• Use of Farm Bureau: Again feel this is inappropriate because we have not given our endorsement to this plan. Plus leaves out other Farm and Ranch organizations

• Funding: Again concerned that the funding will not be sufficient to meet the needs of farmers.

• Use of funds: Farm Bureau has been active in the meetings with the city regarding the Ag-Runoff ordinance. At these meetings our Executive Secretary, Sarah Mora, has been told time and again that the money for this project would come out of these funds. However, when asked if the committee was made aware of this possibility the answer was vague. It seems that there is no agreement among the city on how the funds are to be spent.

• Estate Taxes: At the planning commission meeting it was mentioned that it was difficult for someone to believe that those farmers who inherited their land were not making it. The problem is estate taxes. Also while costs have continued to rise, prices have either dropped or stayed the same.

• Niche Markets: We applaud those that have been able to make it with niche markets, and wish them continued success. However, it is important to remember that the reason these are niches is because not every farmer is involved. If all of our Brentwood Farmers became boutique or niche farmers there would not be a unique market for these goods anymore.

• Residents should Pay: There have been discussions of removing the ballot measure from the plan. We feel it is important that the this remain. If the residents want to save their view sheds and farm land than they must be willing to pay their way.

• Better ways to support agriculture: There are so many simple things the City can be doing now that would protect agriculture, that would show a good faith effort to the farmers.

  1. Revamp Sign Ordinance: This would allow farmers to advertise off site.

  2. Strengthen Right to Farm: Strengthen this to better protect farmers.

  3. Ag Runoff: Find a workable solution without putting a restrictive ordinance in place that makes criminals out of farmers.

• Workable Program: The only way programs like this work are if one of two things are happening.
  1. You have an influx of people coming into the area looking for Farm-land.
  2. The younger generation of existing farmers are wanting to take over.
  We simply don't have that happening in Contra Costa county.

• Would like to see a process much like what happened with Measure C in Alameda County where the farming and ranching community had its own separate committee and their input was weighed more heavily in writing the plan and where the farmers drove the process.

Contra Costa Farm Bureau Board of Director Mike Vukelich was elected to represent Alameda, Contra Costa and Solano counties. He will be taking the place of Al Medvitz of Solano county who has held the position for the past 3 years, and done an excellent job.

Our Annual Convention was held in early December and was covered by Sarah Mora, John Viano, Tom Brumleve, and Mike Vukelich. Some very good news--Mike Vukelich will be our District Director, representing Contra Costa, Alameda, and Solano Counties. Congratulations Mike. We are fortunate in having you take this position.

In early November, Louie Ginochio announced that he would be stepping down from the Board of Directors. This is sad news, and a huge, huge loss to us. There is no way we can ever adequately express our appreciation to Louie for his hard work and contributions over these many years. He and Anna have been the heart of our County. I can't remember a year when they were not right in the center of our various dinners and events (always working so hard!). We thank them so much and wish them both a very happy future.

We hope you will all attend up coming functions. We enjoy seeing all of you and we like to hear from you. If you wish to share information with us, or give us input on the very serious issues that confront us in this county, please feel free to contact us. We are always interested in your thoughts and opionions.

Again, I would like to wish you a very happy and healthy New Year.

The Board of Supervisors has finally named their appointees to the Agriculture Task Force. This has been an issue that we have pushed for strongly, because we feel it is important to the future of agriculture in the county. I have not been informed as of yet when the first meeting will be, but will keep you informed on meeting dates as they come available. My understanding is that the committee will first work on the new Super Williamson Act and other zoning concerns, and then meet quarterly to discuss agriculture problems.

We also spent a great deal of time this fall working on the Brentwood Agriculture Enterprise Program. This program has been extremely controversial with the farming community in and around Brentwood. The idea was to try and find a mechanism to purchase the development rights of farmers, as well as to promote agriculture in different ways in and around the Brentwood area. While in principle this sounds like a good program, the Farm Bureau and the farmers had some serious concerns regarding this plan. While the committee had worked for 18 months on this plan, there was a sense of frustration among the farming members of the committee. When the committee vote came down it was 7-6 with the agriculture interests being in the minority. Officially, Farm Bureau voted to take a "no position" on the issue with the priviso that we had major concerns with the plan, which we felt needed to be addressed before we could take a firmer position. Both John Viano and I testified at various hearings expressing what our concerns were, as well as giving several interviews to local media on this plan. See the back of this newsletter for a copy of what our concerns were with the plan.

December found us preparing for our Annual Convention in Reno. Our delegates, John Viano, Mike Vukelich, and Tom Brumleve did a great job wading through the various issues and policies over the three days. We also selected a new District Director, Mike Vukelich, who will be taking Al Medvitz's place on the CFBF Board of Directors. I would be remise if I didn't thank Al for the time and dedication he gave our District over the past 3 years. His expertise and efforts were greatly appreciated. Thanks Al!

We have a great deal of upcoming events on the way, first being the Crab Feed on January 27, 2001. Tickets are going fast, so if you are wanting to go get your reservations in quickly. Our maximum number allowed is 175 so hurry. Second will be our Annual Meeting of Members which will be in March. Watch your mail for details as we would like to see everyone there.

As always we will be keeping you posted on issues and concerns of the county. If there is an issue you are particularly concerned about and feel we are not doing enough on, please let us know so we can address it.

Glassy-winged Sharpshooter (GWSS): On October 9, we found an infestation of GWSS as a result of a homeowner calling our office. The infestation is in the Garin Ranch subdivision between Balfour Road and Chestnut in Brentwood. By October 16 we completed a four square mile grid survey to verify that the infestation was still confined to the subdivision.

On October 17, the County Board of Supervisors took quick action by declaring the insect a public nuisance and authorizing my Department to take abatement action. We ran into problems with weather but sprayed all but one home in the subdivision by November 1. A total of 202 residences were sprayed.

State protocol requires at least one more treatment, however, the Science Advisory Panel has recommended that our second treatments take place when weather warms in the spring. In the mean time we will continue to monitor and survey in the area for GWSS. Nothing has been found since November 1.

A quarantine will be placed on a square mile area around the infestation. Right now there are no nurseries or growers within a mile who will be effected. However, the county will now be considered "partially infested" and some products may require extra documentation to verify that they originate from a non-infested area. Probably this need for certification will only impact grape growers but we will need to monitor requirements in other counties or States very closely.

I'd like to thank Contra Costa Farm Bureau for recognizing the level of cooperation that we received from the residents in the Garin Ranch subdivision. Many residents took time off work so that their pets or children could be secured while we sprayed their yards. In response, Farm Bureau put together "Thank You" gift packs that were delivered to each resident the day before Thanksgiving. These gifts packs were very well received and hopefully will help us keep relations positive in the area as we continue to work to eradicate the infestation.

My office is offering 15-20 minute training on identification and detection of GWSS. This training is intended for growers & field workers and can be conducted in Spanish or English. Call Jorge Vargas in our Brentwood Office, 634-5682, and he will coordinate a time when this training can be conducted at your farm.

In my practice I often come across excellent legal cases that never "get off the ground" because the client has not acted quickly enough, and the case is barred by a statute of imitations. These are statutes prescribed by the legislature that require a case be filed within a specific time or be forever barred. This is the legislature's way of doing away with stale claims.

Don't let too much time slip by if you're thinking of filing a lawsuit. The longer you wait, the greater the risk that your suit will be barred by a statute of limitations.

Statutes of limitations set different time limits for filing different kinds of lawsuits. For example, actions to enforce a written contract might be governed by a four year statute of limitations, or action on an oral contract two years, while petitions to challenge a will after admission to probate might be limited to 120 days.

If you file your lawsuit after its time limit has passed, your case will be over before it's begun. The court will dismiss it regardless of what the outcome would have been if you had sued in time.

Time limits also vary from state to state, so that a lawsuit that would be timely in one state might be time-barred in another. For example, with some significant exceptions, Minnesota gives you six years to file a personal injury lawsuit based upon allegations of negligence. Illinois generally only gives you two years, though here too there are some exceptions depending on who is being sued. In California, the time limit is one year.

States also disagree on when the limitations clock should start ticking. Depending on the type of lawsuit and the law in your state, the time period might begin to run either from the moment you were wronged, or from the moment you discovered that you were wronged.

So if you think you have a legal case, talk to your lawyer right away. In addition to advising you about the relevant statute of limitations, your lawyer will help you determine whether you actually have suffered a legal wrong and whether that wrong is likely to have a legal remedy.