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Multnomah County adopts emergency sanctuary ordinance and resolution to limit federal immigration enforcement access
Summary
The Multnomah County Board adopted an emergency ordinance and companion resolution to codify sanctuary protections, require staff training and signage, and route federal immigration requests through county legal staff; the actions followed extensive community engagement and unanimous votes after one amendment.
The Multnomah County Board voted to adopt an emergency ordinance and a companion resolution that codify sanctuary protections, set protocols for interactions with federal immigration authorities and direct staff to develop administrative rules for implementation.
The ordinance, presented by Chair Vega Peterson and Commissioner Singleton, directs county agencies to identify restricted, nonpublic areas in county facilities, provide multi-language signage, and ensure that county resources are not used for immigration enforcement except where legally required. "We're bringing it today as an emergency," Chair Vega Peterson said during the presentation, explaining that the one-reading emergency process will put the rules into effect immediately.
Supporters at the public hearing included Portland City Councilor Samir Karnal, the ACLU of Oregon and multiple immigrant-rights and service organizations. Ethan Crow of ACLU Oregon said the measure "strengthens how data is handled, ensuring collection, maintenance, and disclosure practices comply with Oregon sanctuary laws." Testimony emphasized signage, training for staff and contractors, and routing federal requests to the county attorney to reduce frontline legal risk.
Commissioner Moyer proposed and the board adopted an amendment clarifying that county behavioral rules and exclusion policies apply to federal immigration agents to protect the public's access to county services. The amendment declared that county facilities, parking lots and appurtenances should not be used to harass or intimidate people accessing services, and that standard exclusion procedures could be used if federal agents disrupt service delivery.
The companion resolution lays out the intended administrative rulemaking process, including community participation, transparency commitments and reporting back to the board. Commissioners said the resolution is intended to demystify the county’s administrative process and ensure community input during implementation.
The board approved both measures in roll-call votes. The ordinance and amended resolution now direct county leadership and staff to proceed with rule development, training and signage implementation and to report to the board on progress.
