Multnomah County presents draft three‑year strategic plan, schedules November vote and community survey

Multnomah County officials presented a draft three‑year strategic plan and a timeline for integrating it with the county budget, telling the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners that a community survey will be conducted in October and a final draft will return to the board in November.

The plan organizes county priorities into six focus areas — community health and wellness; a safe and just community; community vitality and resilience; accountability, collaboration and transparency; operational excellence; and investing in youth and families — and proposes outcomes, indicators and department‑level strategies that will be reconciled with the budget process. County staff said the plan will transition to ongoing performance tracking beginning with fiscal year 2027 (starting July 1, 2026) and that quarterly accountability check‑ins will produce written updates for the board.

Why it matters: County leaders said the plan is intended to link long‑range priorities to near‑term budget choices and operational work. Commissioners welcomed the connection to budgeting but urged staff to produce specific, measurable targets and clearer indicators before formal adoption.

The presentation, led by Hayden Miller, senior strategic initiatives manager in the Office of the COO and the SPARK team, outlined how the plan will be structured: strategies (specific actions and projects) will roll up to measures and indicators, which then support outcomes and the six focus areas. Staff described a five‑strategy cross‑department approach — prioritizing high‑need populations, strengthening interagency collaboration, data‑driven decision making, workforce development, and enhanced community engagement — that will guide departmental goals and budget offers.

Staff described a timeline and process steps: in late September–October the county will onboard department leaders to align strategies with the budget process and will conduct a countywide community survey in October; in November staff will present the final draft strategic plan and the department‑identified strategies to the board; in December department leaders will reconvene to prioritize strategies in light of budget guidance and the November financial forecast; January will focus on department budget submissions with narrative alignment to the plan; and July 1, 2026, marks the planned start of ongoing performance tracking tied to fiscal year 2027. Quarterly accountability check‑ins will begin in September, and the COO’s office will provide written updates after each check‑in.

Staff said they conducted an all‑staff “resonance” survey over two weeks that drew 1,177 responses, most from frontline employees; staff reported over 80% of respondents liked or strongly liked the outcomes presented. Staff acknowledged requests from employees for clearer plain language and more measurable outcomes.

Commissioners pressed for greater specificity and for indicators that reflect county priorities the county can reasonably influence. “If you don't have SMART goals, then you never miss your goals,” Commissioner Brehm Eberts said, urging targets with denominators and geographic breakdowns so the county can address disparities between neighborhoods. Eberts also recommended including indicators for gun violence, property crime and auto theft within the public‑safety measures.

Commissioner Singleton urged moving the community survey earlier so results could inform department budget development and asked staff to use established, standardized survey instruments where available to compare county data with national benchmarks. Singleton also noted the staff survey represented about an 18% response rate of an estimated 6,500 employees and asked how staff will supplement the survey to capture voices that might not have participated.

Commissioner Moyer raised a specific objection to one example indicator in the draft: an “increased number of licensed homes serving individuals with developmental disabilities.” Moyer said that people with intellectual and developmental disabilities overwhelmingly prefer non‑congregate, person‑centered housing and cautioned that the indicator could be contrary to community preference. “I find that profoundly problematic,” Moyer said, warning the example risks signaling priorities that conflict with disability‑rights goals.

Staff responded that the November return to the board will include measurable goals for the three‑year horizon and year‑one targets; they said the department‑level work beginning this fall will produce draft measures for board review. The plan’s implementation structure includes a Strategy and Performance Management Committee led by COO Chris Veil and a project team and data consortium that staff said will integrate indicators and performance measures with existing budget performance metrics.

No formal action or vote on the strategic plan was taken during the meeting. Staff said the continuous improvement manager position to support the process has been posted and interviews are forthcoming.

The board adjourned noting the next regular meeting is scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 28, at 9:30 a.m.