Multnomah County Health Department Community Budget Advisory Committee

As a Public Policy Organizer with the Oregon School-Based Health Alliance (OSBHA), I advocated for the passage of HB 2729 to increase funding for school-based health centers, which support the physical and mental health of our students, ever more important in this era of increased needs and budget cuts.

School-based health centers address critical shortfalls in youth physical and mental healthcare.

School-based health centers bridge the gap for low-income and uninsured youth.

OSBHA and their partners do amazing work to address the many components that impact students' health and their ability to succeed in school and beyond: physical health, mental health, food insecurity, housing insecurity, bullying, discrimination, language differences, etc. Read about OSBHA, follow them, and if you can, support them!

Advocacy for school-based health centers

This is a volunteer group of residents who review and make recommendations on the department's budget and operations to the Board of Commissioners. The committee prioritizes services for mental health, racial equity, and marginalized populations.

FY 2027 budget came with a 5% cut in the General Fund budget due to reduced revenues. Within this constraint, the Committee evaluated 12 programs proposed for reductions and ranked them in order of priority for restoration. All programs are worth continuing, but due to my focus on mental health services and belief that preventive care is more cost effective than acute care, I advocated for Community-Based Mental Health Services (item 40080), Early Childhood Mental Health Program (item 40099), Harm Reduction Outreach and Naloxone (item 40061). I was glad to see that the Committee ranked them in the top 5, thereby increasing their chances of receiving funding. You can find our report and recommendations here:

The Multnomah County's Office of Community Involvement is really transparent; you can find a plethora of information on their multiple Community Advisory Committees, their meeting schedules, and recommendations on the county's website below. Any resident can apply to join an advisory committee and help shape local budgets and policies.