot.
Unions Take Aim at Adachi Supporters

SF Labor Groups Meet To Oppose Pension Reform Bill; July 20, 2010; CBS 5
A coalition of San Francisco labor groups is meeting Tuesday afternoon to formally announce plans to oppose a ballot initiative by Public Defender Jeff Adachi to reform city pensions.
SF Labor Groups Meet To Oppose Pension Reform Bill

Labor leaders in SF discuss pensions, health care; July 20, 2010; ABC 7/KGO
Labor leaders representing city workers, including police and fire officials, met Tuesday afternoon to talk strategy in their fight against a proposed charter amendment submitted by Public Defender Jeff Adachi that would require members of their unions to pay more for their pensions and health care.
Labor leaders in SF discuss pensions, health care

Jeff Adachi for mayor!; July 14 2010; SF Weekly
Eight years ago, political consultants orbiting ascendant Supervisor Gavin Newsom commissioned a poll showing likely voters viewed homelessness as San Francisco's biggest problem. Yet no politician to date had proposed a dramatic solution. Jeff Adachi for mayor!; July 14 2010; SF Weekly

SF Pension Reform Initiative Still Needs to be Validated; July 15, 2010; KCBS
With a random check indecisive, San Franciscos Department of Elections is now planning to check the validity of over 77,000 signatures to determine if a major pension reform initiative can qualify for the November ballot.
SF Pension Reform Initiative Still Needs to be Validated; July 15, 2010; KCBS

A Crusade to Avert Pension Crisis; July 16, 2010; New York Times
Jeff Adachi has taken up an unusual cause for a San Francisco public defender: Dramatic increases in public-employee contributions to the citys pension plan. He said his ballot initiative to require just that was necessary to prevent San Francisco from sliding into bankruptcy.
A Crusade to Avert Pension Crisis; July 16, 2010; New York Times

S.F. pension reform headed for November ballot; Monday, July 12, 2010;
San Francisco Business Times
San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi said he expects to qualify a measure for the November ballot that would increase how much city workers contribute to pension and health plans.
S.F. pension reform headed for November ballot; Monday, July 12, 2010; San Francisco Business Times

Adachi makes enemies, sense with labor proposal; July 10, 2010; SF Gate
Jeff Adachi seems like a nice enough fellow. He's the city's public defender and usually takes far left political views. He opposes legislation to ban sitting or lying on streets and the city's Community Justice Center that prosecutes low-level crimes. He's also well liked by his staff.
S.F. pension reform headed for November ballot - San Francisco Business Times

Adachi and O'Reilly on the same mayoral ticket?; July 10, 2010; SF Examiner
Public Defender Jeff Adachi may have made an unlikely ally in his political career -- San Franciscophobe and Fox News personality Bill OReilly.
Adachi and O'Reilly on the same mayoral ticket?; July 10, 2010; SF Examiner

Adachi Pension Measure Could Reshape National Politics; Jul. 07 2010; Beyond Chron
Public Defender Jeff Adachi submitted signatures yesterday for a November ballot measure that could reshape both San Francisco and national politics. If it qualifies, we are about to embark on a campaign that could bitterly divide progressives, while empowering San Franciscos moderate and conservative forces. Organized labor will prioritize defeating an initiative that would raise pension contributions for city employees, and whose passage in liberal San Francisco could inspire further attacks on public sector compensation throughout the nation. But some progressives will support a measure that promises more funding for social programs and nonprofits, even though the initiative includes no specific earmarks. This initiative will dominate San Franciscos November ballot, and be framed by the national media as a litmus test for plans to cut local and state employee pensions across the country.
Adachi Pension Measure Could Reshape National Politics; Jul. 07 2010; Beyond Chron

Couple Gave $245K To Jeff Adachi Pension Measure. Will They Give More To See It Pass?; Jul. 7 2010; SF Weekly
When Jeff Adachi triumphantly wheeled 75,000 signatures and change into the Department of Elections yesterday, he shocked a lot of veteran City Hall observers. Sure, they were surprised at the sheer number of John Hancocks he amassed for his pension reform measure. But what really caught everyone's eyes was the metric shitload of money he raised to send folks out for those signatures.
Couple Gave $245K To Jeff Adachi Pension Measure. Will They Give More To See It Pass?; Jul. 7 2010; SF Weekly