FY 2027 Adopted Budget

Multnomah County, Ore. (June 5, 2026) — The Multnomah County Board of Commissioners early Friday voted 4-1 to adopt a $4 billion balanced budget that makes difficult cuts to close major funding gaps for the second year in a row — while striving to preserve core safety net services and public safety programs that support hundreds of thousands of County residents.

The adopted Fiscal Year 2027 budget will keep thousands of people who were formerly homeless from losing their housing and returning to the streets. It will prevent evictions for thousands more people so they don’t need homeless services in the first place. And it adds resources to more efficiently transition shelter guests to a housing solution, ending their experience with homelessness and opening up shelter beds for new people.

The budget also maintains investments for school-based mental health clinicians and mental health supports for high-risk people on post-prison supervision. It funds construction of the County’s 24/7 Sobering and Crisis Stabilization Center and maintains full capacity for the County’s jails.

The budget supports the County’s rollout toward universal Preschool for All. And it recognizes the ongoing threat to immigrant communities in Multnomah County, providing funding for rent, food and utilities to support families put at risk by federal policies and enforcement activities.

“When I started this budget process — my fourth and final one as County Chair — it was my goal to leave us in the best possible position to support our community despite federal and local challenges and a difficult fiscal landscape,” said Chair Jessica Vega Pederson. “I believe we have succeeded in that. And while the budget reality is such that we’ve had to make some really tough tradeoffs — which will have a real impact on people’s lives and livelihood — we will continue to be a mainstay for Multnomah County through the difficult moments ahead.”

"This was a difficult budget. I do not take lightly the reductions in services and the loss of employees. I am saddened by the cuts we made today, but proud of my restorations to SUN schools and emergency rent assistance.” said District 1 Commissioner Meghan Moyer.

"I came to this process representing the voices of District 2 and communities across Multnomah County who deserve better — and even when those voices don't prevail in a single vote, they are never lost on me,” said District 2 Commissioner Shannon Singleton. “I'm proud that investments in housing stability, placement out of shelter, sustainability and continued support for our immigrant neighbors are now part of this County's commitment, and I will keep fighting for workforce opportunity, a more equitable justice system and approaches to homelessness that meet people where they are. I also want to acknowledge the extraordinary work of County staff who made this process possible — their professionalism and dedication through an incredibly difficult budget year did not go unnoticed. To the communities who showed up and made their voices heard: I hear you, and I'm not done fighting for you."

“The Commission was able to continue investments in homeless services, school-based mental health services, and include funding to complete the 24/7 Sobering and Crisis Stabilization Center. The Commission also restored investments by adopting amendments to fund behavioral health services, employment programs, and preserve funding for neighborhood safety,” said District 3 Commissioner Julia Brim-Edwards. “But ultimately, I voted no on this budget as it leaves too many gaps and will not reduce homelessness or deliver the level of change our community is asking for. I could not support a budget that misses an opportunity for course correction – to reduce outgrown layers of administrative leadership and prioritize investments in direct services and programs that demonstrate improved outcomes and show real results.”

“Together we can do just about anything. I will continue to focus on east Multnomah County, but I was reminded this evening and throughout this budget process of our responsibility not only to east County but our entire community,” said District 4 Commissioner Vince Jones-Dixon. “I have a deep appreciation for the work we do here to build America's favorite county.”

Amendments follow hours of public discussions

The final spending plan funds the work of 11 County departments and nearly more than 5,700 full-time employees, as well as the work of three public offices led by the independently elected Auditor, Sheriff and District Attorney. The budget finances operations for the County’s next fiscal year, which runs from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027.

The adopted budget reflects several changes since Chair Vega Pederson released her Executive Budget in April.

Those changes, among several, include additional funding for employment services for people experiencing homelessness; full funding for SUN Community Schools after-school programs; funding to restore four prosecutors; additional support for transitioning pretrial services to the state court system; additional legal and rent assistance for immigrant communities; and continued and additional funding for homeless services in Gresham and east Multnomah County.

Commissioners have been discussing amendments and budget notes for several weeks, hearing updates from all departments and offices, receiving testimony from community members, asking questions, and proposing and discussing dozens of proposals in nearly two dozen public work sessions.

That work included nearly 20 hours of public discussion this week alone. Commissioners also held three community hearings in April and May where they heard directly from the public.

The Board ultimately considered more than 50 amendments and approved 39, accommodating requests and adjustments brought by every member of the Board. A list of all amendments and budget notes — including information on which Board member proposed each amendment — will be posted and updated here.

Reflecting the County’s challenging financial circumstances, the budget also includes several difficult programmatic reductions that were made with the aim of protecting as best as possible the County’s highest priorities of direct services and community safety. The budget also makes administrative reductions to preserve direct services to the community, streamline their delivery and make programs more efficient.

Overall, the final budget eliminates at least 158 full-time positions, compared to the County’s adopted Fiscal Year 2026 budget, starting as much as possible with those already vacant. A full count of affected positions, following this week’s amendments, is not yet available...read the full press release. Watch the Board's deliberation and budget adoption.