*Create the Portland Fire & Rescue Special Revenue Fund
The City of Portland ordains.
Section 1. The Council finds:
Portland Fire & Rescue occasionally receives revenues that are restricted or otherwise committed to specific purposes. These revenues include state reimbursements, donations to Public Education and Outreach, legally obligated resources, and program-specific revenues intended to support unique certifications and equipment.
These revenues are currently received and expended through the General Fund. These revenues and associated expenditures ought to be specifically recorded in the City’s financial system and included in the City’s annual budget.
The establishment of a new fund will allow for greater financial transparency and enable programs to plan efficiently for training and equipment needs as intended through the revenue collected.
The timeline for approving this fund is short as the FY2025-26 budget development process is already underway, necessitating an emergency ordinance.
NOW, THEREFORE, the Council directs:
The Deputy City Administrator of Budget & Finance will establish the Fire Special Revenue Fund in the City’s financial system as a special revenue fund.
Section 2. The Council declares that an emergency exists because it is necessary to establish the new fund before the City develops the FY 2025-26 Requested Budget; therefore, this Ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after its passage by the Council.
An ordinance when passed by the Council shall be signed by the Auditor. It shall be carefully filed and preserved in the custody of the Auditor (City Charter Chapter 2 Article 1 Section 2-122)
Passed by Council
Auditor of the City of Portland
Simone Rede
Impact Statement
Purpose of Proposed Legislation and Background Information
The Fire Special Revenue Fund will ensure external revenues collected for specific fire-related activities and program-specific donations are appropriately managed and allocated. Revenues to the Fire Special Revenue Fund come from external sources, currently and potentially including:
- Intergovernmental agreements with local, state, or federal agencies.
- Donations earmarked for specific fire-related services or projects.
- Revenues generated through cost recovery from services provided to outside entities.
- Specific tax levies or surcharges related to fire services. All revenues are attributable to designated purposes as outlined in agreements and are restricted to the activities they are intended to support.
Financial and Budgetary Impacts
There are no direct financial or budgetary impacts to this legislation, though future program-specific revenues will be budgeted and received in this fund.
Economic and Real Estate Development Impacts
Not applicable
Community Impacts and Community Involvement
Not applicable
100% Renewable Goal
Not applicable
Financial and Budget Analysis
The fund will be used to collect different kinds of revenues including IGAs, donations, cost recovery revenue from services provided to outside entities, and specific tax levies or surcharges related to fire services. Setting aside money in a new fund will encourage public transparency for these parts of Fire's revenue and budget. The main service initially in view is to collect wildland deployment revenue, which is estimated to be $1.4 million in FY 2024-25.