The Office of Community Involvement today proposed a series of sweeping changes to the County’s Community Budget Advisory Committees aimed at improving the recruitment, communication and the effectiveness of the volunteer advisors.
The improvements arose from years of analysis and were presented to the Board of County Commissioners at a briefing, and are planned to give more community members a pathway to serve on the advisory committees, more training for them, and more time overall for the committee members to review and comment on the County’s budget.
“You shared your needs and recommendations to help us better support both the community and Multnomah County. We listened – and we’re putting improvements into practice for this upcoming budget cycle with a promise to continue to improve from here,” said Chair Jessica Vega Pederson.
The County’s Office of Community Involvement (OCI) works to connect members of the public with the work of the County and the Board of Commissioners. This includes helping connect County departments to 10 community budget advisory committees, known as CBACs. Community members volunteer for three-year terms on the committee and play an important role learning about departmental programs and priorities, reviewing department submitted budgets every February, and submitting their thoughts and recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners in May.
One member from each CBAC also serves on a Central Community Budget Advisory Committee (CCBAC) to make county-wide recommendations to the Chair, the Board and the public that may cross departmental lines and affect one or more departments.
During the FY25 budget creation, members of the Central CBAC and department CBACs shared their concerns with the Board about the lack of regular meetings, access to departmental staff and information, and timely submission of recommendations to the Board. The Board asked the Office of Community Involvement to return this fall with recommendations for improvement.
The recommendations include:
- Launching a County- wide CBAC recruitment effort working with departments to diversify. The goal is to recruit and onboard 37 community members to fully staff every committee. Community members who are interested are encouraged can learn more and apply online.
- Better alignment of the CBAC and budget calendar to ensure participation.
- Holding monthly meetings by the Office of Community Involvement with CBAC coordinators to address the issues, challenges and opportunities for CBAC groups.
- Hosting two general information sessions for new CBAC applicants and returning community members.
- Providing orientation and training for new and returning CBAC members.
The Office of Community Involvement will be partnering with department leaders and budget advisory groups and to implement these and other improvements over the next two years. Evaluating and undertaking continuous improvement will come under the direction of Dr. Amara (amada) Pérez, who will be leading the Office of Community Involvement beginning, Monday, Sept. 30.
Pérez, who has three decades of experience in civic engagement and systems change in the Portland area, earned her doctorate in Cultural Foundations of Education at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro, a M.S. in Educational Leadership and Policy at Portland State University, and a B.A. in Sociology at Randolph-Macon Woman’s College.
In a recorded statement, Madison Riethman, a member of the Library CBAC and Central CBAC, told the Board of Commissioners that she was encouraged by Commissioner Jesse Beason’s budget note earlier this year seeking the update and emphasizing the the important role CBACs play and, ultimately, establishing a pathway to improve the ways in which CBACs operate.
“As part of the CBAC Improvement Workgroup, the concerns raised were taken seriously, and the process of identifying and outlining the necessary changes was collaborative and action-oriented,’’ Riethman said. “The recommendations put forth are a reflection of this collaborative process, and provide a way forward, addressing the barriers to CBAC success in the past.”
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