Right about when Portland City Council voted last month to redefine, and tighten, its relationship with the region's FBI-led Joint Terrorism Task Force, folks down in San Francisco were watching very closely.

That same week, the San Francisco Bay Guardian broke news about its city's cops having that of thsigned a potentially rights-trampling pact that looked much like the one Portland bolted from decisively six years ago. The memo that outlined the formerly secret relationship was obtained by the ACLU, the same organization whose Oregon branch had just spent months negotiating with Portland and federal officials over our new JTTF deal.

And Portland, it turned out, staked some unique ground in the world of federal law enforcement. Unlike every other city that does business with a JTTF, Portland's cops remain under city control, not under the auspices of the feds. And, theoretically, it's also their decision whether to lend cops over to terrorism investigations as needed—and only in probes that satisfy Oregon's stricter civil liberties laws.

So now comes the following development in San Francisco: a hearing on how to change the city's arrangement with the feds. And guess what civil rights advocates are demanding?

“The question pending in SF is whether local officials—from the Police Commission, to City Attorney, to Mayor, will eventually insist on a similarly protective arrangement here,“ John Crew of the ACLU of Northern California told the Guardian. “Right now, Portland shows what's possible, and what the federal government will accommodate. I don't know why Bay Area cities would not insist on at least something this strong.”

Mayor Sam Adams warned that Portland's deal with the feds might help seed a national movement. That may be a little more true as of next week. But we'll have to see. Portland is still Portland. And, say what you will, San Francisco is still San Francisco. Now, when Tulsa gets on board...