Author: Margaret Noel

LWVPDX Amicus Briefs

Police Accountability and Oversight Board Threatened by Proposed Initiative

The League of Women Voters of Portland and Portland Forward, with the assistance of ACLU Oregon, filed an amici curiae brief with the Multnomah County Circuit Court on April 24, 2024.  The brief supported the ballot title challenge which the Dr. Rev. LeRoy Haynes, Jr. filed to a Portland Police Association initiative petition (PDX24OL-03). Dr. Rev. Haynes chairs the Albina Ministerial Alliance Coalition for Justice and Police Reform.

The initiative sought to eliminate the  police oversight board’s ability to discipline officers and reduced the board’s scope of jurisdiction over police misconduct cases. This authority was given to the yet-to-be-implemented board when voters passed Measure 26-217 in 2020.  The court filings from the Dr. Rev. Haynes, the League, and Portland Forward made the point that the ballot title was not an accurate summary of the impact the measure would have if passed. Circuit Court Judge Katharine von Ter Stegge ruled against the Police Association’s petition and incorporated part of the language requested by Rev. Haynes in her revision of the proposed ballot title. 

Read the ACLU press release about this here.

Read the court order and revised ballot title here.

The League has a long history of involvement with police oversight in Portland, endorsed Measure 26-217, and we base our action on the Portland Police Bureau:  Oversight and Accountability position.

 

2024 Primary Election Voters’ Guides

Your Vote Counts

Check out the League’s Voters’ Guide page here!

You will find explanations of all the Multnomah County ballot measures, as well as links to a video and podcast of a pro/con voter forum on the Zoo Bond measure.

There are answers to questions written by the candidates, and thirty-two short videos of candidate interviews. We produced videos and podcasts of candidate forums for both the Republican and Democratic candidates running to represent US House District 3 , and forums with the candidates for Multnomah County District Attorney and for three of the County Commissioner Districts.

All our voters’ guide information is carefully researched, fair and nonpartisan.  

Portland Public Schools Webinar

This webinar highlighted the ways Portland Public Schools is moving forward in the face of many challenges.

On the plus side, how can PPS build on its recent improvements in student performance on state tests? On the challenging side, what can be done to improve inadequate funding, in the face of projected downturns in student enrollment? How can we offset the low number of instructional days caused by short-term (the strike!) and long-term factors? 

To view the video recording of this webinar, click the arrow below:

Listen to the podcast of this program by clicking here.

The panelists included Portland Public Schools leaders and educational experts: 

  • Dr. Sandy Husk, Portland Public Schools Interim Superintendent
  • Michelle DePass, Portland Public Schools Board of Education 
  • William Fernandez, Senior Professional Development Officer, Office of Research, Assessment and Accountability
  • Kristina Howard, Interim Chief Academic Officer, Senior Director, Teacher Professional Learning, Office of Teaching and Learning 

This program is one of our community education programs held free of charge for our members and the public. All of our programs are recorded for rebroadcast by MetroEast Community Media and available by video and podcast from our website, lwvpdx.org. The programs are also replayed on community access television. The replay schedule is below. 

Funding for production of this program is provided by the League of Women Voters of Portland Education Fund and the Carol and Velma Saling Foundation. 

Looking Ahead: 2024 LWV Work & Fun

2024 will be a busy year for LWVPDX. We start with important planning for next year and a luncheon.
Engaging League Members
    • Program Planning: We gathered in groups to plan the projects and priorities we will focus upon in 2024-25. This activity is exclusively for League members. Local Leagues throughout the U.S. do “program planning” in January every year. You can read more about this here.
    • The Media Luncheon: On February 14, the anniversary of the League’s founding, members enjoyed a luncheon together. We listened to a panel of journalists discuss our city – the things we value and a vision for the future of Portland. Registration closed on February 9, but you can read more about the event here.

 

Engaging the Public on Voting and Community Issues
    • Voter Service: For the upcoming elections, we will provide plenty of nonpartisan voter information to the people of Multnomah County. We will register voters and produce our usual print and online voting guides, and recorded candidate interviews and forums. Find out more on our 2024 Primary Voters’ Guide page.  
    • City Government Changes: As Portland’s city government and elections method change in the coming year, LWVPDX will be active in educating our members and the public. We are committed to ensuring that every Portlander knows how to use ranked choice voting and engage with their local government. View our City Charter Reform page for the latest.
    • Community Education: Our usual panel discussions of current issues in our communities will be presented in March and April. Our spring panels will address housing and education. These, along with our voting resources, will be recorded for viewing and listening. Look at our Public Events page for more information.

Webinar: Transportation Challenges

Recorded Zoom webinar: Transportation Challenges for Portland and Beyond

Click on the arrow below to view the video of this webinar, which was recorded November 15, 2023.

This LWV of Portland Zoom webinar featured a panel of government and nonprofit leaders who discussed several of the most urgent challenges now facing our transportation sector. These challenges directly affect our communities.

The panelists:

    • Moderator: Chris Smith, a transportation policy expert and a long-time community volunteer. Chris also explained how Portland’s transportation system fits into Metro regional transportation planning.
    • Millicent Williams,  Director, Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) discussing funding concerns. Funding is a major challenge confronting multiple government transportation agencies. In part, this is due to less revenue from gas taxes. However, Portland also faces other revenue and expense concerns. The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) must deal with this issue now as the City of Portland is developing budgets for its next fiscal year. 
    • Zachary Lauritzen, Interim Executive Director, Oregon Walks, discussing transportation safety. Safety on, and alongside, our roads continues to be a difficult problem with consequences that can be deadly. Addressing safety concerns requires action by multiple agencies– not just the transportation sector. 
    • Jana Gastellum, Executive Director, Oregon Environmental Council, discussing climate concerns. Transportation is Oregon’s largest source of carbon emissions, so it is an important factor in addressing climate concerns. Options to reduce driving and the transition to electric vehicles reduce gas tax revenues. This requires consideration of additional state-level funding approaches.

This program was recorded by MetroEast Community Media. It is also available as a podcast here.

Funding for production of this program is provided by the League of Women Voters of Portland Education Fund and the Carol and Velma Saling Foundation. 

Replay dates and times on cable TV are shown below.