Bond oversight committee reports programs largely on budget; questions remain on Benson, contingency and workforce parity

The Bond Accountability Committee reported that Portland Public Schools’ earlier bond programs are largely complete and underspent while the 2020 bond program is about half spent and retaining contingency funds, committee members said at a June meeting of the Board of Education’s School Facilities Improvement Oversight Committee.

The report, delivered by committee member Norman Dowdy, noted the oldest bond (referred to in committee materials as the 2012 bond) is about 99.9 percent complete with roughly $480,000 remaining; the 2017 program is 91 percent spent and the committee’s current forecast shows it about $67.8 million under the rebaselined budget. The 2020 bond is approximately 48 percent spent and has contingency and allocated project funds of about $83 million, the report said. “Projects are generally coming in on time and within budget,” Dowdy told the committee.

Why it matters: the savings and contingency positions affect whether remaining funds can be reallocated to priority health-and-safety projects, athletics, or to the new 2025 seismic program. Committee members asked for clarity about how earlier projects were reallocated and whether projected underruns…