Now, I promise what follows isn’t a setup for a joke, though there’s something one could argue is comedic within the subject of this column.
Please read the following list of names and ask yourself what the people have in common.
- Gov. Tina Kotek
- Metro Council President Lynn Peterson
- Metro Councilor Duncan Hwang
- Mayor Ted Wheeler
- Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson
- Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt
- U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden
- U.S. Rep. Susan Bonamici
- U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer
- State Rep. Janelle Bynum
- State Rep. Rob Nosse
- State Rep. Tawna Sanchez
There’s the obvious (and correct) answer, which is that they’re all elected officials in Oregon, all but one (Schmidt) with a direct hand in making and/or passing laws. I’ll also accept “They all live off taxpayer dollars” because that’s also true. At first glance, you might (again, correctly) say they’re among the most powerful people in our country, state, Metro, county and city, respectively. But, and I’m sorry for pulling the rug here, none of these answers are the one I’m really looking for.
I’ll pause the snark here to promise this column isn’t really a civics lesson.
If the subheadline wasn’t a dead giveaway or you don’t have the time to read Kotek’s press releases, I’ll inform you the 12 elected officials above compose just under a quarter of Kotek’s newly launched Portland Central City Task Force. These officials join 34 other people (more on them in a moment) to “articulate a compelling vision for Central City Portland’s economic future and develop an action plan that will advance Portland’s role as an economic engine for the state by serving as a great place for business, residence, education, arts, entertainment, and shopping,” according to the governor’s office.
The task force held its first meeting Aug. 22. Did you attend? Did you watch it? Did you read the meeting minutes? Unless you’re one of the 46 people chosen by Kotek or The Standard CEO Dan McMillan, task force co-chairs, the answer to those questions is a “no.”
Kotek decided you’re not invited. Don’t take it personally — she didn’t invite me either, or anyone from the media, for that matter.
Some readers are no doubt asking, “Aren’t there laws to ensure Oregon officials are operating in public view?” First of all, great question. Second of all, yes, there are laws to ensure at least some level of government transparency.
The big law, ORS 192, is what forces governing bodies like local, county, regional and state governments to hold public meetings. It’s the same law that allows Street Roots to obtain and publish all those fun emails sent to and from public employees.
Now you’re probably wondering, “Then, isn’t it illegal for Kotek to exclude the public from observing these meetings or obtaining records showing what was discussed during the meetings?” According to Kotek’s office, no, it’s not illegal for her to convene a meeting with some of the most powerful people in Oregon to generate policy but refuse to allow public oversight.
Kotek appears to believe she’s found a loophole in those pesky laws ensuring we know what our public employees are up to. But before you get upset, just know she’s only shielding these discussions from the public because she wants to “make sure people can have … confidential conversations.” And we’ll eventually learn what they come up with.
As both a Portlander and a journalist, I can’t say I love the idea of my governor, mayor, Metro president, county chair, Metro councilor, DA, senator and state and federal representatives having confidential conversations generating policy on the public’s dime. Meanwhile, the public who’s funding the salaries of these officials (and likely footing the bill for a good portion of whatever comes from this task force) can’t even read a measly transcript of the conversations.
But don’t worry, officials are working directly with some of the wealthiest businesses in the state, so you know these confidential conversations will represent the interests of everyday Oregonians struggling to meet the demands of the skyrocketing cost of living. In fact, more than half — 54% — of task force members represent for-profit businesses or not-for-profit business lobby groups. The task force itself is a public-private partnership between officials and the Oregon Business Council.
The Oregon Business Council is so involved (chorus: “How involved is it?”) that 12 task force members also serve on the Oregon Business Council’s board of directors. An additional task force member and well-established lobbyist, Andrew Hoan, represents the Portland Metro Chamber, formerly known as the Portland Business Alliance, which sponsors the Oregon Business Plan operated by the Oregon Business Council.
It’s that direct relationship with business that Kotek argues excludes these meetings from public transparency laws.
The crux of her argument is that because the task force is presenting its recommendations to the Oregon Business Council rather than directly to a governing body, it falls outside public meetings law. After that point, it’s up to governing bodies (populated by some of the very same people who wrote the recommendations) to decide if they’ll take up the recommendations, which would then be subject to public scrutiny.
I’m not one to engage in divination, but it wouldn’t make much sense for someone like Wheeler to sink months into an “action plan” only to let it fall away after it's presented at the Oregon Business Council’s December summit.
It’s a little like giving your kid the money in the checkout line so they can “pay for the groceries.” But in this case, you’re also the cashier.
The task force-generated “action plan” will likely require federal, state, Metro, county and city lawmaker action. So, what happens if portions pass smoothly through one governing body and strong public opposition forces another governing body to change course on its portion of the action plan? The public would be on the hook for a two-wheeled car it paid for sight unseen — and one it wasn’t given a choice in buying.
Imprecise metaphors aside, Kotek may very well be legally right, as laws often serve powerful people (though I’m not sold yet), but that doesn’t make it ethically right or even sound policymaking. Kotek simply could have chosen to make the meetings accessible to the public, but she apparently felt “confidential conversations” between politicians and moneyed interests were more important.
As pointed out by some service providers and critics in Jeremiah Hayden’s excellent story (page 4 of the Sept. 6 issue of Street Roots), gathering all of these powerful people behind closed doors with an eye toward addressing downtown’s ills seems like an obvious missed opportunity for robust public engagement and stakeholder input. Remember robust public engagement and stakeholder input? I heard they’re good for democracy or something.
Politicians, public employees and business-related members combined compose roughly 83% of the task force — 38 of its 46 members. It is worth noting some of the business lobby groups represented on the task force — Black Business Association of Oregon, Philippine American Chamber of Commerce of Oregon and Hispanic Metro Chamber — represent business owners from marginalized communities.
Kotek and McMillan publicly voiced their desire to “hear from service providers and all residents of the central city,” as Kotek put it.
However, only five nonprofit non-business service providers are represented on the task force: Verde, The Urban League of Portland, Central City Concern, Native American Youth and Family Center and Hacienda CDC. These groups constitute about 11% of the task force.
Museums and universities — Portland State University, Portland Art Museum and Oregon Museum of Science and Industry — represent less than 7% of the task force.
As Marisa Zapata of Portland State University’s Homeless Research and Action Collaborative told Hayden, the messaging around the task force centers on social disorder, which may have scared away other service providers who declined to participate. Maybe some of them also felt the public’s business should be, well, the public’s business.
How much of task force conversations and those of its subsidiary committees will focus on addressing the concerns of working Oregonians may never be known. Similarly, to the degree that this task force serves largely as an unregulated and unmonitored form of lobbying for the Oregon Business Council, whose membership includes HP, PGE, Pacific Power, Bank of America, US Bank, Wells Fargo, Kaiser Permanente, Comcast, etc., also may never be known.
The reason it may never be known is because Kotek decided you don’t need to know. But don’t worry, we’ll see what car our elected officials bought with our money in a few months.
Street Roots is an award-winning weekly investigative publication covering economic, environmental and social inequity. The newspaper is sold in Portland, Oregon, by people experiencing homelessness and/or extreme poverty as means of earning an income with dignity. Street Roots newspaper operates independently of Street Roots advocacy and is a part of the Street Roots organization. Learn more about Street Roots. Support your community newspaper by making a one-time or recurring gift today.
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