Aug 29, 2024 | AOC News, Governance, Revenue, & Economic Development
Going into the 2024 legislative session, funding for the Regionally Significant Industrial Sites (RSIS) program was an economic development coalition priority which would have continued giving local governments much needed support in expanding industrial development across Oregon.
RSIS is a performance-based economic development program that reimburses project sponsors for approved site improvement expenditures. The state shares a portion of the state income tax generated by employment on RSIS sites for industrial land site readiness activities beginning the year after a project’s employment thresholds are reached.
Before the expiration of RSIS, it was the state’s only program for getting regionally significant potential industrial sites ready for development.
In the 2023 session, we saw how investments in economic development could be impactful for industry and job creation with the passage of Senate Bill 4. This bill required the development of a program to award grants and make loans from Oregon Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) Fund to businesses applying for federal semiconductor financial assistance. This was a critical step in increasing the supply and readiness of industrial lands in Oregon.
This semiconductor investment served as the spark for what would become the 2024 funding request for the RSIS program. House Bill 4042, the RSIS funding request, passed both its policy and revenue committee hearings – it ended the session in Ways and Means, unfunded without a floor vote.
As the Association of Oregon Counties (AOC) prepares for the 2024 session, industrial lands and RSIS funding is a priority amongst our partner groups. Within this coalition it is a shared belief that RSIS has demonstrated results and deserves to be reauthorized.
Business Oregon has reported twelve approved RSIS sites representing 6,250 acres of industrial land expected to generate over 34,000 jobs and potentially receive reimbursement of up to approximately $570 million of project costs.
Building off of the 2024 proposed legislation, what will be introduced in 2025 will have the same $40 million request. If this proposed funding is granted, there would be positive impacts for local governments, bringing in tax revenue and creating economic opportunities for their community members.
Contributed by: Miles Palacios | Legislative Affairs Manager
Mar 28, 2024 | AOC Advocacy, Governance, Revenue, & Economic Development
Counties are among the organizations now eligible to apply for grant awards under the $157 Million Broadband Deployment Program (BDP). Applications must be submitted by Thursday, April 25, at 5 p.m. (PST) to be considered for grant funding. Projects eligible include the construction and deployment of broadband infrastructure in locations that are unserved or underserved. Read the full press release from Business Oregon announcing the application process here. You may also contact your region’s Broadband Project Coordinator for support in the application process by emailing broadband.oregon@biz.oregon.gov.
For more information, visit the Oregon Broadband Office webpage.
Contributed by: Legislative Affairs Manager Jen Lewis-Goff
Mar 26, 2024 | AOC Advocacy, AOC News, Governance, Revenue, & Economic Development
Following House Bill 3414’s failure during the 2023 session, the prospect of the Association of Oregon Counties (AOC)’s community development policy priority — creating a fast-track process for limited urban growth boundary (UGB) expansions that significantly increase affordable and workforce housing in all communities experiencing shortages of buildable land — looked grim. However, immediately following the 2023 session, Governor Kotek and her policy advisors convened a small group of individuals, including AOC staff, to conduct a series of work sessions. Their aim was to revisit the policy items in HB 3414 and craft a bill to address Oregon’s housing supply crisis that could pass in the 2024 session.
After numerous meetings with the governor’s office, AOC staff and county planning department directors provided input and technical assistance on proposed legislation to ensure cities and counties would be able to implement the legislation if enacted. In consideration of the pending legislative concept, the AOC Transportation and Community Development Steering Committee recommended that AOC readopt our 2023 UGB-related priority as a top priority for the 2024 session.
Senate Bill 1537, the Emergency Housing Stabilization and Production Package introduced by Gov. Kotek, was amended many times before eventually becoming law, with AOC actively involved at every stage of the process.
SB 1537 directly addresses AOC’s fast-tracked UGB expansion priority, establishing a one-time UGB expansion tool for cities that need both land supply and affordable housing. The bill requires 30% of all homes to be built as “affordable housing” and ensures the expansion aligns with the preferences and understanding of Oregonians – with a diverse array of housing choices, a mix of densities and services the residents will need, and the necessary infrastructure for long lasting, successful communities. SB 1537 requires the land to not be zoned high-value farm or forest outside of urban reserves already designated and caps the expansion at a specific number of acres based on population (100 net residential acres for cities with a population over 25,000 and a maximum of 50 net residential acres in cities with a population under 25,000; Metro is capped at 300 total net residential acres).
Cities are currently looking over the requirements that must be met to qualify for this fast-track process. With counties serving as a strong partner in this process, planning departments stand ready to work with our local government partners to begin this process when they are ready.
AOC looks forward to working with the Department of Land Conservation and Development, the governor’s office, and stakeholders throughout the state on the next area needed to address the housing supply issues Oregon continues to face.
Contributed by: Legislative Affairs Manager Branden Pursinger
Jan 25, 2024 | AOC Advocacy, AOC News, Governance, Revenue, & Economic Development
Among AOC’s priorities for 2024 is a bill to be known as HB 4056 that will create an orderly process to get refunds to property owners in cases where a foreclosure sale generates proceeds that exceed the property’s tax debt, penalties, and costs related to foreclosing. The bill solves logistical problems counties face in the wake of Tyler v. Hennepin County, a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision that invalidated Oregon law dictating how counties handle such cases.
Most Oregonians are unfamiliar with the foreclosure process, and it has been years since the legislature made major changes to laws governing the process. Getting a bill about such a complicated topic over the finish line in a short session will be a heavy lift. For HB 4056 to win passage, dozens of legislators will need to have a solid understanding of how foreclosure works in Oregon and counties’ responsibilities surrounding it.
AOC was happy to secure time at the joint meeting of the Interim House and Senate Judiciary Committees on Jan. 12, to boost lawmakers’ understanding of the foreclosure process. AOC arranged for county subject-matter experts to present to lawmakers about what state law requires counties to do when people fail to pay their property tax on time, who tends to get caught up in foreclosure proceedings and why, what sorts of property tends to be involved, and the many ways counties work toward positive outcomes under sometimes very difficult circumstances. Marion County Assistant Legal Counsel Scott Norris, Josephine County Assistant Legal Counsel Stephanie Nuttall, Lane County Assistant County Counsel Emily Vario, Lane County Property Manager Kellie Hancock, and Deschutes County Property Manager Kristie Bollinger presented at the meeting and answered questions from lawmakers.
Their presentation is available for download here, and a video of the meeting can be viewed here (the presentation begins at the 48 minute mark).
January “Legislative Days” (Jan. 10-12) was the last opportunity to communicate with lawmakers on-the-record before Oregon’s “short” legislative session begins on Feb. 5, setting off a mad dash to move legislation before the final gavel falls a few short weeks later (March 10, at the latest).
While many of the bills to be introduced are still under wraps, some are starting to trickle out. AOC legislative staff have been furiously preparing for the sprint ahead, working to pin down details of lawmakers’ plans, and doing our best to ensure AOC priority legislation is in the best possible position to find favor with lawmakers.
Contributed by: Michael Burdick | AOC legislative affairs manager
Dec 21, 2023 | AOC Advocacy, Governance, Revenue, & Economic Development
The biennial Court Facilities Task Force, a collaboration between AOC and the Oregon Judicial Department (OJD) to evaluate and prioritize courthouse improvements and replacements, kicks off in January. Funding requests for projects recommended by the task force will be included in OJD’s 2025 legislative budget proposal, which must be submitted by April 2024.
County officials, commissioners, judges, or chairs representing counties that may want help with courthouse projects in the next few years are strongly encouraged to participate in the task force process. AOC is also actively seeking volunteers to serve as members of the task force. Please reach out to mburdick@oregoncounties.org if you are interested in serving.
A kickoff meeting will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 2. OJD staff will provide background information about the task force, review the status of projects that were prioritized last cycle, and answer your questions.
AOC-OJD Court Facility Task Force Kickoff Meeting
Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
AOC Hood Conference Room (2nd Floor)
1212 Court St NE, Salem Oregon
Or attend virtually: https://meet.google.com/hhj-yfbd-dtr
Or dial: (US) +1 209-862-8182 PIN: 891 906 660#
Two additional task force meetings are planned:
- Thursday, Feb. 1, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. | Task force reviews county presentations summarizing their proposals, and counties get help identifying any missing information
- Wednesday, March 13, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. | Final deliberation and prioritization
Counties are understood to be responsible for providing “suitable and sufficient” space for the state circuit court system to operate, as well as maintaining the space and providing security, per ORS 1.185. However, providing space to the state circuit court system is tremendously expensive, and most counties face major challenges upholding their responsibility to keep these buildings in safe conditions, as well as addressing the circuit courts’ growing need for space as populations increase. Many court buildings have historic importance, and their preservation and upkeep are especially expensive. As seismic risk has become better understood and standards have been updated, improvement needs and costs have ballooned even higher.
After the state pre-empted local control over county property tax revenue in the 1990s and strictly limited it via Measure 5 and Measure 50, it has become increasingly impossible for most counties to maintain service levels across all sorts of programs, and court buildings throughout Oregon have become increasingly problematic. The Oregon State Bar highlighted the deteriorating condition of Oregon’s courthouses in a 2006 report, and since then the state legislature has developed some mechanisms to address counties’ challenges with these costs. Grants and matching funds are typically provided every biennium, when the legislature meets in its “long session.” But the needs far outstrip the amount of funding available each session. The task force represents a partnership between OJD and AOC to try to focus limited available state assistance funds on projects that have the most critical need.
The task force began in 2014, when Chief Justice Thomas Balmer asked AOC to conduct outreach to counties and find out about their courthouse improvement and replacement needs, review those requests, and provide him with recommendations about which projects should be prioritized for funding from the legislature. In response, AOC established the Court Facilities Task Force in partnership with OJD, and the partnership has persisted ever since. The process helps prevent counties from lobbying against one another for the same money, so it helps counties work together toward a common purpose.
Some might wonder why providing space to the state’s court system is the responsibility of counties. The arrangement is a vestige of times long past. Before Oregon became a state, counties managed a multitude of functions, including judicial ones, which the state later took over. Benton County built a courthouse in 1854, five years before statehood. Oregon’s judicial system has seen many reforms since then; the last major reforms were enacted in 1981. Until a more thorough solution is available, AOC will continue working with OJD to help the legislature understand the state circuit court’s unmet needs when it comes to safe, suitable buildings, and help counties in their efforts to get those needs met.
Contributed by: Michael Burdick | AOC legislative affairs manager
Jun 26, 2023 | AOC Advocacy, AOC News, Governance, Revenue, & Economic Development
House Bill 2009 became the vehicle for negotiations that began early in session about several economic development and tax incentive programs long supported and utilized by counties. Negotiations centered on policy differences about the importance of these locally-driven tools to attract businesses to areas that need development and the alternative viewpoint that the subsidies in these programs needlessly reduce local revenues that could be used for other services, in particular schools.
AOC supported the efforts to keep these incentives as strong as possible and worked with other stakeholders, including the Oregon Economic Development Association and League of Oregon Cities to keep the programs intact.
After weeks of negotiation, public hearing testimony and advocacy from AOC members, and multiple rounds of amendments, a -15 amendment to HB 2009 was finally adopted and now goes to the governor for signature.
The compromise legislation does the following:
- Reinstates the research and development tax credit, which was discontinued by the legislature in past years
- Tax credit is in effect for 5 years, the percentage is 15 percent of the investment, and the maximum credit per taxpayer is $4 million
- Extends the Enterprise Zone and Long-term Rural Enterprise Zone programs through 2032
- “Fulfillment centers” are no longer eligible
- Increases the eligibility threshold for projects in the strategic investment program and indexes the eligibility threshold and the taxation threshold
- Adds a new “school impact fee” to the Enterprise Zone program
- Extends the Gain Share program through 2030
- Adds transparency and notice requirements
The most concerning part of HB 2009 for AOC was the addition of the new school impact fee. Fortunately, the initial proposal was negotiated down to be imposed only in years four and five for regular Enterprise Zones and year six for Long-term Rural Enterprise Zones. The fee will be negotiated between the school district and the zone sponsor and be between 15 percent and 30 percent of the property taxes that would otherwise be paid. Each fee negotiated would apply to all subsequent agreements.
Contributed by: Anna Braun, AOC contract lobbyist
