City auditor: Portland lacks citywide asset-management strategy; audit cites over $1 billion funding gap

City Auditor Simone Reddy and Audit Services Director Casey Jones told the Portland City Council on Sept. 4 that a performance audit found Portland has not adopted a citywide asset-management strategy, leaving the city without coordinated governance to address a growing infrastructure funding gap.

"We found that the city has not adopted a citywide asset management strategy," Jones said during the audit presentation, noting that the lack of a single governance structure and long-term decision framework has hampered coordinated planning. Jones described assets owned by major infrastructure bureaus — roads, parks, water systems, buildings and equipment — and said a 2023 estimate put the replacement value of those assets at more than $74 billion.

The audit traces an increase in Portland’s annual infrastructure funding shortfall from an estimated $112 million in 2007 to more than $1 billion in 2024. Jones and the audit team concluded that, without a citywide strategy and governance, the city lacks the decision-making…