Judge Writes New Ballot Language for Police Union’s November Measure

The police union is unhappy with the new wording.

Two Portland police officers take a woman into custody for an outstanding warrant at the Fred Meyer on West Burnside Street in 2011. (Robert Delahanty)
By Sophie Peel

A Multnomah County judge wrote new language Thursday for a ballot initiative that the Portland Police Association is seeking to put on the November ballot. It would weaken and shift the purpose of a new police oversight body that Portland voters approved in 2020.

Circuit Judge Katharine von Ter Stegge ruled that the PPA could go forward with collecting signatures but made significant alterations to the ballot title.

The ballot title first drafted by the City Attorney’s Office read: “Changes authority, membership and budget for community police oversight board.”

Von Ter Stegge rewrote it to read: “Reduces authority, changes membership, budget for community policy oversight board.”

The ruling is the outcome of a March lawsuit that the ACLU of Oregon filed over the police union’s ballot measure, in which the civil rights group argued that the ballot language was misleading and inaccurately characterized an undercutting of the oversight body as a simple broadening of duties.

President of the PPA Aaron Schmautz declined to comment whether the union plans to begin collecting signatures or refile a new ballot initiative.

Von Ter Stegge’s ruling comes just six weeks before the PPA must submit 40,748 valid signatures to place the ballot initiative on the November ballot.

That same judge ruled earlier this month that a second ballot initiative backed by the police union was unconstitutional.


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