Billboards Point to Dangerously Low Staffing Levels
Billboards have gone up throughout the City of Portland to educate the public about the dangerously low staffing levels in the Portland Police Bureau.
The Portland Police Association (PPA) has been urging the City Council to increase police staffing and they hope that they billboard campaign will educate the community just how dire this crisis is.
With an estimated $49 million surplus in the City’s general fund and a back-to-basics approach to City government, the Portland Police Bureau should have enough police officers to meet our community’s public safety priorities, including:
- Responding to calls for service
- Investigating and solving crimes
- Addressing a deadly upswing in gun and gang violence
- Serving those who are impacted by livability issues surrounding homelessness
- Assisting our citizens with mental illness and those suffering mental health crises
- Community policing and engagement
- Ensuring the safety of our citizens and our officers.
Yet, Police Bureau staffing levels are dwindling even as our City continues to grow. Officers are forced to do more with less, and the community pays the price. In fact, the Police Bureau is around 700 hundred officers short of national staffing benchmarks.
Visit OurCityOurPolice.org to read about the initiative and sign our online petition asking Portland City Council to increase Police Bureau staffing levels.