Portland councilors press for answers after Portland Children's Levy awards prompt protests from Black-led groups

Portland councilors questioned Portland Children's Levy (PCL) staff and allocation committee members on May 21 after public testimony accused the committee of sending most hunger-relief and youth-services dollars to large, white-led organizations instead of smaller, culturally specific or Black-led groups. Councilors said they want more detail before finalizing funding so they can judge whether recommendations followed the levy's stated equity priorities.

The levy director and allocation staff told council the funding round was unusually competitive: the amount available for large grants is projected to fall about 21 percent (from roughly $27.2 million to a projected $21.56 million per year over the next three-year cycle) as PCL spends down a fund balance and property-tax revenue declines. At the same time the levy saw a 45 percent increase in applications (68 applications, many from organizations that had not previously received PCL funding). PCL staff said community priorities and the new community council process were used to weigh applications where scores were close.

Many public testifiers said scoring and portfolio-selection produced results that undercut the levy's equity goals: higher-scoring or longer-established Black-led applicants were not recommended while large regional institutions received large awards. Testimony named specific examples, including the Portland-area Equitable Giving Circle and community organizations that focus on Black and immigrant youth. Speakers asked the council either to remand some program-area decisions back to the allocation…