Metro officials urge voters to extend and restructure homelessness funding; Hillsborough council presses for local impacts

Metro Councilor Juan Carlos Gonzalez and Metro staff gave a detailed briefing to the Hillsborough City Council on regional housing finance and a possible ballot measure to adjust the supportive housing services (SHS) program. The presentation emphasized that the SHS tax, which took effect in 2021, has exceeded initial revenue forecasts but that income‑tax volatility creates uncertainty for the program’s long‑term funding.

Why it matters: Metro said the affordable housing bond ($652,800,000) and SHS together were designed to produce supportive housing and services across the Portland region. Metro officials said they are considering asking voters to extend SHS beyond its current 2030 sunset and to create a “bucket” approach that guarantees a base allocation for services while allowing additional funds for capital and city investments when revenue is high. Andy Shaw, Metro’s director of government affairs, said the region must act because “the housing crisis is worsening just at the moment that the region’s existing sources of funding for affordable housing are winding down.”

What Metro proposed and why: Metro framed a package of options to (a) permit some SHS dollars to be used for capital investments with voter approval, (b) create a city investments program to channel funds directly to cities, (c) stabilize annual allocations through a bucket system that absorbs volatility, and (d) strengthen regional oversight and performance metrics. Shaw said counties currently hold substantial carryover balances while revenue forecasts point to a likely modest decline next year; Metro staff estimated a roughly 10% near‑term revenue reduction in some scenarios.

Questions and concerns from Hillsborough officials: Council members repeatedly pressed Metro about local impacts and timing. Mayor Calloway and councilors said the region’s existing approach has delivered measurable results in shelters and services and asked why Metro is moving to change it just three years into the program. Councilors sought specifics about how much Hillsborough could lose, whether shelter funding would be prioritized, and how a city investments program would operate. Metro officials repeatedly said population‑A (immediate shelter and outreach) funding would be protected as a top priority in their scenarios, but they acknowledged additional details and final decisions had not been finalized.

Voices from service providers: Dorian Russell, executive director of Home Plate Youth Services, told the council that local providers rely heavily on SHS funding and asked the city to oppose proposals that would cut local services. Russell cited an analysis by the Welcome Home Coalition, saying Metro’s proposed tax cut would “save wealthy households making $250,000 a year a whopping $4 a month” while reducing homeless services “by about $17,500,000 per year.”

Next steps: Metro staff said they are engaging county and city partners and stakeholder groups now and expect further refinements before any referral to a ballot, possibly in May. Metro officials said referral decisions and ordinance language would be drafted in the coming weeks and that additional public outreach and polling would follow.

Ending: Metro emphasized that the package is intended to balance long‑term stability with continued emphasis on shelter and services; Hillsborough council members said they will press Metro for clearer, locality‑specific impacts before making endorsements or public statements.