City of Portland Implementation of State Laws

ORS 197.748 – House Bill 3261 (2021)

ORS 197.748 (adopted by the Oregon Legislature in 2021 (HB 3261)) requires the City to approve an application for conversion of a hotel or motel to use as an emergency shelter or affordable housing regardless of state or local land use laws as long as the application complies with the state law. Refer to ORS 197.748 for current regulations. This was accomplished through updates to zoning regulations to allow conversions in the General Employment 1 (EG1) and General Employment 2 (EG2) zones.

ORS 197A.445 – Senate Bill 8 (2021)

ORS 197A.445 (incorporating SB 8 (2021) and subsequent amendments) requires the City to allow affordable housing and conversion of a building from commercial to residential use in certain situations and provides density and height bonuses for affordable housing projects. Refer to ORS 197A.445 for current regulations.

For the purposes of calculating the bonus density and height provided by this law, the City determines the maximum FAR allowed for the zone in the Portland Zoning code and converts that to density by assuming 1 unit per 1,000 square feet. 

ORS 197.783 – House Bill 2006 (2021)

ORS 197.783 (referred to as HB 2006 (2021) and amended by HB 3395 (2023)) requires the City to approve an application for an emergency shelter regardless of state or local land use laws as long as the application complies with the state law. Please refer to the City of Portland Emergency Shelter Approval Process webpage for more information on the City process and ORS 197.783 for the current regulations.

ORS 197A.470 – House Bill 2008 (2021)

ORS 197A.470 (as amended by the Oregon legislature in HB 2008 (2021)) requires the City to make faster decisions on affordable housing projects with more than 5 units. The law also requires the City to approve affordable housing on certain property not zoned for housing that is owned by a religious corporation. Please refer to ORS 197A.470 for the current regulations.

Senate Bill 1537 (2024)

Section 9 of a law adopted by the Oregon legislature in 2024 (SB 1537) allows an applicant for a land use review for development of housing to request review under different standards and criteria than what was applicable at the time the application was first submitted. This regulation is effective June 6, 2024. 

The applicant may make a request by submitting the Senate Bill 1537 Section 9 Request Form, prior to issuance of a public notice, to the planner assigned to the review.

Section 38 requires the City to approve adjustments to specific development and design standards applied to housing development if an application qualifies. Please visit the Adjustment Reviews webpage for more information.

House Bill 4063 (2024)

Section 10 of a law adopted by the Oregon legislature in 2024 (HB 4063) allows the City to approve a partition and middle housing land division for property in the same calendar year.

House Bill 2005 (2025)

Sections 59 and 60 of a law adopted by the Oregon legislature in 2025 (HB 2005) require the City to allow a residential treatment facility, residential treatment home, or crisis stabilization center, and may not require a plan amendment, zone change, or conditional use review in certain circumstances.

The applicant may make a request by submitting the Senate Bill 2005 Certification Form.

House Bill 2138 (2025)

Portions of a law adopted by the Oregon legislature in 2025 (SB 2138) related to middle housing land divisions went into effect immediately upon the Governor’s signature. The following changes are in effect:

• Timing of land use review application submittal. The City is required to allow the submission of an application for a tentative plan for a middle housing land division before, after, or at the same time as the submission of an application for building permits for middle housing.
• Notifications. There will no longer be a public notice sent for middle housing land division reviews once they are deemed complete. A notice of decision is only sent to the applicant.
• Extension of the 63-day decision deadline. Extensions may be required by applicants up to 245 days.
• Middle housing land division appeal. An appeal of a middle housing land division decision is only appealable to LUBA by the applicant.

Senate Bill 974 (2025)

Effective July 1, 2026, Section 3 of SB 974 (2025) requires a land use application for residential development for a zone change to allow for a denser residential use designation, PUD, or adjustment to a standard for residential development to:

• be processed without a hearing;
• provide a 14-day comment period; and
• mail notice to property owners within 100 feet of the site and any neighborhood organization whose boundaries include the site.

This law impacts the following land use review applications:

• Zone Change in Conformance with Comprehensive Plan – Until the zoning code is updated, a Type IIx procedure will be utilized for applications for zone changes in conformance with the comprehensive plan to change the zone to a denser residential use designation, and the Other Unassigned Reviews Type II/IIX review fee will be applied. The comment period and mailing notice area will be changed to comply with the state law.
• Adjustment review for residential development– The Type II procedure and fee will be applied to these applications, with the comment period and mailing notice area changed to comply with the state law.
• Planned Development review/planned development bonus review – Until the zoning code is updated, we will apply the Type IIx procedure and Other Unassigned Reviews fee to these applications, with the comment period and mailing notice area changed to comply with the state law.

House Bill 4037 (2026)

Section 17 of a law adopted by the Oregon legislature in 2026 (HB 4037) requires, on July 1, 2026, that for housing projects that are using standards:

• Public notice may only be provided to property owners within 100 feet of the site;
• A public hearing cannot be required before making a decision;
• A local appeal can only be provided to the applicant, and
• Only the applicant may appeal a decision to the Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA).

This law only impacts land divisions in residential zones that are using the standards of 33.605 through 33.654, rather than criteria. Until the zoning code is amended to reflect state law:

• The applicant will need to tell us at the time of application if they plan to meet standards or criteria.
• If they plan to meet standards, we will process the land division as:
• If the zoning code assigns a Type III review, process the application under a Type IIx review, and mail notice to property owners 100 feet from the site. Only the applicant can appeal.
• If the zoning code assigns a Type IIx review, process it under the zoning code assigned review, but only mail notice to property owners 100 feet from the site. Only the applicant can file a local appeal for a Type IIx.