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From Councilor Ryan’s desk: May 19, 2026

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Photo: Councilor Ryan with Portland Police Officer Monsef of the North Precinct on May 8, 2026.View full size image
Photo: Councilor Ryan with Portland Police Officer Monsef of the North Precinct on May 8, 2026.
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What's been on my mind this week

2026-27 public safety ride-alongs: Portland Police Bureau

Multiple City of Portland public safety bureaus on the scene at the St. Johns Bridge on May 8, 2026.View full size image
Multiple City of Portland public safety bureaus on the scene at the St. Johns Bridge on May 8, 2026.

I've mentioned it in my last few newsletters, but I'll mention it again here—I try my best to connect one-on-one with Portland's public safety bureaus and offices leading up to the City's annual budget conversations. These ride-alongs provide insights into the state of on-the-ground operations right now within each of Portland's public safety organizations. Conditions evolve constantly based on a variety of factors (including funding!), so the challenges, opportunities, and improvements I observe change from year to year. 

On May 8, I joined Portland Police Officer Monsef for a ride-along in North Portland. What unfolded is something that will stay with me: The first call received was about a person threatening to jump from the St. Johns Bridge.

The first responders to this complex life-and-death situation were crewmembers from Portland Fire & Rescue Station 22. Officer Monsef was the second to arrive on scene, where he did all he could to save a life through training, kindness, and patience. I witnessed a masterclass in multi-bureau collaboration that afternoon, everyone united in their goal of helping a person in crisis. Sadly, after 90 minutes, the incident ended with an outcome that none of us wanted. And unfortunately, this is not uncommon, as the Station 22 Fire & Rescue crew were back on the same bridge with another person in crisis the very next morning.

First responders deal with society's systems failures of all kinds, and, sadly, mental health issues are more prevalent than ever. This is what our public safety professionals are dealing with. I am incredibly proud of the way our public safety teams handled this response, including Police, Fire & Rescue, and Emergency Management (9-1-1). These bureaus regularly work in tandem, and their continued collaboration is essential to improved community safety for all Portlanders. The City's 2026-27 budget must include restored budgets for all of Portland's public safety bureaus and offices, full stop.

Making progress on Portland's 2026-27 budget

My view from the dais on Monday, May 18, when Portlanders provided public testimony on the City of Portland’s 2026-27 budget.View full size image
My view from the dais on Monday, May 18, when Portlanders provided public testimony on the City of Portland’s 2026-27 budget.

The City of Portland budget development process moves fast, starting with the release of Mayor Wilson's proposed budget on April 20 and running through adopted budget second reading at City Council on June 17. These eight weeks of work have so far been (and will continue to be) comprised of tough but necessary conversations between Mayor Wilson, the City Administration, my fellow City Councilors, City Service Area and Bureau leads, and labor unions about how to allocate the limited financial resources at our disposal. 

Headed into budget season, I was curious about the staffing of the General Fund bureaus over the last 10 years. I did some digging and here's what I found: Portland Police is the only bureau whose staff numbers have decreased compared to a decade ago—to the tune of -6%. In 2016-17, Police had 1,226 full-time equivalents (FTE), and in the proposed 2026-27 budget, they'd have 1,153. Fire & Rescue has seen only a 4% increase in FTE over 10 years, which is woefully inadequate to meet the needs of Portlanders. Meanwhile, Housing FTEs are up 63%, Planning & Sustainability's FTEs are up 47%, and Transportation FTEs are up 22% during that same timespan. The last City Council focused on rebuilding Police, Fire & Rescue, and 9-1-1 staffing, and we were just beginning to see improvements in customer service and response times. We cannot back-pedal. Your top-dollar tax rates should translate to improved response times, and I will keep fighting for that.

A graph showing the City of Portland General Fund bureaus by percent of full-time equivalent growth from 2016-17 vs. 2026-27.View full size image
City of Portland bureaus' full-time equivalent growth over a ten-year span, from 2016-17 to what has been proposed for 2026-27.

Realizing that public safety took a big hit in the Mayor's 2026-27 proposal, my priorities, as we move forward to approve the budget, include the restoration of funding for both Portland Police Bureau and Portland Fire & Rescue, including Station 22, as well as the Community Health Assess and Treat (CHAT) program. In the most recent budget-related development, City Councilors' proposed amendments were posted last Friday, May 15. Those will be discussed and debated this week—including my proposed amendment and those I'm co-sponsoring: 

  • Clark-Pirtle Guiney-Novick-Ryan-Smith 1: This amendment would use $10 million in under-utilized funding within the Office of Community Police Accountability (OCPA) to restore critical services to the community, including the CHAT Program, the Station 22 engine, Fire & Rescue vehicles, Portland Police precinct administration, the Victims' Services Unit, the PS3 program, and EM&S. This aligns with legal guidance on the charter requirement to fund OCPA at 5% of the Police Bureau's budget, while recognizing that OCPA is highly unlikely to be able to spend that amount in 2026-27. 
     
  • Ryan 1: My proposed amendment would reduce Council Office and Operations budgets by $500,000 to restore funding to the Community Health Assess and Treat (CHAT) program, a program with proven impacts for medically vulnerable Portlanders and decrease their reliance on 9-1-1 response for chronic medical needs. This proposal exempts District 1 offices from cuts, as they're budgets are more constrained because they fund district offices to provide greater access to local government for East Portlanders. I believe in shared sacrifice, and in solidarity with City employees, this 8% reduction to Council Offices and 3% reduction to Council Operations is in line with what our bureaus have been asked to do. It wouldn't be right to expect everyone else to take cuts except for us. 

I plan to oppose nearly all other proposed budget amendments because I want Mayor Wilson and City Administrator Lee to continue to focus on the City's core services realignment after voters asked us to break down silos. These are the tough trade-offs, and this work to trim, consolidate, and eliminate duplication is essential. Too many of the proposed amendments undermine this work with random add-backs.

Recent and upcoming Portland City Council votes to note

Wooden City of Portland, Oregon logo on wall with wooden slats with City Council's seats in the foreground.View full size image
Portland City Council Chambers.

While the City's budget development efforts are front and center right now, I want to ensure that some of City Council's recent and upcoming votes aren't overshadowed. We're still making progress on important topics from the dais. I outlined a few key votes in my last newsletter, including the Keep Portland Housed Ordinance and the Transportation Utility Fee. Since then, Council has voted on or discussed upcoming votes on:

  • Ordinance 192173: On May 6, City Council passed Councilor Novick's ordinance targeting chronic nuisance properties. Its passage will make it easier to crack down on property owners whose properties have become associated with crime—drug dealing, human trafficking, illegal firearm activity, etc. Supporting this ordinance was about doing something for the voiceless, particularly the children and youth who don't have the agency to advocate for themselves. In March, we heard testimony from adults who were abused as young people—the pain they endured and the trauma they still manage as a result of the sex-traffic harms they experienced is unimaginable. They were so brave to come to Council Chambers to testify, and I believe them. This action is for those Portlanders. Kudos to Councilor Novick for all of his work on this piece of necessary legislation.
     
  • Ordinance to approve funding recommendations of the Portland Children's Levy Allocation Committee: On May 13, City Council passed an ordinance to allow the Portland Children's Levy to award a total of $2.5 million as small grants to local organizations that serve children and families across six program areas: after school, child abuse prevention and intervention, early childhood, foster care, hunger relief, and mentoring. I've chaired the Portland Children's Levy's Allocation Committee since 2020, and I was proud to vote support this ordinance. The Portland Children's Levy uses data-driven decision-making to drive real results. I wish that all grantmaking efforts at the City of Portland were conducted with this level of fidelity. They're the gold star, and their work is incredibly important.
     
  • Arts Tax code amendment: Also on May 13, City Council did a first reading of a code amendment to Portland's Arts Tax, which funds the Arts Access Fund, originally passed by voters in 2012. From advocating for the restoration and reinstallation of the Thompson Elk statue to the creation of new Darcelle EV Plaza and spearheading the creation of the City of Portland's first-ever dedicated Arts & Culture office, my commitment to strengthening Portland's arts ecosystem is well-established. Still, in advance of the amendment heading to a second reading, I plan to vote "nay". I can't support another tax increase on Portlanders from the dais. In my view, because Portlanders adopted the original version of the Arts Tax, this change should go back to the voters to decide on.

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