The Portland Housing Bureau has $106 million in unspent funds, the city administrator disclosed late last week. Some of it may be spoken for, but it leaves open the question of how City Council will spend the funds. When the pot of unspent funds was believed to be only $21 million, City Council was divided over whether to spend it on rent assistance or a Prosper Portland housing project. Maybe all of the above are possible now. [Portland Mercury]
City Cast Portland staffFeb 10, 2026State lawmakers convene in Salem next week after a chaotic few weeks for Democratic state leaders as they scramble to address the issue of transportation funding. They have a key problem: Voters appear to oppose the gas tax passed last fall.
City Cast Portland staffJan 28, 2026 Oregon’s U.S. senators usually vote the same way (like for continuing the government shutdown until healthcare costs are addressed). But a key exception in recent months was Sen. Ron Wyden’s support for continued arms sales to Israel while Sen. Jeff Merkley voted to oppose them. Wyden’s support came up again last weekend — at a Portland Book Festival event featuring Omar Al Ekkad, author of “One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This” (a title you may recognize as “the one book every Portlander should read right now”).
City Cast Portland staffNov 12, 2025 Rachel MonahanOct 23, 2025
City Cast Portland staffJul 2, 2025 Mayor Keith Wilson, a trucking company entrepreneur turned politician, sat down with the City Cast Portland podcast to discuss his first five months in office. In recent weeks, Wilson has spoken out against a City Council plan to redirect $1.9 million in new police funding from his proposed budget to instead pay for parks maintenance.
City Cast Portland staffJun 9, 2025 Surprise! There’s a May special election. If you’re anything like me, you probably haven't filled out your ballot yet. The good news is, this election is nowhere near as complicated as it was in the fall: You won’t be ranking your choices, and there are fewer decisions. And yet there are some key issues and candidates to decide between — including a major bond for Portland Public Schools.
Rachel MonahanMay 14, 2025
Portland’s budget office announced last week that there’s an expected $100 million shortfall going into the next fiscal year, which begins in July. Here are some quick facts to understand the news:
Rachel MonahanJan 22, 2025
City Cast Portland staffNov 20, 2024 The fall election in Portland includes a new way of voting, an change of government at Portland City Hall, and tight race for U.S. Congress. Plus, who will be our next mayor?
Rachel MonahanOct 18, 2024
The mayoral campaign just went through an unusual news cycle with dueling stories about the driving records of two leading candidates, Carmen Rubio and Rene Gonzalez. (They both lost their driving privileges more than once. Rubio racked up an extraordinary number of parking tickets while Gonzalez also got a ticket for fare-dodging on TriMet.)
Rachel MonahanSep 11, 2024
Sometimes the simplest questions in politics can be all the more revealing. The City Cast Portland podcast asked the leading mayoral candidates to pick a campaign theme song. Being put on the spot for something light-hearted revealed at least their music tastes if not a little more:
City Cast Portland staffJul 10, 2024 
