PORTLAND — The City Council yesterday approved a recommendation by Mayor Tom Potter to withdraw police officers from an FBI-led anti-terror task force, making this city the first in the nation to pull out of a network the federal agency has put together across the country.

Potter joined the council in a 4-1 vote to withdraw two city officers from the Joint Terrorism Task Force.

The mayor decided to pull Portland off the anti-terror team after the FBI refused to raise his security clearance, which Potter said was necessary for him to provide full oversight of city officers on the task force and ensure they do not overstep their authority under state law while acting as federal agents.

The mayor had felt political pressure to ensure oversight after the FBI wrongfully arrested Portland attorney Brandon Mayfield as a suspect in the Madrid train bombings last year — a mistake that prompted an FBI apology.

"There is no doubt in my mind we are doing the right thing," Potter said during the council meeting, and "that we will continue to protect the safety of Portlanders."

Potter outlined guidelines that he said would ensure close cooperation with the FBI in anti-terror investigations.

The measures resulted from Potter's negotiations over the past few weeks with Robert Jordan, the FBI's agent in charge for Oregon.

The two city police officers who have been on the task force will be reassigned to a city-led criminal investigation unit and will work with the FBI on a case-by-case basis.

Those officers will keep the "top secret" security clearance granted them by the FBI, but those clearances would only be used in emergencies.

The FBI would brief the mayor and police chief if a threat arose.