The purpose of this Chapter is to establish a procedure by which formally adopted policies and administrative rules are collected and maintained in a format that provides easy access for the public. The repository created by this Chapter supplements other resources that are maintained independently, such as the Code and the City’s Comprehensive Plan.

As used in this Chapter, the following definitions apply:

1. A.Binding City Policy means statements of the Council, expressed in a resolution or ordinance, that are directed to future decision-making or procedure and have binding effect or serve as mandatory approval criteria. The resolutions or ordinances must state in their text that the policy being adopted is a “Binding City Policy.” . This category of policies excludes Comprehensive Plan policies, which are organized separately.
2. B.Non-binding City Policy means a statement of the Council’s opinion, expressed in a resolution or ordinance, that does not have binding effect or serve as mandatory approval criteria for future decision-making. The resolutions or ordinances must state in their text that the policy being adopted is a Non-binding City Policy. Examples include statements urging support for charitable or political efforts and statements encouraging civic involvement.
3. C.Administrative rule or rule means a binding requirement, regulation, or procedure that is formally adopted by (1) the City Administrator pursuant to rule-making authority granted by the Charter or delegated by the Council, or (2) the Auditor pursuant to rule-making authority granted by the Charter or delegated by the Council. This definition excludes Bureau Policies. An administrative rule must be labeled as or state in its text that it is an administrative rule.
4. D.Bureau policy means a requirement or procedure adopted by a bureau, program,  or office in the absence of formally delegated rule-making authority that has binding effect on the bureau, program, or office. Examples include bureau-specific work rules and administrative procedures.
5. E.Formally adopted means adopted by Council, by the City Administrator pursuant to a delegation of authority from the Council or Charter, or by the Auditor pursuant to rule-making authority granted by the Charter or delegated by the Council.
6. F.Comprehensive Plan Policy means a policy that relates to the exercise of the City’s zoning and land use responsibilities.
7. G.Legislation means a municipal law, enacted by ordinance.

The Auditor will post all binding City policies, non-binding City policies, and administrative rules to an online repository to be known as the Portland Policy Documents. The repository will be publicly available via the internet. Costs for providing paper copies of documents included in the repository or other services will be recovered according to the standard practice of the Auditor’s Office.

The Auditor will create an index of documents in the repository, organized by subject matter and by any additional methods deemed appropriate by the Auditor, to assist users with identifying and locating documents. The Auditor may also, in the Auditor’s discretion, provide automated tools for searching documents.

The Auditor will publish repository documents to the internet. Documents published to the internet constitute the official repository required by this Chapter.

1. A. Each City official adopting, amending or repealing documents that are required to be retained in the repository will furnish the Auditor with a copy of the new or amended documents, or information concerning any items that are repealed, within 2 weeks of the adoption, amendment or repeal.
2. B. All documents submitted for inclusion will be submitted in electronic form, using the format specified by the Auditor.
3. C. Bureau policies that are not administrative rules or binding City policies are maintained and documented by the individual bureau or office. If the policies impact the public, the bureau or office is encouraged to submit the policies for inclusion in the repository.
4. D. Comprehensive Plan policies are organized and maintained within the framework of the City’s Comprehensive Plan and are not included in the repository.
5. E. Legislation is codified and maintained separately in the Code and is not included in the repository.

Although retaining flexibility in the format of individual policy documents is preferred, the Auditor is authorized to establish a standard format for documents that are retained in the repository to facilitate compilation and use of those documents by the public. Bureaus are authorized to reformat documents to comply with the Auditor’s requirements without engaging in rule-making procedures, so long as the reformatting does not result in substantive changes.

Documents kept in the repository are not legislation. Rules and policies establishing requirements for City employees or other matters regulating the City’s budget and internal management are binding on City bureaus and employees. Administrative rules are binding pursuant to the delegation of authority under which the rules were adopted. Documents in the repository are not land use decisions and do not in any manner constitute criteria for future decisions in the land use context.

Documents required to be filed in the repository represent a small percentage of the documents used in the performance of the City’s business. Nothing in this Chapter is intended to, and nor may it be, construed as limiting the availability or effect of documents that are not required to be filed in the repository.