Urgent: Help Save Job Training Funding in Multnomah County’s Budget

Chef Intructor, Rubin and Graduate Brenda making cannoli.

If you’ve been following Multnomah County politics, you know budget challenges are on the horizon. Service providers across the county—us included—are being asked to tighten our belts yet again. It’s a familiar refrain in the nonprofit world: do more with less.

At Stone Soup PDX, we currently receive funding for our culinary job training program through a contract with Multnomah County’s Joint Office of Homeless Services. This support helps us provide Employment Services to our participants—equipping them with skills, experience, and a path to long-term stability. It’s not just the right thing to do—it’s also smart fiscal policy.

Our Social Return on Investment Calculator estimates that for every $1 invested in our program, local governments save around $8 by reducing the need for public assistance for our participants. I don’t know about you, but if I could get an 8-to-1 return on investment in the market, I’d take that deal every time.

And yet, the proposed FY26 budget completely eliminates the Employment Services funding line.

That means no county support for transformational job training programs like ours. It means pulling public investment from participants like the one we highlighted in a recent blog post—someone who went from dishwasher to Kitchen Manager, now earning $64,000 a year plus benefits. These are real outcomes with real impact.

The good news? The budget isn’t finalized yet. We have until June to advocate for restoring this funding. We understand that cuts are coming. But eliminating this support entirely is the wrong move for Multnomah County.

That’s where you come in. Take a minute to call or email your county commissioner. Tell them you want to see Employment Services restored in the FY26 budget. Let them know that job training programs work—and that investing in our workforce strengthens our entire community.

Here’s how to reach your commissioners:

Multnomah County Commissioners: 

📌 Chair: Jessica Vega Pederson 

📌 District 1: Meghan Moyer (Powell Location) 

📌 District 2: Shannon Singleton 

📌 District 3: Julia Brim-Edwards (Glisan Landing Location) 

📌 District 4: Vince Jones-Dixon

Your voice matters. Let’s make sure they hear it.

Craig Gerard

Co-Founder and Director of Community Meals, Stone Soup PDX

P.S. To make it easier, we’ve put together a template email you can use—just copy, personalize, and send it to your commissioner.

Click Here!