As of Thursday, Nov. 4, 2021, the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners have returned to meeting in person for board meetings. This step is consistent with the County's commitment to providing community access to our board meetings to the greatest extent possible. The Countys goal is to conduct inclusive and safe board meetings, including seamless virtual and in-person testimony.

In accordance with the Chairs Declaration of Emergency, the rules associated with Board of County Commissioner meetings have been temporarily altered as necessary measures to align with local and state social distancing guidance.

Attend: Board meetings take place in the Multnomah Building at 501 Southeast Hawthorne Blvd., Portland, Oregon, in Boardroom 100. The Multnomah Building is wheelchair accessible, as is the boardroom. Assisted Listening Devices may be requested from the Board Clerk 48 hours prior to the board meeting.

Visit the Board Clerks website to find instructions on calling in by phone to listen to board meetings, watch past board meetings, or access meeting minutes and agendas. Recordings of each board meeting will be available on both the Board Clerks website and the YouTube page within 48 hours following the end of the meeting.

Members of the public may testify in person or virtually. Public comment on non-agenda items will be heard at the beginning of Thursday board meetings. Comments on agenda items are heard before the Board votes on that item.

The board clerk will call your name when it is your turn to testify. Public comment is limited to 3 minutes or less per person unless otherwise stated at the meeting. The Board Clerk will also announce the end of your allotted time. You will be allowed to finish your sentence.

To testify virtually: Please use the virtual public testimony form to sign up to testify or to submit written testimony on agenda and non-agenda items. The deadline to sign up for the next scheduled Thursday Board meeting is Wednesday at 4 p.m.

When your name is called, the Board Clerk will unmute your microphone. Public comment is limited to 3 minutes or less per person unless otherwise otherwise stated at the meeting. The Board Clerk will announce the end of your allotted time. You will be allowed to finish your sentence before your mic is muted.

211info: If you or your household receive an eviction notice for nonpayment of rent, call 2-1-1 immediately to learn about rapid-payment rent assistance that may help you avoid eviction. The Countys eviction defense team may be able to provide rapid financial and legal resources to help renters in Multnomah County stay in their homes. Call even if you've already applied for help through the states online portal or a community organization.

If you are a Multnomah County resident and are struggling to pay your rent (current and overdue) due to the pandemic, you may be eligible to receive assistance. You must meet all the below criteria to be eligible:

The State of Oregons Emergency Rental Assistance Program closed to new applicants on Monday, March 21. Oregon renters who appliedfor rent assistance before the program closed and provide documentation to their landlord before July 1, 2022 are protected by this safe harbor protection until their application is processed, up until Sept. 30, 2022.This protection also applies to renters who already submitted documentation to their landlords and had their previous protections expire while they waited for their assistance to arrive.

If you have additional questions about how and when to submit evidence of your application, please contact your rent assistance provider or Oregon Law Center, Community Alliance of Tenants or Legal Aid Services of Oregon.

Renters can receive the appropriate documentation from the rent assistance provider they are working with. That documentation must be submitted to the landlord before July 1, 2022, for the eviction protections to take effect.

If you have additional questions about how and when to submit evidence of your application, please contact your rent assistance provider orOregon Law Center, Community Alliance of Tenants or Legal Aid Services of Oregon.

The Multnomah County Board of County Commissioners adopt an annual budget for Multnomah County and its service districts. The County Chair releases the Proposed Budget in May and the County Commission acting as the Budget Committee begins deliberation. The proposed budget will be released and posted to the Budget Office website on May 5th, 2022 for review.

The Budget Committee will hold a series of department budget worksessions to review budget proposals. Also during this time, the County Commissioners host three public hearings that allow the community to deliberate and provide public comment on the budget. Three virtual public hearings are scheduled for - May 18th, May 25th, June 1st. A calendar of the Budget Worksessions is available on the Budget Office website.

The Tax Supervising and Conservation Commission (TSCC) holds a hearing on the County budget, and community members can also provide public comment. At this hearing, you would primarily be speaking to the TSCC board, not the Board of County Commissioners. The TSCC hearing is scheduled for June 1st at 9:30am. Information on how to participate and sign-up for public comment at the TSCC hearing can be found on the TSCC website in addition to theMultnomah County Board Meeting website.

After the budget worksessions and public hearings have concluded, the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners consider the adoption of the budget at a public hearing held during its regular board meeting in June of each year. This year the FY 2023 Budget adoption is scheduled for June 16th, 2022.

Public feedback and community participation are very important in establishing budgets. The Multnomah County Board of Commissioners will hold three public hearings on the FY 2023 budget to provide stakeholders multiple opportunities to officially comment on the operating and capital budgets. These meetings will be held virtually on May 18th, May 25th and June 1st from 6:00-8:00 pm. Information on how to join the virtual meeting and sign-up for public input and feedback will be made available closer to the date.

All budget worksessions will be held in-person at the Multnomah Building, 501 SE Hawthorne Blvd, Portland, OR, in the Boardroom, and will also be available to watch virtually on the MultcoBoard YouTube channel. Public comment does not occur during the budget worksessions, but can be heard at the Thursday morning Board meeting. Sign-up at the Board Clerk table inside the boardroom to comment on non-agenda items or use the virtual public testimony form to sign up to testify or to submit written testimony on non-agenda items. The deadline to sign up to testify virtually for the next scheduled Thursday Board meeting is Wednesday at 4pm.

The Tax Supervising and Conservation Commission (TSCC) holds a hearing on the County budget, and community members can also provide public comment. However, at this hearing, you would primarily be speaking to the TSCC board, not the Board of County Commissioners. The TSCC hearing is scheduled for June 1st at 9:30am. Information on how to participate and sign-up for public comment at the TSCC hearing can be found on the TSCC website in addition to the Multnomah County Board Meeting website.