Welcome to the recap of the Allocation Committee meeting on June 13, 2023. Multnomah County Commissioner Julia Brim-Edwards joined the committee to fill the position previously held by Multnomah County Chairwoman Jessica Vega Pederson. Thank you for your service, Chair Vega Pederson! Welcome to the Allocation Committee, Commissioner Brim-Edwards!

Disability training for small grants recipients

Bottom right: Consultant Saara Hirsi describes her experience providing disability training for PCL small grants recipients.

PCL staff retained two consultants, Saara Hirsi and Tamyca Branam Phillips, to provide training and build capacity for small grants recipients to effectively serve children with disabilities and to reach their disability inclusion goals. Thank you to Saara and Tamyca for sharing their experiences providing training for staff, volunteers and parents of three organizations.

Small grants renewal process and timeline

Small grants started Jan. 1, 2021 and are scheduled to end on Dec. 31, 2023. Staff proposes grant renewals to run from Jan. 1, 2024 to June 30, 2026.

Consistent with the recent renewal of large grants, staff plan to use the same formula for calculating renewal grant amounts: 40% of current, three-year grants, plus 4% compounded annual cost of living adjustments. As with the large grants, staff might recommend reduced funding for any small grantees where there are significant issues meeting grant agreement goals and/or underspending.

Before developing renewal grant recommendations, staff will review grantee reports on service delivery, grant spending and organizational financial information prepared by Merina + Co., PCL’s contracted independent auditor.

Staff will send renewal recommendations to small grantees by mid-September, and grantees will have an opportunity to comment on the recommendations. The Allocation Committee is set to make renewal decisions on small grants at its Oct. 17 meeting.

Community engagement process update

In the May 16 special election, voters renewed the Levy for five years through June 30, 2029. Prior to the next competitive funding process, the Act that governs Levy operations requires that PCL conduct community engagement to inform future funding priorities. Staff hope to hire a community engagement contractor this summer to assist in creating and implementing a detailed plan informed by input from the Community Council and Allocation Committee. The goal is to complete the community engagement process in winter 2024, with recommendations presented to the Allocation Committee in spring 2024.

Community Council recommendations, update

The Allocation Committee supported a set of recommendations for the community engagement process that the Community Council developed this spring and approved at its May 24 meeting. The recommendations will guide the overall goals of the community engagement process, priority topics for community input and priority communities to engage.

At the May 24 meeting, the Community Council also approved bylaws under which the group will operate. One Community Council member recently resigned due to ongoing scheduling conflicts, and PCL staff will plan steps to fill the position.

2023 Community Report

PCL staff shared highlights from recent social media posts and the 2023 PCL Community Report, an annual publication that provides information on how Levy funds were used, demographics of program participants and stories from the programs funded by the Levy.

Thank you, Mitch Hornecker!

Allocation Committee member Mitch Hornecker reflects on his years on the committee.

The June 13 meeting marked the last one for Mitch Hornecker, who is term limited out after serving eight years on the Allocation Committee as a representative of the business community. Committee members and PCL staff thanked Mitch for his dedicated public service and wish him the best.

Miss Tuesday’s meeting?

Watch it on YouTube or on CityNet Xfinity Channel 30 and 330 (HD) June 16 at 7 p.m. and June 20 at 7:30 p.m. You can also view the slide deck for the small grants renewal process and timeline, community engagement process update, Community Council recommendations and 2023 Community Report.

Join us for the next Allocation Committee meeting

Our next meeting will be from 3 to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023. Agendas will be sent to this email list, shared on our social media channels and posted on portlandchildrenslevy.org

We welcome your comment on agenda items or the work of the Portland Children’s Levy. If you would like to join the next meeting to participate, please join our email list stay tuned for the meeting invite.