Metro is the regional government for the Oregon portion of the Portland metropolitan area, covering portions of Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington counties. It is the only directly elected regional government and metropolitan planning organization in the United States. Metro is responsible for overseeing the Portland region's solid waste system, general planning of land use and transportation, maintaining certain regional parks and natural areas, and operating the Oregon Zoo, Oregon Convention Center, Portland's Centers for the Arts, and the Portland Expo Center. It also distributes money from two voter-approved tax measures: one for homeless services and one for affordable housing.
Contents
History and evolution
Metro in its current form evolved from Columbia Region Association of Governments (CRAG) (1966–1978) and a predecessor Metropolitan Service District (MSD) (1957–1966). Measure 6, a 1978 statewide ballot measure established Metro, effective January 1, 1979. In 1992 voters approved a home-rule charter that identified Metro's primary mission as planning and policy making to preserve and enhance the quality of life and the environment, and changed the agency's name to Metro. This charter was amended in November 2000 when Ballot Measure 26-10 was passed by voters, although the principal changes did not take effect until January 2003. The measure eliminated the Executive Office and reorganized executive staff. The position of Executive Officer, elected by voters, was merged with that of council presiding officer, chosen annually by fellow Metro councilors, creating the position of Metro Council President. Metro's first president was David Bragdon, who served in the office from January 2003 until September 2010.
Metro's scope has grown over time. It took over Glendoveer Golf Course, regional parks, pioneer cemeteries and the Expo Center from Multnomah County in 1994, and the City of Portland transferred management of its performing arts venues in 1989.
In 2020, Metro placed a measure on the May ballot intended to raise $250 million for homeless services. It was approved and was enacted in January 2021. Under it, individuals with earnings of over $125,000 annually and couples with earnings over $200,000 are subject to 1% marginal income tax. Businesses with a gross revenue over $5 million are also subject to a 1% business tax.
Areas of responsibility
Planning
Provides land use planning and is responsible for maintaining the Portland-area urban growth boundary, a legal boundary which separates urban from rural land, and is designed to reduce urban sprawl. It coordinates with the cities and counties in the area to ensure a 20-year supply of developable land.
Serves as the metropolitan planning organization for the area, responsible for the planning of the region's transportation system. It is a separate organization from TriMet, which operates most of the region's buses and the MAX Light Rail system, although state statute provides authority for Metro to take over TriMet.
Responsible for the region's Geographic Information System (GIS), maintains the Regional Land Information System (RLIS).
Parks, natural areas and cemeteries
Manages more than 17,000 acres of natural areas and parks around the Portland region, including Blue Lake Regional Park, Chehalem Ridge Nature Park, Cooper Mountain Nature Park, Graham Oaks Nature Park, Oxbow Regional Park, Howell Territorial Park, Glendoveer golf course, the Sauvie Island and M. James Gleason Memorial Boat Ramps, Chinook Landing Marine Park and the Smith and Bybee Wetlands Natural Area.
Maintains 14 pioneer cemeteries, including Grand Army of the Republic Cemetery, Lone Fir Cemetery, Gresham Pioneer Cemetery and Multnomah Park Cemetery.
Garbage and recycling
Manages a closed landfill, St. Johns Landfill, and owns two public garbage, hazardous waste and recycling transfer stations in the region. Metro also has responsibility for the ultimate disposal of the region's solid waste and regulates private transfer stations.
Staffs a regional Recycling Information Center as well as does education about solid waste
Runs the Regional Illegal Dumping, or RID, Patrol which cleans up illegal dumping on public property, such as furniture, hazardous waste and construction debris.
Venues
Operates the Oregon Convention Center, Oregon Zoo, Portland Expo Center and, on behalf of the city of Portland, Portland's Centers for the Arts.
Housing
Oversees a $652.8 million regional bond for affordable housing.
Distributes money from a regional measure for homelessness services
Jurisdiction, leadership
Metro serves 24 cities, including Portland, in Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington counties in Oregon, as well as unincorporated parts of those counties. The Metro Council consists of a president and six councilors, all directly elected by their districts, and nonpartisan. The incumbent president was Lynn Peterson, who assumed office January 7, 2019, until she resigned effective March 13, 2026, to become Lake Oswego's interim city manager.
Deputy council president Duncan Hwang then temporarily presided over meetings. After the primary election for the next terms two months later, the council appointed the winners of the races, Juan Carlos González and Mike Palacios, to also finish the current terms for council president and the district he formerly served.
According to the 2020 census, the average district population for the districts used from 2011 to 2021 was 248,362 and the current population of the old districts is as follows (the populations for the newly drawn districts are yet to be determined):
Metro's adopted 2025-26 budget is $1.857 billion, with the equivalent of 1,129 full-time employees.
Regional plan
Metro is also the Portland regional planning organization and develops a regional master plan to coordinate future development. Metro's master plan for the region includes transit-oriented development: this approach, part of the new urbanism, promotes mixed-use and high-density development around light rail stops and transit centers, and the investment of the metropolitan area's share of federal tax dollars into multiple modes of transportation. Metro's master plan also includes multiple town centers, smaller versions of the city center, scattered throughout the metropolitan area.
In 1995 Metro introduced the 2040 plan as a way to define long term growth planning. The 2040 Growth Concept is designed to accommodate 780,000 additional people and 350,000 jobs by 2040. This plan has created some criticism from environmentalists, but few consider it a threat to Portland's legacy of urban growth management.
An April 2004 study in the Journal of the American Planning Association tried to quantify the effects of Metro's plans on Portland's urban form. While the report cautioned against finding a direct link between any one policy and a specific improvement in Portland's urban form, it showed strong correlation between Metro's 2040 plan and various west-side changes in Portland. Changes cited include increased density and mixed-use development as well as improved pedestrian/non-automobile accessibility.