Community Involvement Committee (CIC)

About the Community Involvement Committee

The Community Involvement Committee (CIC) serves as Multnomah County’s advisory body on community engagement and involvement.

The CIC plays a crucial role in bringing community voice into county decision-making. CIC members engage in an ongoing review of the County's community involvement policies and programs, bring community concerns to County leadership, and assist in facilitating communication between the County and the community.

Together, the committee makes recommendations directly to the Office of Community Involvement, County departments and the Board of County Commissioners about opportunities for community engagement and removing barriers to civic participation.

CIC Membership and Meetings

CIC members are appointed by the Board of County Commissioners. The CIC meets every other month on the third Tuesday from 6-8pm. Based on member availability, we are currently holding most CIC meetings virtually. Subcommittees of the CIC typically meet monthly, on a schedule determined by subcommittee members and chairs. 

The CIC usually recruits new members in the winter and spring. Please see below for how to apply, and review the Frequently Asked Questions about membership!

CIC Recommendations

Each year the CIC produces between one and three recommendation letters or reports. In Fiscal Year 2025 (2024-2025), the CIC created recommendations related to improving community engagement infrastructure and opportunities for engagement around recovery and addiction services and policies.  The CIC will present on this year's work and their recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners on Thursday, August 14th, in their morning session. Details for how to attend or view online are available here.  A brief summary of recommendations is below- read their recommendations from this and past years on the CIC Recommendations Page.

Recommendations: Improvements to Engagement Infrastructure

The CIC subcommittee chose to focus on the topic of strengthening County infrastructure for community engagement because of the need for more structured, coordinated, and meaningful engagement between the county government and the community. Process, findings and detailed recommendations are linked above. A brief summary of recommendations are as follows:

The CIC Recommends the Board of County Commissioners:

1. Update Multnomah County Code Chapter 25 to clarify OCI’s role and responsibilities.
2. Increase OCI’s Capacity to support the Community Involvement Committee (CIC) and Community Budget Advisory Committee (CBAC) programs, as well as their capacity to support County staff practicing community engagement.  
3. Commit financial resources to OCI to meaningfully support consistent community engagement in Multnomah County.

The CIC Recommends the Office of Community Involvement:

1. Clearly articulate the Mission, Values, Purpose, and Duties of OCI.
2. Develop and Embed Community Engagement Standards and Best Practices.  
3. Develop Community Engagement Infrastructure and Resources for Advisory Boards and Staff.
4. Build Strong Communication Channels and Tools.

Recommendations: Community Involvement in Recovery and Addiction

The CIC selected this topic for subcommittee work motivated by lived experience of addiction and recovery, family and community experiences of addiction and recovery, and curiosity around how the county is involving impacted and other community members in this critical issue.   Process, findings and detailed recommendations are linked above. A brief summary of recommendations are as follows:

1. Invest in targeted community outreach and education projects to destigmatize and promote active engagement in the community to support recovery.
   1. Create targeted and culturally specific outreach and educational campaigns
   2. Promote targeted and culturally specific outreach and Public Service Announcements (PSAs) to inform people of services.
2. Create more opportunities for those most impacted by addiction to share their voice and be engaged in county decision-making.  
   1. Conduct regular in-person meetings with clients, first responders, front-line staff, volunteers, and advisory committees engaged in addiction and recovery services.
   2. Design a “Community 2 County” internship program that offers short-term paid internships to non-student adults, with emphasis on people with lived experience of addiction, homelessness, and other marginalized identities and experiences.  
   3. Offer training for community members in recovery to volunteer.
3. Lower barriers to engagement specific to addiction and recovery impacted community members in existing volunteer and/or internship programs.  
   1. Create recommendations and best practices for volunteer programs to reduce barriers for people with lived experience in volunteerism, and support staff in implementation.
   2. Support advisory boards in addressing this topic, and in recruiting and retaining members with lived experience of addiction and recovery.
4. Engage diverse communities to improve our recovery and addiction spaces in order to facilitate engagement of clients and the broader community.

Past Recommendations: 

You can view CIC recommendations and board briefings from prior years on our website. Other important documents for the CIC, including their bylaws, can be found on the Meetings, Minutes, Documents page.

How to Apply

Applications for the CIC were open from February 1, 2025 to March 31st, 2025. Applications will reopen in early 2026.

You can learn more about the application and preview the questions on the Frequently Asked Questions page.

Community Involvement Committee vacancies are assessed and applications are accepted on an annual basis. You can sign up for our quarterly e-newsletter to stay connected with the Office of Community Involvement and to receive news on other opportunities to get involved with Multnomah County!

Questions?

Want to know more? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions on applying for the CIC, and contact us with additional questions.

503-823-4000 Traducción e Interpretación | Biên Dịch và Thông Dịch | 口笔译服务 | Устный и письменный перевод | Turjumaad iyo Fasiraad | Письмовий і усний переклад | Traducere și interpretariat | Chiaku me Awewen Kapas | अनुवादन तथा व्याख्या