Draft Legislation

Every City sponsored outreach worker, police officer, or street response team called to intervene in an encampment,

Shall inform the camper of the:

Permission to camp must be extended to at least

   1. one designated corner in every public park for 3-day camping
   2. one designated vacant lot in every Neighborhood Council region for longer term camping of no less than one week,
   3. City sponsored "safe rest villages" with temporary shelter for one month or longer
   4. Applicants to said village must be allowed to camp in an adjacent suburb camp for up to one month.

Campers who stipulate to a “Good Neighbor Agreement”, must be allowed. Local property owners who do not stipulate to a good neighbor agreement, should not receive response from Law Enforcement to their complaints except to educate them on what the law requires and allows.

Concise and easily cognizable summary of existing Oregon Statutes and Moral Law

   1.  No Murder or other personal injury. No threats of violence
   2.  No Adultery or other sex crimes.  No bothering neighborhood youth.
   3.  No Man-stealing, enslavement, coercion, false imprisonment, kidnapping.
   4.  No Perjury in court, or false reports in a juridicial process
   5.  No Covetousness - no theft or damage of movable property, tresspass or encroachment

Post a copy of these mandatory rules on nearby infrastructure, And then inform him of any other Time, Place, Manner Prohibitions, which must be objectively reasonable. It is suggested and highly recommended that the camper be provided with a travel-size bottle of Doctor Bronner's Soap, with his creatively poetic exposition of the “Moral ABC” that “sets all mankind free”, etc.

Shall provide the owner of each tent with a copy of the Scouting USA Manual or Boy Scout Manual. Shall raise his or her and their right hand, and make the following pledge, or one substantially similar:

“On my honor, I will do my best to do my duty to God and my City and Neighborhood, to be a good neighbor, to assist the public at all times, and to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally upright”

And invite the camper to either voluntarily learn this pledge and recite it, or else sign a “Good neighbor pledge” agreeing to comply with the mandatory rules posted.

Anything less than this is objectively unreasonable, and we reserve the right to challenge the legislation in State or Federal Court.

320 Update Public Camping Restriction Policies, TBH April 24th 4:00 PM

Our Proposed Amendments will be added Bold, soon. For the reasons stated above, we find the ordinance to be inadequate and objectively unreasonable and unlikely to survive a legal challenge, which we may bring if the council legislates it.

Section 1. The Council finds:

During the 2021 Regular Session of the Oregon Legislative Assembly, the legislature adopted House Bill 3115 (HB 3115).

HB 3115 requires that any city law that regulates the acts of sitting, lying, sleeping, or keeping warm and dry outdoors on public property that is open to the public must be objectively reasonable as to time, place, and manner.

On June 7, 2023, the City Council passed Ordinance 191311 to comply with HB 3115, by adopting reasonable time, place, and manner regulations with respect to persons experiencing homelessness.

On September 29, 2023, plaintiffs filed suit challenging the City’s regulations, and on November 9, 2023, the Multnomah County Circuit Court issued an injunction barring the City from enforcing the ordinance. The City sought review of the injunction from the Oregon Supreme Court through a writ of mandamus with the goal of obtaining a judicial opinion providing guidance to the City and the public regarding the permissible scope of the City’s regulations. On March 7, 2024, the Oregon Supreme Court denied the City’s request.

While the City has not been afforded guidance from the courts, the City remains required by HB 3115 to ensure the City’s regulations concerning camping on public property are objectively reasonable.

While the current injunction by the Multnomah County Circuit Court would keep the status quo in place, the City Council believes the status quo is not working.

Accordingly, the City Council finds it necessary to repeal the previous ordinance and replace those provisions with new regulations governing camping on public property.

The new regulations do the following: Clarify the definition of camping; Clarify the prohibition on camping for individuals who have reasonable shelter or who decline an offer of reasonable shelter; Focus on regulating the manner by which camping may not be done on public property; and Reduce the criminal sanctions, and replace the warnings with a provision encouraging diversion.

The City Council believes the new regulations are necessary as they are likely to survive a legal challenge while also providing objectively reasonable regulations that can be enforced to help change the status quo in Portland. NOW, THEREFORE, the Council directs:

Portland City Code Sections 14A.50.020 and 14A.50.025 are repealed. Portland City Code Sections 14A.50.140, 14A.50.150, 14A.50.160 and 14A.50.170 are added as set forth in Exhibit A. Portland City Code Sections 14A.50.050, 14A.55.010, and 29.50.050 are amended as set forth in Exhibit B. Documents and Exhibits Download fileProposed Amended Ordinance - Commissioner Rubio 230.17 KB Download fileProposed Amended Exhibit A - Commissioner Gonzalez 142.97 KB Download fileProposed Amended Exhibit B - Commissioner Gonzalez 121.64 KB Download fileExhibit A 122.78 KB Download fileExhibit B 120.99 KB Impact Statement Purpose of Proposed Legislation and Background Information In 2021, the Oregon Legislature passed HB 3115, requiring all cities and counties to meet compliance by July 1, 2023 with the law.

HB 3115 requires all cities and counties to ensure their camping ordinances are “objectively reasonable as to time, place, and manner with regards to persons experiencing homelessness.” On June 7, 2023, the City passed Ordinance 191311 to comply with the requirements of HB 3115. On September 29, 2023, plaintiffs filed suit challenging the updated City City’s regulations, and on November 9, 2023, the Multnomah County Circuit Court issued an injunction barring the City from enforcing the ordinance. The City sought review of the injunction from the Oregon Supreme Court through a writ of mandamus with the goal of obtaining a judicial opinion providing guidance to the City and the public regarding the permissible scope of the City’s regulations under HB 3115. On March 7, 2024, the Oregon Supreme Court denied the City’s request In light of the urgency in addressing issues around public camping, this ordinance simplifies and clarifies the camping restrictions within the City of Portland. Financial and Budgetary Impacts The financial and budgetary impacts of this ordinance include, but are not limited to:

Continued funding of the Street Services Coordination Center, the Impact Reduction Program, and the Portland Bureau of Transportation’s abandoned auto and derelict RV programs (through the regular budget process). This ordinance does not amend the budget. This ordinance do not require new funding. The City of Portland will use existing resources to enforce this ordinance city-wide. Community Impacts and Community Involvement The City briefed jurisdictional partners regarding the proposed changes and has also met with service providers who work directly with the homeless population. City staff also briefed internal bureau and program partners as to changes made from the previously passed code changes (from last summer).

100% Renewable Goal This ordinance limits open fires and accumulation of trash and debris, as well as sewage and hazardous substances.

Agenda Items 320 Time Certain in April 17-18, 2024 Council Agenda Rescheduled

Rescheduled to April 24, 2024 at 4:00 p.m. Time Certain 339 Time Certain in April 24-25, 2024 Council Agenda Introduced by