Portland City Council on Collision Course With Trump Administration

The Portland City Council has adopted a series of legislative priorities putting it on a collision course with the Trump administration. The priorities include protecting the city's status as a sanctuary city, climate change, and ensuring access to health care.

"The City of Portland will strongly oppose legislative and administrative actions to limit eligibility of federal funding based on a city’s status as a 'sanctuary city,'" the council said.

"The removal of a city’s eligibility could have severe impact on the ability to provide public safety or public services, and could harm public trust within immigrant communities."

As a candidate, Trump had vowed to end federal funding for all sanctuary cities.

The council also doubled down on their longstanding efforts to raise climate change awareness.

"In 1993, Portland and Multnomah County created the first local action plan for cutting carbon in the
United States, with a goal of achieving a 40 percent reduction in carbon emissions by 2030 and an 80
percent reduction by 2050 (compared to 1990 levels)," they wrote.

"Federal action on climate change and energy policy should promote, and not interfere or preempt, current or future actions by cities."

The council also called on Congress to designate bike share systems as capital projects eligible to receive federal funding as a transit improvement and that memberships in bike share programs should be treated as a benefit akin to a transit pass.

With much discussion in Washington, D.C. on repealing Obamacare, the council made it clear they will fight any effort to limit access to health care.

"The City will oppose attempts to preempt access or limit health coverage, such as access toreproductive health, mental health, addiction treatment services, to those in need," they said.

Photo City of Portland