The single most effective thing you can do is contact your elected officials. Our electeds track the messages they receive – a short, polite, personal email genuinely makes a difference. In the time it takes to write a social media comment, your voice can be heard and put us one step closer to fixing this situation.
1. Find your elected officials
- Multnomah County Chair & Commissioners — they oversee the Preschool For All program and set its tax. This is where the decision to repeal or reform sits. They will also be deciding whether to defer the tax hike this year – make sure they hear you!
- Your Portland City Councilor — for your district.
- Your state legislators — the Governor and legislature have weighed in on the tax, and state action was proposed in 2025. The state has the power to overturn PFA, and will use it if enough of us reach out.
Step 2 — Send a short, personal message
You don’t need to be an expert. The best messages are brief, polite, and personal. Aim for a few sentences:
- Say you’re a constituent (include your neighborhood or ZIP).
- State clearly that you support repealing or reforming Preschool For All. Don’t negotiate against yourself – our electeds will find compromise, you should hold a firm line on your beliefs
- Add one or more personal reasons why.
- Ask them to take action and to reply.
Sample talking points
Pick one or two that ring true for you — you don’t need all of them:
- It’s a tax on working families, not the wealthy. The thresholds aren’t indexed to inflation, so ordinary raises pull more middle-class workers in every year.
- Families pay twice — many pay the tax and still lose the enrollment lottery, or pay the tax while their child is enrolled. Commuters pay but can’t even enroll.
- The program is sitting on a surplus that could approach $2 billion, walled off from the general fund, while our schools face closures, TriMet received cuts, parks go unmaintained, and our city faces a massive shortfall.
- The county’s own advisory group for PFA recommended delaying the tax hike.
- Independent researchers, Governor Kotek, and her own tax advisory group all warn the tax is driving residents and revenue out of Multnomah County. The county is not being honest and transparent with constituents.
- I support affordable childcare, but this program needs accountability and a better design — not an automatic tax hike on top of a billion-dollar reserve.
- We should repeal the tax, account for the money already collected, and build a childcare solution that actually works.
Sample email you can copy
Subject: Please support repealing Preschool For All
Dear [Official’s Name],
My name is [Your Name] and I’m a resident of [Neighborhood] in [ZIP code]. I’m writing to ask you to support repealing — or substantially reforming — the Preschool For All program.
I support affordable childcare, but PFA is choking Portland. The program is sitting on a reserve that could approach $2 billion — money walled off while our schools face closures — even as the tax pulls more middle-class families in every year and drives residents out of the county. [Add one sentence about how this affects you personally.]
Please work to repeal this tax, provide a full accounting of the money already collected, and pursue a childcare solution that doesn’t push working families out of Portland. I’d appreciate a reply letting me know where you stand.
Thank you, [Your Name] [Your Address / ZIP]
Spread the word
- Share this site with friends, family, and neighbors.
- Tell us your story at hello@repealportlandpreschoolforall.org.