PORTLAND, Ore.—On the evening of April 1, many Portlanders met downtown in District 4 to discuss the City’s $92.8 million budget shortfall. The shortfall consists of:
- $19.4 revenue shortfall, partially due to slower property taxes from growing vacancies downtown
- $29.6 expiring funds, explained as 1-time funding due to federal COVID support that has expired
- $40.8 new spending, consisting of sheltering plans, additional labor, payroll improvements, and more.
The format of the event was a brief explanation of the situation and purpose of the meeting, then testimony by community members as the city councilors and mayor sat and listened.
There was no back and forth—the day was for the community to talk about what they wanted to see prioritized in the coming budget, and the community filled the main room as well as most of a secondary overflow room, with a maximum number of 80 speakers signed up.
Portland residents spoke at length about funding Portland Parks and Recreation. Eight speakers, 10% of the total testimonies, were from participants in the youth recreational basketball leagues.
Workers, whose jobs are on the chopping block with proposed budget cuts to Parks and Rec, spoke about the valuable services they give to the city.
Multiple people talked about the benefit of having funded and clean parks in which the community can spend time. Many speakers highlighted the importance of the Neighborhood Associations across the city, noting that they are important and simple ways to be involved in their community. Continuing on the growing trend, a few people spoke about the benefits of the arts. It was noted that decorated plazas, a funded art museum, and vibrant artwork across the city get people out and about.
Many speakers argued against the proposal that the Portland Clean Energy Fund (PCEF) should be plundered to fix the shortfall. The PCEF was passed in 2018 by 65% of voters and “invests in community-led projects to reduce carbon emissions, create economic opportunity, and help make our city more resilient as we face a changing climate.”
While it is true that the PCEF does have a large amount of money, it already has a plan to use that money. With the climate as one of the leading issues for the working class, it was emphasized that funding our future is incredibly important. One community member pointed out that if the PCEF is plundered to fix the current budget shortfall instead of making actual changes to the current situation, we will be in a similar deficit a few years down the line but with an emptied PCEF.
Finally, one of the largest topics was cutting funding for the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) and funding Portland Street Response (PSR). Dozens of speakers brought attention to the nearly $300 million police budget while the deficit is only $92.8 million.
The PPB often attacks protestors, as seen on Inauguration Day and last year during the Portland State University encampment, harasses the homeless, and intimidates unionized workers picketing for better conditions. A total of six out of the 80 speakers argued for more police funding and were met with almost total silence after their statements, while all against increased police funding were met with resounding applause.
PSR also received massive support as an alternative to calling when police are not needed. One woman told a story where PSR helped her—someone had walked into her house as she was downstairs and was looking in her fridge for food. The homeowner in question was not threatened by this person and did not want to call the police, but they did want to get them some type of support. She called PSR, made some avocado toast for the hungry person, and took them outside where PSR came and talked to them for almost an hour, finally finding a relative nearby that they could go to.
Stories like the one above, where PSR helped someone—instead of a potential violent escalation when calling the police—are examples of the power we have when we fund our community. The next steps on the budget are:
- One final community testimony session occurs
- The mayor releases a balanced proposed budget by May 5th
- The City Council works on editing the mayor’s proposal, approving a budget by May 21st
- The city council adopts the budget around the middle of June
Overall, the main sentiment in the meeting from the many community members who stepped forward to speak was: Fund the community, don’t fund the police.
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