ARTICLE
Oregon’s 2024 short legislative session has officially drawn to a close. Perhaps most notable was the comprehensive focus on housing, achieved without a walkout. While the industry had several priority bills that we supported, few were as critical as Governor Kotek’s priority housing package that made it through both chambers of the legislature last week. With OHBA’s support, this legislation paved the way for meaningful changes to Oregon’s land use system, as well as record investments in housing and infrastructure. Additionally, another of HBA’s priority bills passed the legislature just before the session ended—a new act to prevent UGB expansion decisions from being referred to the ballot is on its way to the Governor’s desk. SB 1537. This was the Governor’s priority housing bill and one we, and our State Association (OHBA), had been actively working on and lobbying since the start of session. The bill passed the legislature with bipartisan support on March 4th. While it is just a start, it does contain several key provisions that will help make it easier to build new housing across the state. 1. One-Time UGB Expansion Tool. An expanded ability for local jurisdictions to do small increases to their UGB for needed housing if certain conditions are met. Cities and counties can automatically expand their UGB by either 100 acres (for cities with a population greater than 25,000) or 50 acres (for those with fewer than 25,000 residents). There are also certain restrictions on applicability, including requirements for affordability (30% designated affordable). Additionally, no city may be allowed to expand if they’ve had UGB expansions in the past 20 years and at least 75% of that expansion area is not developed or shovel ready. 2. Infrastructure Financing. This bill also includes $376 million in infrastructure funding, some of which may be available to private developers and others in our industry. This includes $75M for a revolving loan fund to help cities create affordable housing, $123M to support shovel ready infrastructure projects for housing, and $24M for energy efficiency investments. 3. Housing Accountability and Production Office (HAPO). A new Housing Accountability and Production Office (HAPO), is intended to act as a review or appeal avenue when developers and builders have problems in jurisdictions that are putting up impediments or violating state housing laws. The goal is to have a centralized place for the state to review and administer mitigation resolutions for local disputes that have the impact of slowing or reducing builders’ ability to create new housing. HB 4026. Weeks of direct lobbying in Salem have delivered a real success for Oregon’s housing industry in Washington County. This last summer, North Plains City Council adopted Ordinance 490, which aimed to expand the city’s Urban Growth Boundary by 800 acres and could create up to 1,000 new homes. However, in mid-October, several farmers submitted enough signatures (roughly 240 in sum) that set in motion a referendum on that UGB vote. While the legality of such a referendum on a land-use decision remains in question, HBA and our partners succeeded in getting the legislature to pass a bill that effectively blocks all UGB expansion votes from being challenged by referendum. This bipartisan bill is retroactive, meaning it will likely remove the referendum from even appearing on voter’s ballots. While we do expect a legal challenge in this case, we are thrilled with the last-minute victory which should help protect future Urban Growth Boundary decisions from further contests. Now it heads to the Governor’s desk where we expect her signature within days. A special thanks to OHBA’s Jodi Hack, Oregon Property Owners Association, and Dave Hunnicutt and Samantha Bayer for shepherding this bill over the finish line.
Oregon’s 2024 short legislative session has officially drawn to a close. Perhaps most notable was the comprehensive focus on housing, achieved without a walkout. While the industry had several priority bills that we supported, few were as critical as Governor Kotek’s priority housing package that made it through both chambers of the legislature last week. With OHBA’s support, this legislation paved the way for meaningful changes to Oregon’s land use system, as well as record investments in housing and infrastructure. Additionally, another of HBA’s priority bills passed the legislature just before the session ended—a new act to prevent UGB expansion decisions from being referred to the ballot is on its way to the Governor’s desk. SB 1537. This was the Governor’s priority housing bill and one we, and our State Association (OHBA), had been actively working on and lobbying since the start of session. The bill passed the legislature with bipartisan support on March 4th. While it is just a start, it does contain several key provisions that will help make it easier to build new housing across the state.
HB 4026. Weeks of direct lobbying in Salem have delivered a real success for Oregon’s housing industry in Washington County. This last summer, North Plains City Council adopted Ordinance 490, which aimed to expand the city’s Urban Growth Boundary by 800 acres and could create up to 1,000 new homes. However, in mid-October, several farmers submitted enough signatures (roughly 240 in sum) that set in motion a referendum on that UGB vote. While the legality of such a referendum on a land-use decision remains in question, HBA and our partners succeeded in getting the legislature to pass a bill that effectively blocks all UGB expansion votes from being challenged by referendum. This bipartisan bill is retroactive, meaning it will likely remove the referendum from even appearing on voter’s ballots. While we do expect a legal challenge in this case, we are thrilled with the last-minute victory which should help protect future Urban Growth Boundary decisions from further contests. Now it heads to the Governor’s desk where we expect her signature within days. A special thanks to OHBA’s Jodi Hack, Oregon Property Owners Association, and Dave Hunnicutt and Samantha Bayer for shepherding this bill over the finish line.