Portland Commissioner Rene Gonzalez, who is running for Portland mayor and has campaigned on a more punitive approach to homeless camping, is doubling down on his criticism of Multnomah County officials for their decision last week to continue paying for tarps and tents to shelter homeless people.
The county’s $4 billion budget for 2024-25, adopted Thursday, will also pay for up to 5 million clean syringes for drug users through the county’s health department. That’s the same number of needles funded this year to reduce infections.
Gonzalez sent a campaign email Monday that decried the funding for tents and syringes.
“I am the only candidate for Mayor standing up to question the county budget,” he wrote. “We must ensure our regional dollars are well-spent, especially when there are direct impacts on Portland’s livability and the ability for small businesses to thrive.”
Last Tuesday, Gonzalez sent a letter to the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners raising these objections, noting that the proliferation of tents in the city has increased the risk of fires and injuries to firefighters. In 2023, at least 372 fires in Portland involved tents or encampments, Portland Fire and Rescue figures show.
“Our community is overwhelmed with encampments, including unsanitary conditions and environmental damage, violence and other crimes, and debilitating drug use that such encampments bring to public spaces in our city,” he wrote.
Gonzalez took issue with the $515,000 the county budgeted for 5 million syringes for its harm reduction efforts.
In the fiscal year that ends this month, Multnomah County distributed closer to 3.4 million sterile needles, even though it budgeted for 5 million then too. Gonzalez interpreted the latest budget figure as an increase.
“The county’s approach to the unsheltered homeless population, while well intentioned, continues to perpetuate an environment that enables self-destructive behaviors,” Gonzalez told The Oregonian/OregonLive.
In an interview, Gonzalez said he would rather see the county put more money toward expanding shelter access and addiction services. The county’s budget includes over $100 million in shelter funding through the Joint Office of Homeless Services.
“The priority should be getting the shelter up and running at the scale that’s necessary for the problem,” Gonzalez said. “That shelter needs to come with wrap-around services.”
The Joint Office of Homeless Services estimates that it will hand out around 6,500 tents in the next fiscal year, costing around $230,000 of the $750,000 budget for safety supplies. Last year, the county distributed 6,492 tents, officials said.
In a statement to The Oregonian/OregonLive, homeless services Director Dan Field said tents, tarps and hygiene kits are basic supplies to keep people safe on the streets while the county expands shelter access. He disagreed with Gonzalez’s assertion that the tents “enable self-destructive behavior.”
“I share the public’s concerns about people sleeping in tents on our streets,” Field said in a statement. “I’m as frustrated as everyone else to see our neighbors sleeping on a sidewalk instead of a bed. But the reality is that tents and tarps do not cause or perpetuate homelessness.”
Gonzalez has faced backlash for his approach to homeless camping in the past, including his decision in 2023 to temporarily block the city’s distribution of tents and tarps, a move that came shortly before a severe winter storm.
In April, Gonzalez pushed a proposal that would ban homeless camping citywide and increase fines or jail time for violations, should the U.S. Supreme Court and the Oregon Legislature do away with current limits on local enforcement.
Commissioner Carmen Rubio, also running for Portland mayor, pushed back against Gonzalez’s stance on tents.
“In a world in which we are still building out our shelter system, tent bans will only push homeless community members into parks, doorways of small businesses, and under our bridges,” she wrote in a statement Sunday. “That is not a solution – nor humane.”
Commissioner Mingus Mapps, a third candidate for mayor, did not respond to requests for comment by Monday afternoon.
— Austin De Dios covers Multnomah County politics, programs and more. Reach him at 503-319-9744, adedios@oregonian.com or @AustinDeDios.
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