An Evaluation of the Task Force Process used to Develop the City of Portland's and Multnomah County's Sustainable Procurement Policies

Abstract

Sustainable procurement is an issue that governments at all levels have begun to address in recent years. Briefly stated, sustainable procurement is the process of integrating environmental, social, and economic factors into purchasing decisions.

Using the State of Oregonâ s sustainable purchasing program as a model, the City of Portland and Multnomah County joined forces to develop a strategy for sustainable procurement. This strategy is based on the development of recommendations by product-specific task forces composed of City and County employees. This report evaluates the task force process that has been used to develop the City of Portlandâ s and Multnomah Countyâ s sustainable procurement policies over the past year, and it presents conclusions and recommendations for improving the process in the future.