As a candidate for Portland City Council:
I commit that if elected I will prioritize, introduce budget amendments, and vote in favor of full funding for expanded 24/7 citywide PSR coverage in every budget cycle.
I commit that if elected, within 60 days of taking office, I will work with Friends of Portland Street Response to introduce, vote for, and help pass an ordinance to save Portland Street Response (PSR) by:
Affirming the intent and structure of PSR
• Mandate a structure for Portland Street Response in line with best practices and the independent Portland State University evaluation. That includes ensuring that response teams include three person crews of a medical responder, trained mental health provider, and a peer support specialist, calls are
dispatched through the 911 system, and the program remains an unarmed de-escalation program separate from police response.
Fully funding and staffing PSR
• Direct the Deputy City Administrator for Public Safety to prioritize hiring for Portland Street Response until it is fully staffed to meet public need for 24/7 citywide coverage.
• Direct the Deputy City Administrator for Public Safety to report back to City Council within 3 months on a plan to establish and protect full funding for PSR, and prevent encroachment of its funding from other needs within its department. Supporting PSR with the resources needed to be successful
• Direct the Deputy City Administrator for Public Safety to allow full access to all life-saving supplies; including naloxone, water bottles, food, clothing, and more in line with best practices to meet people’s needs, de-escalate 911 calls, and successfully build trust.
• Direct the Deputy City Administrator for Public Safety to re-establish culturally responsive and multilingual community outreach, communication funding and materials for PSR.
Protecting PSR’s independence
• Mandate that Portland Street Response not be a part of sweeps and enforcement activities, recognizing that this undermines trust and represents a departure from its original mission.
• Mandate that Portland Street Response be fully authorized to respond to 911 calls independently. Ensure that PSR is able to respond to people in crisis separate from police response. Determining a path forward for PSR as a co-equal branch of our first responder network
• Direct the Deputy City Administrator for Public Safety to create a committee that will report back to Council in 6-months with the best long-term structure and location for Portland Street Response, and explore expanding the call types PSR responds to. The goal of the committee will be to determine the
path forward to establish PSR as a co-equal branch of our first responder network. The committee will consider establishment of PSR as an independent department and the committee will include representation from community advocates involved in the creation of the PSR program as well as representatives from Friends of PSR.
• Direct the Deputy City Administrator for Public Safety to report back to City Council within 3 months on a path forward for independent program evaluation, including outreach and conversations with the original Portland State University evaluators.
Additionally, during my time as a Candidate I commit to:
List fully funding, expanding, and strengthening PSR as a priority on my campaign website;
Attend a virtual Friends of PSR information session to learn about the current state of PSR, its challenges, and the changes needed; and
Testify at one of the FY 24-25 budget hearings (April 10, 13, or 15) in favor of fully funding PSR with proper staffing for 24/7 expansion.