Department of Community Justice presents budget modifications as state cuts reduce community provider funding
Summary
DCJ told the board it faces nearly $2 million in state funding losses and is bringing two budget modifications: a rebalance for a $1.9 million net reduction and a carry-forward of roughly $1 million from obligated FY25 grant funds. Commissioners pressed for data on community impacts and culturally specific providers.
The Multnomah County Department of Community Justice on Oct. 16 presented two budget modifications responding to state funding changes that DCJ staff said will most significantly affect transition services and contracts with community providers.
Deputy Director Suzanne Brown McBride and Colby Dixon, DCJ business services manager, told the board the department faces a near $2.0 million revenue reduction driven largely by the loss of $2.6 million in a community corrections state grant (SB 1145) and related state pass-throughs. DCJ also asked the board to approve the carry-forward of approximately $1.0 million in unspent but obligated FY2025 grant funds into FY2026 to allow contract fulfillment until new awards arrive.
DCJ officials said the largest direct program impacts would fall on the Transition Services Unit (TSU) and on contracts with community providers that help place people into housing and other supports. Suzanne Brown McBride acknowledged continued uncertainty from pending state decisions and said the department would return with updated impacts as more information becomes available.
Commissioners sought details about program reductions and data to show how cuts affect culturally specific programs, including DCJ'funded services such as Flip the Script. Commissioner Singleton pressed DCJ to follow up with specific data disaggregated by race and provider type. Brown McBride said Flip the Script will be reduced but not eliminated.
Commissioner Moyer and others raised concern that contract reductions will increase day-to-day workload for probation officers and require more case management by staff, even as staffing levels were spared in this round. DCJ said the rebalance does not cut FTEs beyond earlier county budget reductions, though funding sources for some positions will shift; the department said it had already absorbed personnel reductions earlier during the county budget process.
On the carry-forward modification (bringing obligated FY25 grant revenue into FY26), DCJ said the funds are restricted to specific contracts and grant deliverables and cannot be used broadly to offset state-funded losses.
Both DCJ items (the rebalance request and the grant carry-forward) were moved and seconded by commissioners and approved in roll-call votes.
DCJ officials and commissioners agreed to follow up on data gaps. Commissioners and DCJ staff said they would explore cross-departmental data-sharing to better measure service overlaps and the cumulative impacts of reductions across county departments and community providers.
