Bay Area

City Auditor Says Mayor Schaaf Misused City Money and Resources to Fund Oakland Promise

Published

6 years ago

November 21, 2019

Mayor Libby Schaaf directed the city administration to make “inappropriate contributions” to her favored nonprofit organization, The Oakland Promise, bypassing the Oakland Municipal code and paying the director of Oakland Promise over $700,000 without authorization, according to the findings of an investigation released this week by the Oakland Office of the City Auditor.

The office of the City Auditor Courtney Ruby conducted the investigation in response to multiple “whistleblower allegations” and questions raised by the City Council in June 2019.

The Oakland Promise, a nonprofit “multi-agency partnership” that includes the Mayor’s Office, the Oakland Unified School District, the East Bay College Fund and the Oakland Public Education Fund, raises money to provide scholarships and other educational opportunities for Oakland youth. The organization began in 2014, and in 2015, the Mayor’s Office joined the partnership “and assumed a leadership role in collaborating with these organizations,” according to the auditor’s report on the investigation.

In June 2019, the East Bay College Fund changed its name to Oakland Promise, which became a registered nonprofit organization.

The auditor’s investigation concluded:

• “The Mayor’s Office directed the City Administration to provide workspace to Oakland Promise without following Municipal code requirements.” Without proper authorization, starting in 2016, the city provided three workstations, phones, computers and internet for up to five Oakland Promise employees for two years on the 11th floor of City Hall. “This arrangement … contrasts with other third-party organizations that have used city-owned real property,” the report said. “Other third-party entities using city-owned real property have formal agreements and were charged rents (and) have provided verification of insurance coverage.)”

•“For 16 months (from July 2015 – Nov. 2016), the Mayor’s office allowed an Oakland Education Fund employee to lead Oakland Promise as the “Mayor’s Director of Education” without executing an agreement to ensure the City’s interests were promoted and protected.”

•Since fiscal year 2017-2018, the city has funded the Mayor’s Director of Education, who continued to work for Oakland Promise, “without authorization from the City Council as an in-kind contribution to Oakland Promise, at a cost to the city exceeding $700,000.”

The Mayor’s Director of Education, David Silver, was not mentioned by name in the auditor’s report. “City financial records show that (David Silver) has accounted for $704,374 in direct personnel-related costs from the city’s General Purpose fund between July 1, 2017 and Nov. 7, 2019.

In August 2015, Mayor Schaaf submitted a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to the City Council to implement Oakland Promise, approving it herself while the council was on summer recess. A memo from the mayor stated that the “MOU has no cost implications to the City of Oakland.”

According to the auditor’s findings,“It wasn’t until June 2019 that a republic report summarized the city’s financial and in-kind contribution to Oakland Promise.”

In total, the city has contributed $4,372,428 to Oakland Promise, including authorized and unauthorized expenditures and excluding the cost of in-kind donation of office space and equipment, which is unknown.

Among its recommendations, the City Auditor suggested that the city administration “should comply with the Municipal Code in providing space to other others” and suggested that the City Council request a yearly report on leases and other arrangements with organizations that use city facilities. The auditor also suggested that the City Council develop a policy that requires in-kind contributions to be “formally authorized in advance.”

The Mayor’s Office agrees with all of the recommendations, said Justin Berton, the mayor’s director of communications.

“The Office of the Mayor is grateful for the City Auditor’s detailed report that concludes every contribution to the Oakland Promise is being used to send more kids to, and through college,” he said. “We regret, however, that in the eagerness to launch a generation-changing education initiative, we unintentionally failed to properly document the legal use of City Hall office space and a grant to support an employee’s salary. We wholeheartedly support all of the City Auditor’s recommendations that will bring clarity to this process in the future.”

A more complete report on this investigation will be published in next week’s Oakland Post.

By Ken Epstein

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Oakland Post: Week of June 18 – 24, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of June 18 – 24, 2025

Published

4 days ago

June 20, 2025

Oakland Post

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Juneteenth: Celebrating Our History, Honoring Our Shared Spaces

It’s been empowering to watch Juneteenth blossom into a widely celebrated holiday, filled with vibrant outdoor events like cookouts, festivals, parades, and more. It’s inspiring to see the community embrace our history—showing up in droves to celebrate freedom, a freedom delayed for some enslaved Americans more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed.

Published

6 days ago

June 18, 2025

Oakland Post

Wayne Wilson, Public Affairs Campaign Manager, Caltrans

By Wayne Wilson, Public Affairs Campaign Manager, Caltrans

Juneteenth marks an important moment in our shared history—a time to reflect on the legacy of our ancestors who, even in the face of injustice, chose freedom, unity, and community over fear, anger, and hopelessness. We honor their resilience and the paths they paved so future generations can continue to walk with pride.

As we head into the weekend full of festivities and summer celebrations, I want to offer a friendly reminder about who is not invited to the cookout: litter.

At Clean California, we believe the places where we gather—parks, parade routes, street corners, and church lots—should reflect the pride and beauty of the people who fill them. Our mission is to restore and beautify public spaces, transforming areas impacted by trash and neglect into spaces that reflect the strength and spirit of the communities who use them.

Too often, after the music fades and the grills cool, our public spaces are left littered with trash. Just as our ancestors took pride in their communities, we honor their legacy when we clean up after ourselves, teach our children to do the same, and care for our shared spaces.

Small acts can inspire big change. Since 2021, Clean California and its partners have collected and removed over 2.9 million cubic yards of litter. We did this by partnering with local nonprofits and community organizations to organize grassroots cleanup events and beautification projects across California.

Now, we invite all California communities to continue the incredible momentum and take the pledge toward building a cleaner community through our Clean California Community Designation Program. This recognizes cities and neighborhoods committed to long-term cleanliness and civic pride.

This Juneteenth, let’s not only celebrate our history—but also contribute to its legacy. By picking up after ourselves and by leaving no litter behind after celebrations, we have an opportunity to honor our past and shape a cleaner, safer, more vibrant future.

Visit CleanCA.com to learn more about Clean California.

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OPINION: California’s Legislature Has the Wrong Prescription for the Affordability Crisis — Gov. Newsom’s Plan Hits the Mark

Last month, Gov. Newsom included measures in his budget that would encourage greater transparency, accountability, and affordability across the prescription drug supply chain. His plan would deliver real relief to struggling Californians. It would also help expose the hidden markups and practices by big drug companies that push the prices of prescription drugs higher and higher. The legislature should follow the Governor’s lead and embrace sensible, fair regulations that will not raise the cost of medications.

Published

6 days ago

June 18, 2025

Oakland Post

Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook. Courtesy of Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook.

By Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook

As a pastor and East Bay resident, I see firsthand how my community struggles with the rising cost of everyday living. A fellow pastor in Oakland recently told me he cuts his pills in half to make them last longer because of the crushing costs of drugs.

Meanwhile, community members are contending with skyrocketing grocery prices and a lack of affordable healthcare options, while businesses are being forced to close their doors.

Our community is hurting. Things have to change.

The most pressing issue that demands our leaders’ attention is rising healthcare costs, and particularly the rising cost of medications. Annual prescription drug costs in California have spiked by nearly 50% since 2018, from $9.1 billion to $13.6 billion.

Some lawmakers, however, have advanced legislation that would drive up healthcare costs and set communities like mine back further.

I’m particularly concerned with Senate Bill (SB) 41, sponsored by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), a carbon copy of a 2024 bill that I strongly opposed and Gov. Newsom rightly vetoed. This bill would impose significant healthcare costs on patients, small businesses, and working families, while allowing big drug companies to increase their profits.

SB 41 would impose a new $10.05 pharmacy fee for every prescription filled in California. This new fee, which would apply to millions of Californians, is roughly five times higher than the current average of $2.

For example, a Bay Area family with five monthly prescriptions would be forced to shoulder about $500 more in annual health costs. If a small business covers 25 employees, each with four prescription fills per month (the national average), that would add nearly $10,000 per year in health care costs.

This bill would also restrict how health plan sponsors — like employers, unions, state plans, Medicare, and Medicaid — partner with pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to negotiate against big drug companies and deliver the lowest possible costs for employees and members. By mandating a flat fee for pharmacy benefit services, this misguided legislation would undercut your health plan’s ability to drive down costs while handing more profits to pharmaceutical manufacturers.

This bill would also endanger patients by eliminating safety requirements for pharmacies that dispense complex and costly specialty medications. Additionally, it would restrict home delivery for prescriptions, a convenient and affordable service that many families rely on.

Instead of repeating the same tired plan laid out in the big pharma-backed playbook, lawmakers should embrace Newsom’s transparency-first approach and prioritize our communities.

Let’s urge our state legislators to reject policies like SB 41 that would make a difficult situation even worse for communities like ours.

About the Author

Rev. Dr. VanHook is the founder and pastor of The Community Church in Oakland and the founder of The Charis House, a re-entry facility for men recovering from alcohol and drug abuse.