America’s first billion-dollar climate fund sparks spending debate in Portland

[0:00] In 2018, voters in Portland, Oregon approved a first-of-its-kind climate and justice fund aimed [0:06] at investing in projects in historically marginalized communities. Since then, the fund [0:11] has grown, and so has the debate over how that money should be spent. Stephanie Sy reports as [0:17] part of our series, Tipping Point. Our community members die 10 years younger than everywhere else [0:22] because of the lack of clean air. At a city council hearing last month in Portland, Oregon, [0:27] in making sure that we make more progress on decarbonization of our transportation sector. [0:33] Climate change and environmental justice were on the agenda. [0:37] This is going to cause an issue. This is going to cause a delay in some of these programs. Tell [0:42] the truth. The debate on this day, how to spend about $15 million from a roughly $1.6 billion pool [0:50] of money known as the Portland Clean Energy Fund, or PCEF. There is no other fund like this [0:57] in the nation. Monica Samayoa is a climate and environment reporter for Oregon Public Broadcasting. [1:04] So the Portland Clean Energy Fund is a 1 percent tax that is imposed on large retailers in the city. [1:11] The purpose of the fund is to address social, racial, and climate justice, as well as to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. [1:19] When Portland voters created this fund eight years ago, Samayoa says it was expected to generate [1:26] about $60 million annually. But when the pandemic hit and more people turned to large retailers online, [1:33] the fund had an unexpected windfall. [1:36] It's actually generating $200 million a year. And that threw off everyone because they were thinking, [1:43] what are we going to do with these large amounts of money? [1:48] The money, earmarked for both large and small climate-related projects in underserved communities, [1:54] Can I have a piece? [1:56] has been a crucial lifeline for families like 40-year-old Carrie Rowe and her two young children. [2:01] Rowe, a photographer, bought her first home two years ago. [2:05] Yeah, we moved in and the house was awesome, cute, small. And then a few days later, a 14-day ice storm hit. [2:14] And in that moment, I realized, like, oh, my gosh, my walls are not insulated because there was ice. [2:22] It was cold to the touch on every single wall. [2:25] After qualifying for a program that helps Native Americans make energy-efficient upgrades to their homes... [2:31] They insulated every wall that would adjoin a living space. [2:36] Rowe was able to use more than $20,000 in PCEF funds to insulate her walls, [2:42] weatherize her doors, and air-seal her attic. [2:45] They insulated all the space between the house and the foundation. [2:51] She says her total energy usage has dropped by half since this work was completed, [2:56] saving her about $80 a month in utilities. [3:00] We'd still be freezing in the winter and sweating all summer long, so I'm beyond grateful. [3:06] But for the last few years, reporter Monica Samayoa has been tracking efforts to use PCEF dollars outside of climate-related projects. [3:15] Now at five, a controversial ballot measure that would divert climate tax dollars to fund police staffing in Portland. [3:21] That includes a proposed ballot measure to divert 25 percent of the fund's annual revenue to hire 400 additional police officers. [3:30] Voters here will likely vote on the measure in November. [3:33] Supporters say, well, we need more police officers on our streets. There's not enough. [3:39] A second proposal that has got a lot of attention right now is coming from Portland Mayor Keith Wilson. [3:46] He has floated around this idea that PCEF would provide at least $75 million to renovate the Moda Center, [3:56] and that is our sports arena where the Portland Trailblazers play. [4:00] The Portland Trailblazers are a part of our DNA. That's so important to keep in Portland. [4:06] Mayor Keith Wilson says upgrades to the Moda Center are needed, not only to keep the Trailblazers in Portland, [4:13] but also to make the stadium more sustainable environmentally and economically. [4:18] It's going to hit the three key pillars of PCEF. It's going to reduce emissions. [4:23] It's going to reduce energy usage, and it's going to provide a benefit to a community in need. [4:28] How is it serving underserved communities to put $75 million from PCEF into these renovations? [4:35] The Moda Center is right in the middle of what we call our Albina District. [4:39] It is a district that has been underserved for decades. [4:43] We built a freeway right through this vibrant community and displaced whole communities. [4:48] And what we're doing is we're partnering with the Albina District to rebuild that neighborhood, [4:53] and the Moda is going to be the center point of that. [4:55] When you're talking about renovating a sports center, I don't think that's the, like, [4:59] how can you tie that to climate action and community services? [5:02] You're essentially saying anyone can take money from PCEF with no purpose. [5:10] Jessica Carmona is a senior program manager for the Bonneville Environmental Foundation, [5:15] a nonprofit that manages more than 2,000 solar panels near Portland's airport. [5:21] Funded from a $4 million PCEF grant, Carmona believes this is how the money should be spent. [5:27] There is unlimited need and opportunity for climate action projects in many different ways that benefit the community. [5:36] The solar panels have been up and running since September, [5:40] and now provide about 150 low-income residents with so-called energy credits. [5:46] Carmona says they'll help lower utility bills up to 40 percent over the next two decades. [5:51] You make it accessible for people who move around a lot because they don't have stable housing sometimes. [5:57] So they can subscribe and they can take the subscription with them. [6:00] They don't have to own their home. [6:01] Just across the street, PCEF funding also financed rooftop solar panels inside this community [6:07] of roughly 60 formerly homeless people who live nearby. [6:11] Our frontline communities, those that face the greatest and worst impacts of climate change, [6:17] should be at the center of creating those solutions. [6:19] This is a competitive grant-making program. [6:21] Sam Barrasso is the program manager for the Portland Clean Energy Fund. [6:26] He says the projects that PCEF is funding will be transformative for the city. [6:30] I mean, we've retrofit hundreds of homes that now see bill savings of $1,000 plus per year. [6:39] We've planted countless trees across the community, invested in getting folks onto e-bikes and so forth. [6:45] And we've distributed almost well over 20,000 portable heat pump cooling units. [6:52] But Barrasso admits, like many cities, Portland is facing a challenging moment when it comes to local government revenues. [6:59] There's always been competing priorities and desires to spend the resources in other ways. [7:05] So I think there are these trade-offs that are always there. [7:08] And we try to balance those trade-offs in a way to get at, ultimately, how do we make sure that this fund addresses our climate, [7:14] creates real tangible benefits for the folks that are here. [7:18] Trade-offs now being weighed by Portland City Council. [7:22] And ones that Monica Samaioa says carry enormous consequences for America's first-of-its-kind billion-dollar climate fund. [7:30] That money is allocated. [7:32] So Mayor Wilson's proposal is going to be interesting if it moves forward, [7:37] because the city is going to have to decide, do you remove money from the city bureaus that are needing this money [7:45] or from the community that also needs this money? [7:48] So that's a tough decision that's going to have to be made. [7:50] Decisions that will become only more difficult in the years ahead. [7:56] For the PBS NewsHour, I'm Stephanie Sy in Portland, Oregon. [8:00] Thank you very much. [8:01] Thank you. [8:02] Thank you.