Portland Auditor’s Office Wants to Hire a City Employee to Monitor Campaign Advertising

Campaign-finance reforms come with a price tag.

(Christine Dong)
By Rachel Monahan

$116,000.

That's how much money the Portland City Auditor's Office will request for each of the next two years to enforce new campaign finance rules voters approved last November.

Voters passed Measure 26-200, which set a $500 cap on campaign contributions to candidates for city office. A Multnomah County circuit judge struck down that limit—but approved other rules in the measure, including a requirement that campaign ads include a detailed disclosure of donors who paid for them.

Under the measure, the auditor's office has to watchdog whether these rules are being followed. So City Auditor Mary Hull Caballero plans to request $232,000 in pay and benefits for a new two-year position to perform this campaign finance reform.

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