Oregon's Governor Plan To End Homelessness Enters Next Phase

FILE – Tents line the sidewalk on SW Clay St in Portland, Ore., on Dec. 9, 2020. City council members in Portland, Oregon, are set to vote on a resolution that would ban homeless street camping. Mayor Ted Wheeler has said the aim is to gradually move people from the hundreds of encampments scattered across Portland to large, sanctioned campsites designated by the city. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer, File)

Salem, Ore. — Oregon Governor Tina Kotek and the Oregon Housing and Community Services have announced that funding contracts for the Homelessness State of Emergency have been signed, and the funds will begin to be distributed to the regional multi-agency coordination groups (MAC). This announcement follows the Governor’s declaration of a homelessness state of emergency on her first full day in office and her urging of the legislature to pass an early investment package to reduce unsheltered homelessness by January 10, 2024.

The emergency response infrastructure, which consists of seven regional MAC groups tasked with effectively distributing emergency funds, was launched by the Governor on February 24. The legislature passed the Affordable Housing and Emergency Homelessness Response Package on March 21, and on April 10, the Governor announced the emergency funding allocation across the seven MACs tied to specific outcomes.

In a statement, Governor Kotek said, “The housing crisis demands urgent action on an unprecedented timeline. I am grateful to the providers, local and county leaders who quickly assembled to form the MACs, the legislature for passing the package early with bipartisan support and broad stakeholder input, and to communities across Oregon embracing this call to action. I look forward to the work ahead to help ensure these investments yield visible, measurable results across our state by the end of the year.”

Six of the seven regional MACs have finalized contracts to receive emergency funding to execute the Governor’s emergency order, which specifies the dollars will be used to prevent nearly 9,000 people from becoming homeless, rehouse more than 1,200 households, and create over 600 new shelter beds in emergency areas by the end of the year. The Clackamas County contract is expected to be executed next week due to a local policy that requires the commission’s approval before signing.