Portland city councilors are considering more than 50 amendments to the mayor's proposed budget this week.

Why it matters: The amendments reflect competing priorities regarding public safety, homelessness and climate spending as Portland confronts a roughly $160 million budget deficit.

Catch up quick: Mayor Wilson's $8.5 billion budget, released last month, would cut 150 jobs and reduce funding for police, parks and homeless services.

• It wouldn't close community centers or fire stations and would avoid cutting police officers, but it would seek cuts to the parks bureau.
• Wilson has framed his budget cuts as necessary to keep the city solvent while protecting his top priorities.

Zoom in: Among the amendments, several councilors proposed restoring funding to a St. John's fire station. The mayor's budget threatens to remove the only fire truck serving surrounding neighborhoods.

• 💰 Several amendments would also make changes to spending from the Portland Clean Energy Fund, which supports projects and organizations that fight climate change but has been consistently tapped as a cash reserve when city money gets tight.
• ⚕️ Other amendments would preserve jobs for frontline workers such as victim advocates and volunteer coordinators by cutting management and administrative roles.
• 🎭 Councilors are also seeking to restore funding for arts programs, after-school activities and programming for seniors.

You can read all 52 of the councilors' proposed amendments here — and just be happy it's not last year, when there were more than 125 proposed amendments.

Friction point: Wilson said in an email encouraging the public to testify in support of his budget that some of the amendments were "troubling efforts to dismantle the progress we've made."

What's next: Councilors spent all day yesterday listening to public testimony on the amendments.

• They'll use council sessions today and tomorrow to deliberate ahead of a final vote next month.

Tell a neighbor

Today is the last day to turn in your ballot to be counted in Multnomah County's primary election.

⛽️ Voters will weigh whether or not to raise state gas and transportation taxes to fund road maintenance.

• Several key races are also up for a vote, including the Republican primary for governor, Portland-area legislative seats and several competitive county judge positions.

Here's a quick primer on what's included.

The bottom line: Ballots must be postmarked by today or placed in an official dropbox by 8pm to be counted.

Drug overdose deaths in Oregon fell sharply for the second year in a row, according to preliminary data from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention released last week — mirroring an ongoing nationwide trend.

By the numbers: Overdose deaths dropped nearly 25%, from 1,534 in December 2024 to 1,153 last year.

• More than 90% of the reported overdose deaths in 2025 involved fentanyl, methamphetamine or some combination of both, according to the Oregon Health Authority.
• Nationwide, overdose deaths fell by about 14% over that same period.

Between the lines: Recent research suggests the decline in overdose deaths across the country may be related to increased availability of overdose reversal medications like naloxone.

• Yes, but: The number of overdose deaths in Oregon remains far above where it was pre-pandemic, likely due to the introduction of fentanyl into the drug supply.

What we're watching: Oregon has been slow to add new addiction treatment beds in recent years and is only halfway to meeting its goal to have 3,800 by 2029, per the Oregonian.

• Some organizations are aiming to fill the gap by offering on-demand and mobile services for those seeking medication-assisted treatment options like buprenorphine and methadone.

📚 The new East County Library, across from Gresham City Hall, opened to great fanfare over the weekend, with hundreds coming out to celebrate the new 95,000-square-foot building. (OPB)

🍨 Fans of Salt & Straw can skip the lines at local shops and pick up half pints and Chocotacos at all New Seasons locations starting tomorrow. (The Oregonian)

🪲 Emerald ash borers, invasive beetles that have killed millions of ash trees nationwide, are emerging earlier than usual this year after a warm winter. (KGW)

⛺️ Homelessness continues to be the top concern for people in the Portland area, per a recent survey of 600 registered voters.

• 83% said local government agencies are doing a poor job spending tax dollars to fix the problem. (The Oregonian)

Who are we from what we inherit? That was the question posed by the latest one-night exhibition put on by pop-up gallery Ethereal Reflections at Design Portland last weekend.

• Out of more than 800 submissions, co-founders Emma Strgar and Lena Vasilenko selected works from 33 artists that zeroed in on how community and culture connect us and shape our identities.

Complete with an expansive bread table centerpiece — made up of more than 18 loaves — and wine served by local vintners Rubato and Suzor, the experience felt akin to communion in the way it inspired internal reflection.

• Inside, an oil painting from local artist Victoria Dusseau offered a meditation on platonic love while a pair of photographs from Atlanta-based Erika Joseph showed the generational act of hair braiding among Black women.
• Emi O'Brochta's raw wool constructions of a church dress and suit hung on one wall of the space, while Esther Choi's sculptures of fisherman boots and a pressed white T-shirt sat opposite.

If you go: Ethereal Reflections regularly hosts intimate gatherings — like silent reading nights, supper clubs and murder mystery parties — in addition to one-night art exhibitions.