Help your community provide comments on the PCEF draft guiding principles

Step 1 – Preview overview materials and timeline 

To fully engage in this activity, your participants may need some background information. Before reviewing the draft guiding principles as a group, please have them read:

• Purpose, background, and timeline for the first round of funding for the fund.
• Introduction and Draft Guiding Principles.

Step 2 – Prepare to comment on the Draft Guiding Principles  

Your participants may want to engage in a discussion before providing public comment or they may prefer to provide public comment later. Whatever the preference, please ensure they know how to access the survey and the draft documents and resources to inform their input. It may be helpful for you and your participants to review the survey questions before or during your discussion:

Public comment online survey

Tell people how they can provide feedback on the guiding principles. The survey will gauge participants’ response to each guiding principle and provide feedback on how to improve the guiding principle. Based on participants knowledge of the PCEF program, the survey may take 10 - 20 minutes.

How to share your opinion  

Step 3 – Share Widely 

Ask participants to share Seeking Public Comments on the Portland Clean Energy Fund Draft Guiding Principles and encourage their friends, family, and network to write their own comments.

FAQs 

• How will my input be used? 
  The PCEF Committee and staff will read public comments and suggest changes to the language at future meetings based on that feedback. The goal is to approve a set of guiding principles at a committee meeting in April. 

• Why are guiding principles important? 
  Guiding principles describe a set of common values by which the PCEF program will be designed and implemented. Future decisions will be checked against these guiding principles to ensure they are in line with the vision of the Committee and the community.  

• What is the timeline?  
  The PCEF Committee with support from the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability (BPS) will conduct the public comment period from March 3 – April 5. BPS staff will present a summary of public comments to the PCEF Committee in their April meeting. The Committee may make a proposal to modify and approve guiding principles at their April 9 or 23 meeting. Please check the Committee’s meeting agendas to confirm. 

• What are future opportunities for community input?
  PCEF staff and committee welcome public input at any time on the program: 
  Email: cleanenergyfund@portlandoregon.gov 
  Call: 503-823-7713 
  The next public comment period will likely be in May or June 2020 for comments on the draft grant scoring criteria for the first solicitation.