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A political action committee set up by stakeholders eager to pass a five-year Portland parks levy on the November ballot has already raked in $53,580 from unions, current and former elected officials and the city’s chamber of commerce.
Referred to the fall ballot by the Portland City Council after months of brokering between the Portland Metro Chamber and elected officials, the levy—which would impose a $1.40 tax per $1,000 of assessed property value, nearly a doubling of the 80 cent current levy—has broad support among unions, elected officials and business groups.
The current parks levy, which levies an 80 cent tax per $1,000 assessed property value, expires next year. Should the measure fail at the ballot box, parks officials have warned, the consequences would be dire. Without a new levy, the parks bureau has said it will be forced to cut 50% of its programs.
Should the measure pass, parks leaders say they can maintain all existing programming and assets, and also spend some of the revenue on bringing defunct assets back online.
That broad support is reflected in public campaign finance records, which show that the money is already flowing into the PAC, called Portlanders for Parks.
Oregon AFSCME Local 75 contributed $20,000 to the PAC. Former Mayor Ted Wheeler contributed $1,000. Councilors Olivia Clark and Steve Novick each contributed $500 apiece. SEIU Local 49 contributed $10,000, while LiUNA Local 483 contributed $7,000 and IBEW Local 48 (which represents electricians) contributed $2,500. The Portland Metro Chamber’s political action arm contributed $2,500.
