Slamming the Brakes on
Bloated Contracts & Consultants

TL;DR

PPS spends over $100 million annually on consultants and professional services, burying these expenses in vague budget lines with minimal public scrutiny. We demand an immediate crackdown: any vendor or consultant failing to show real classroom impact gets cut, no excuses.

1. What’s the Core Problem with PPS’s Outsized “Purchased Services”?

  • Over $100 million in “purchased services” and “professional services” appear in the 2024–25 PPS Budget (Volume 1), often hidden across multiple departments.

  • These include consulting fees, ed-tech subscriptions, program evaluations, and more — many with fuzzy success metrics.

  • While some are necessary, indefinite consultant deals or pricey “pilot programs” can burn through millions without improving student outcomes.

2. Why Is This a Big Deal for Portland Public Schools?

  • Wasted Classroom Dollars: Every $1 million spent on fruitless consulting could have funded 10+ teachers or small class-size programs.

  • Lack of Transparency: Parents and voters often see only lumpsum line items, without clarity on which vendor was hired or whether their contract delivered results.

  • Deepening Distrust: PPS’s call for a $1.83B bond to build lavish facilities is more complicated when the district can’t show ROI on its external vendor spending.

3. What Actions Will PPS Take to Stop the Bloat?

  1. Mandatory “Contract-ROI” Hearings

    • Any contract over $500k faces a public presentation of intended outcomes, cost-per-outcome, and success metrics.

    • After one year, the PPS Board re-approves only if the vendor hits those targets.

  2. “Sunlight on Vendors” Portal

    • Launch an online tracker of major PPS contracts, including vendor names, dollar amounts, and sub-vendor payouts.

    • No more burying lines in obscure PDFs or multi-page board packets.

  3. Results or Termination

    • Suppose a consultant or ed-tech subscription fails to improve attendance, reduce discipline issues, or raise reading/math proficiency. In that case, the contract dies—no renewals.

  4. Hold Leaders Accountable

    • Department heads who sign off on big failed contracts must answer publicly—no more rubber-stamping.

    • The board can freeze departmental budgets if they continually waste funds.