Portland Voters Face 6 Ballot Measures Changing Housing, Taxes, Police

Portland voters are heading into the November 2026 election cycle with a ballot that local elections officials say is among the more consequential in recent memory. Multnomah County and the City of Portland have both certified measures spanning affordable housing finance, charter-mandated police staffing levels, and a proposed extension of the local arts tax that has collected roughly $9 per resident annually since voters approved it in 2012. Each measure carries immediate, concrete consequences for household budgets and the services Portland residents rely on day to day.

The timing matters. Portland's newly restructured city council, which moved from five at-large seats to 12 district-based seats under the charter reform voters passed in November 2022, is still assembling its operating procedures. That reform also installed a city administrator to handle day-to-day management, separating executive functions from legislative ones. Advocates for several of the November measures say the new governance structure makes this ballot cycle the first real test of whether the reformed council can translate voter directives into functional policy without the gridlock that plagued the old commission system.

What the Measures Would Do

The housing bond measure, if approved, would authorize up to $500 million in general obligation bonds to fund the construction and preservation of affordable units across all 12 council districts. Property owners would see an estimated increase of roughly $0.24 per $1,000 of assessed value on their tax bills, according to the Multnomah County assessor's preliminary fiscal analysis. For a home assessed at $400,000, that works out to about $96 per year. Renters would not pay the levy directly, though housing policy researchers note that general obligation bond costs can factor into landlord calculations over longer lease horizons. The Portland Housing Bureau projects the bond would fund approximately 3,900 new affordable units over a 10-year build-out period.

A separate measure would place a floor on Portland Police Bureau staffing, requiring the bureau to maintain at least 800 sworn officers. The bureau currently employs approximately 740 sworn personnel, according to city budget documents filed for fiscal year 2025-26. If the measure passes, the city would be legally required to allocate sufficient funds to reach and hold that threshold, which budget analysts with the City Budget Office estimate could cost between $18 million and $22 million annually in additional salary, benefits, and equipment. That spending requirement would compete with other general fund priorities, including parks maintenance and library hours, in each subsequent budget cycle.

The Arts Tax and Other Local Questions

The arts tax renewal, which appears as a separate line item on the Multnomah County ballot, would continue the flat $9 annual charge on every Portland resident earning above the federal poverty line. Since its 2012 passage, the tax has generated roughly $10 million per year, funding arts education specialists in every elementary school in Portland Public Schools and providing grants to nonprofit arts organizations. Opponents have argued the flat-rate structure is regressive because it charges the same dollar amount regardless of income. Supporters point to the per-school arts specialist positions, which they say would not otherwise survive district budget cuts, as direct evidence of impact.

Voters will also see a measure asking whether Multnomah County should expand its Preschool for All program, funded by a personal income tax on high earners that the county approved in 2020. The county's own program evaluation, released in March 2026, found enrollment reached 4,200 children in the 2024-25 school year, well short of the original 9,000-seat target. The expansion measure would direct county administrators to prioritize underserved zip codes in East Portland, including the 97266 and 97236 corridors, where waitlists have run longest.

Portland residents who own property or rent in the city, pay the arts tax, or have children in the public school system should expect to receive their county voters' pamphlet by late September. Multnomah County Elections will hold in-person office hours at the Gateway Discovery Park community room beginning October 6, where staff will answer questions about each measure. Ballots are expected to be mailed October 14, with a return deadline of 8 p.m. on November 3.