County Commissioner Julia Brim-Edwards talks deflection, accountability and education

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) -- Julia Brim Edwards occupies a unique position in local politics. She's a Multnomah County Commissioner representing Southeast Portland's District 3. She's also been on the Portland School Board for 11 years and a previous board chair. A graduate of Oregon State University, she was also a senior executive at Nike.

On this week's Eye on Northwest Politics, Brim-Edwards said she is frequently asked why she takes on so much for the community. But it all comes from her roots in East Portland.

"I went to public schools here, I raised my family with my husband here," she said, "I'm really committed to the region and both Portland Public Schools and the county have had a number of challenges. Growing up, my parents in our household said, 'Don't complain about things, go do something about it,' which is how I both got on the Portland School Board and the County Commission."

With the county scheduled to roll out its deflection program on September 1, critics say the current plan will be a revolving door with little or no accountability. Brim-Edwards believes those are valid concerns, citing the needs for 'real consequences and accountability' for those who choose deflection.

"There's a lot of work that needs to happen in the next 30 days," she noted. "And at the same time, we need to re-stand up a 24-7 drop -off sobering center because the deflection center will actually only impact a pretty limited number of people. A sobering center actually will help those that are sober and drug intoxication and make our streets safer."

The identified location of a deflection center on Sandy Boulevard has prompted concern from neighbors who say they were not notified or consulted about this move. Brim-Edwards also agrees there was a missed step in community-county relations.

"I'm a firm believer that when the county sets up some sort of operation, whether it's a shelter or in this case, a deflection center, that they have an obligation to work with the neighbors to reach a good neighbor agreement so that neighbors have a very reasonable expectation of community safety," she emphasized.

Regarding conflict between County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson and other members of the commission - in particular Sharon Meieran - Brim-Edwards stressed personal disagreements should not be mistaken for policy disagreements.

"I do believe the County Commission gets to better results when we have a vigorous public debate. And because we make better decisions, we have stronger decisions," she said. "And I expect if I put an idea on the table that my fellow commissioners are going to pressure test it, ask me questions, make it better. And that's just part of a good legislative process versus just having a rubber stamp board that just goes along with everything that either the chair or another commissioner rolls out."

While she acknowledged her belief that the current structure of the county commission allows for better results, she added certain recent decisions being made behind closed doors is "not at all working for the county."

However, at the state level, Governor Kotek is proposing to add half a billion dollars to the current service level for the state school fund for the 2025-2027 biennium. Brim-Edwards called this "promising" and will be "a big supporter of it."

"Her proposal actually better matches the actual cost structures that not just PPS, but other districts have, and the money that we will be getting from the state," she noted. "So it's a very significant proposal for, not just for PPS, but also for districts around the state. So I'm gonna be a big supporter of it, advocate for it when the legislature comes into session, and I'm appreciative that the governor followed up on her commitment."

Watch the full interview in the video above.