Portland City Councilor Angelita Morillo last week proposed a $4.35 million cut to the city’s homeless camp cleanup program as part of the fall budget adjustment process. After a lengthy Thursday meeting the Portland City Council at which Morillo’s proposal took front and center stage, the controversial proposal died.

The proposal died, though only after it kicked up a public fight between Morillo and Mayor Keith Wilson, who exchanged allegations the other was misleading the public about the consequences of the cut. Their dispute reflected old and deep disagreements about the effectiveness and ethics of sweeping homeless camps.

Morillo’s proposal—to cut $4.35 million from the city’s Impact Reduction Program, the city program that funds homeless camp cleanups—first gained traction late la

See Full Page