About the Community Involvement Committee
The Community Involvement Committee (CIC) serves as Multnomah County’s advisory body on community engagement and involvement.
The CIC plays a crucial role in bringing community voice into county decision-making. CIC members engage in an ongoing review of the County's community involvement policies and programs, bring community concerns to County leadership, and assist in facilitating communication between the County and the community.
Together, the committee makes recommendations directly to the Office of Community Involvement, County departments and the Board of County Commissioners about opportunities for community engagement and removing barriers to civic participation.
CIC members are appointed by the Board of County Commissioners. The CIC meets every other month on the third Tuesday from 6-8pm. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently holding all CIC meetings virtually.
For 2022-2023 fiscal year, the CIC focused on youth engagement and engagement on housing/homelessness and emergency response. They will be presenting their recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners in summer 2023- exact date to be determined but will be posted here and on the CIC Calendar.
Over the course of the year, the Youth Engagement Subcommittee met with County program staff, attended meetings, and read County documents to learn more about current efforts to engage with and incorporate input from youth in Multnomah County. Their letter supports current efforts to incorporate youth voice such as the Multnomah Youth Commission, while recommending the County conduct an assessment of youth engagement points and gaps in the County, increase support for the MYC and other youth-specific leadership development programs, and meaningfully include young people and their advocates in the procurement process for youth services. The recommendation letter also supports youth calls for increased mental health support and youth direction in mental health programming.
The Housing, Homelessness and Emergency Response Subcommittee developed their set of recommendations after meeting with County staff involved in the planning, implementation, and response to homelessness and emergencies in Multnomah County, as well as with Portland State University's Homelessness Research & Action Collaborative. The subcommittee focused on how the housing crisis and emergencies intersect, and how different departments work together and with the community to respond. Their recommendations detail ways Multnomah County can improve transparency, community education and accountability and ensure County employees are trained to respond to emergencies and work with homeless community members in trauma informed and equity based methods. Their recommendations include notes on increasing opportunities for community input, especially of those directly impacted, and utilization of feedback received. They also recommend increased interdepartmental collaboration within the County as well as improved attention to jurisdictions within and around Multnomah County beyond the City of Portland.
You can find fiscal year 2023’s CIC recommendation letters linked below:
2023 CIC Youth Engagement Recommendations (331.06 KB)
2023 CIC Housing & Emergency Response Recommendations (316.62 KB)
You can view CIC recommendations and board briefings from prior years on our website.
How to Apply
Applications for the CIC closed on March 31st, 2023.
You can learn more about the application and preview the questions on the Frequently Asked Questions page.
Community Involvement Committee vacancies are assessed and applications are accepted on an annual basis. You can sign up for our quarterly e-newsletter to stay connected with the Office of Community Involvement and to receive news on other opportunities to get involved with Multnomah County!
Questions?
Want to know more? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions on applying for the CIC, and contact us with additional questions.
