Accept the 2022-23 Parks Levy Oversight Committee Annual Report

Parks Levy Oversight Committee Annual Report The Parks Levy’s explanatory statement committed that, “A community oversight committee will be appointed to review levy expenditures and to report annually to City Council.” The Parks Levy Oversight Committee is composed of five members, selected from an open public applicant pool, appointed by the PP&R Director. The committee meets quarterly and reviews program implementation, advises on transparency and communication strategies, and will counsel on the independent audit process. Per the Parks Levy Oversight Committee’s Charter, the committee presents their own annual report to City Council of committee activities including on adherence to Parks Levy language, fiscal accountability, and transparency. This report is a response to PP&R’s 2022-23 Parks Levy Annual Report and PP&R’s actions in Year 2 of the Parks Levy.

There are no financial or budgetary impacts directly resulting from the presentation of these reports. In Fiscal Year 2022-23, PP&R spent $25,820,644.35 of the fiscal year’s $47,987,647.56 million in Parks Levy revenue. Parks Levy funds are not limited to spending within the five-year collection timeframe, and savings from this fiscal year will be retained in the Parks Levy Fund to be spent in future years delivering on Parks Levy commitments to voters.

The commitments made in the voter pamphlet, and tracked in the 2022-23 Parks Levy Annual Report, were developed with community input and approved by Portland voters. Ballot measure language included a focus on prioritizing services for communities of color and households experiencing poverty and on providing services to diverse populations, communities of color, seniors, teens, households experiencing poverty, immigrants and refugees, and people living with disabilities. In addition, as part of the Healthy Parks, Healthy Portland framework, PP&R has committed to centering the voices and the needs of underserved communities, specifically Black people, Indigenous people, people of color, immigrants and refugees, LGBTQIA+ people, youth, older adults, people with disabilities, and people living with low incomes; this expands upon the ballot language of the Parks Levy. Both the 2022-23 Parks Levy Annual Report and the Parks Levy Oversight Committee Annual Report will be available on the PP&R website with accessibility text and translation services available. The Executive Summary from the 2022-23 Parks Levy Annual Report, and the full Parks Levy Oversight Committee Annual Report, will be translated into Portland’s four most common languages. All online reports will be available as an accessible PDF. Year 1 (FY 2021-22) reports are currently available online. Parks Levy Oversight Committee members are members of the public and are invited to present their report to City Council.