2026 Tree Code Update

The Tree Code (Title 11) is one of several tools the City uses to achieve the goals of the Portland Urban Forest Plan and the Comprehensive Plan. It regulates certain tree activities on both City and private property. These rules help preserve and enhance Portland's urban forest, ensuring all Portlanders benefit from clean air, cool streets, and healthy, safe neighborhoods. The Tree Code regulates:

• Activities affecting City and street trees such as planting, pruning, and removal
• Removal of medium and large trees on private property
• Use of pesticides and other chemical treatments on City and street trees
• Attaching anything, such as lights and signs, to City and street trees.

Portland, like many cities, regulates some trees and tree activities to protect community health, safety, and well-being. Regulations help preserve the ecological, cultural, and economic benefits trees offer, keep our city beautiful, and reduce disparities in who benefits from trees.

Portland's trees are essential city infrastructure that provide over $9.5 billion in benefits and services to our community. Trees reduce summer heat, strengthen climate resilience, improve air and water quality, provide habitat for wildlife, reduce flooding, and enhance health and well-being. 

Trees provide the most benefits and services once they reach maturity, which can take decades. When a mature tree dies, or must be removed, those benefits are lost. A smaller replacement can't make up the difference. This is why Portland's Tree Code encourages preserving large trees whenever possible or requires mitigation—either replanting for removed trees or paying a fee.

Until the project team has a list of proposed changes (also called code amendments), the best way to provide feedback is to submit your suggestions or concerns using this form. The project team will consider your input, along with feedback from other residents, businesses, staff, and City Council to develop a list of proposed code amendments. The team will share the list so you can comment on the specific changes the City is considering. 

After reviewing everyone's feedback, the team will revise the amendments and present them to the Urban Forestry Commission and the Planning Commission. These presentations will be public hearings with opportunities for public testimony. The Urban Forestry Commission and Planning Commission are responsible for recommending the proposed amendments to City Council. 

During the last phase of the project, the project team will present the proposed amendments to City Council for consideration, additional revisions, and adoption. There will be opportunities to share written or verbal testimony with staff and City Council. 

The project team will make decisions about which code changes to recommend to City Council using community, staff, and City Council input. Generally, the team is seeking to make changes to achieve the project objectives described in the How will we identify code changes section above. As part of this process, the team will assess whether the changes align with the goals of the Portland Urban Forest Plan and consider the impacts of possible changes to Portlanders, City budgets, and staff capacity. Ultimately, the Urban Forestry Commission and Planning Commission are responsible for recommending the proposed amendments to City Council and the City Council decides which amendments are approved.

Trees grow in a variety of settings across Portland—yards, parks, and street planting strips. The City manages and regulates trees differently depending on their size, species, and location. This approach helps protect Portlanders' health and safety, minimizes conflicts with other infrastructure, and maximizes the many benefits trees provide. 

The City regulates trees growing on both City and private property because all trees provide community benefits and most of Portland's trees—and potential planting space—are on private property. However, most trees in Portland are not regulated.

On City property, trees three inches in diameter (measured at 4.5 feet above the ground, called DBH) and larger are regulated. 

On private property, medium trees 12 inches DBH or bigger are regulated, with stronger regulations for large trees, 20 inches DBH or larger. A 12-inch DBH tree is about the size of a large dinner plate or LP vinyl record—an average adult can easily hug a tree this size. A 20-inch DBH tree is about the size of an extra-large pizza box—it is too big for most adults to hug alone.

Why are street trees protected more than trees on private property?

The City regulates street trees more than trees on private property for several reasons.  Street trees must be managed carefully to reduce conflicts with other nearby infrastructure or utilities, like pipes, sidewalks, and overhead powerlines. These regulations help ensure the right tree is planted in the right place, preventing hazardous situations and future issues, reducing costs, and maximizing tree benefits and services.

Healthy, well-maintained street trees create safer more inviting roadways for everyone, especially people walking, bicycling, or riding transit. They provide shade, cool sidewalks and roads, slow traffic, and provide a buffer between people and cars. Proper pruning keeps street trees healthy and stable, ensures clear access for vehicles and emergency responders, and good visibility at intersections.

Why are large trees protected more than smaller trees?

The City protects larger, mature trees because they are virtually irreplaceable due to how long it takes a tree to mature and reach its full size. The tree's size, density, and structure impact the amount of carbon storage, shading, and cooling it provides, with larger trees providing more climate mitigation and resilience services.

Research from the U.S. Forest Service shows large trees can provide at least eight times more benefits than small trees. Small trees, like flowering dogwoods, are less than 25 feet tall and less than 20 inches in diameter. It takes about 20 of them to get the cooling benefits of one large tree.

Large trees make up only 13% of Portland's urban forest. City Council and Portlanders supported the continued preservation of large trees in 2024 through the Large Tree Amendment project.

The rules depend on the situation, but the Tree Code generally divides tree removal into two types of permits: Type A and Type B. 

• Type A permits are "by right", meaning they are simple to approve if the tree meets specific criteria. 
• Type B permits are for trees that do not meet Type A criteria and require additional City review. They are typically used for removing large, healthy trees or more than four large, healthy trees in one year.

In general, outside of environmental overlays, no permit is required to remove small trees—those less than 12 inches diameter (measured at 4.5 feet above the ground, called DBH). 

Below is a summary of the tree preservation regulations in the Tree Code. Refer to the full Tree Code to learn more. 

Trees in situations with no associated development

Under a Type A permit, removal of trees on private property is allowed if one of the following conditions are met: 

• Dead, Dying, or Dangerous (as determined by the City Administrator)
• Located within 10 feet of a building or attached structure
• Listed as a nuisance species on the Portland Plant List
• Up to four healthy, non-nuisance trees per year may be removed if they are:
  • Smaller than 20 inches DBH
  • Not designated as Heritage Trees
  • Not required to be preserved by code, a land use review, or stormwater requirements

Type B permits are required when:

• Removing more than four healthy, non-nuisance trees 12 inches DBH or larger in a year, or
• Removing any healthy, non-nuisance tree 20 inches DBH or larger. 

Type B permits require a site inspection, and most (73%) are approved. During review, the City encourages keeping healthy trees when there are practical alternatives that still allow reasonable use of the property. Each decision is made case by case, considering:

• Whether practical alternatives to removal exist
• Whether the species of tree is appropriate for its location
• The tree's age, health, structure, and growth patterns
• Potential impacts on public safety, the surrounding neighborhood, and adjacent tree conditions

Property owners may appeal Type B decisions. 

To help make up for the benefits and services lost when trees are removed, the Tree Code typically requires replanting or mitigation payments. The required payment or number of replacement trees to be planted varies depending on the number and type of trees removed. Payments are made to the Tree Planting and Preservation Fund, which is used to plant trees in Urban Forestry's Priority Service Areas. Refer to the Tree Code for specific regulations and permit requirements. 

Trees in Development Situations

As part of development, such as building a new house or addition, no trees are required to be preserved unless they are a Heritage Tree. Generally speaking, if someone working through the City's development permitting process chooses to preserve less than one-third of healthy, non-nuisance trees between 12 and up to 20 inches DBH, and all trees 20 inches DBH or greater, they are required to pay mitigation fees. Mitigation fees are paid into the City's Tree Planting & Preservation Fund. 

See How does the Tree Code impact housing? below to understand the different types of residential properties that do not need to meet tree preservation requirements. 

In most situations, no permit is required to plant trees on private property.

Pruning trees on private property does not require a permit, unless the tree is designated as a Heritage Tree, located in an environmental overlay zone (managed by the Zoning Code), or is a street tree. 

Trees planted because of development (i.e., building a house or an addition) or required as part of a tree removal permit must meet certain standards to ensure they survive and contribute to the urban forest.

Portland's Tree Code tries to balance the need to preserve large trees and provide space for trees and housing. Some development projects do not need to follow the tree-preservation rules in the Tree Code. These are affordable housing projects, lots under 5,000 square feet (the size of a typical Portland residential lot), and high-density developments that cover 85% or more of the lot. Together, these exemptions cover more than 80% of Portland's expected new housing.

View full size image of Map of exemptions that cover more than 80% of Portland's expected new housing.

Yes, some tree regulations are managed by Title 33, the Zoning Code. The Zoning Code is not being updated as part of this project.

The Zoning Code regulates trees when they are part of zoning and site development requirements, including:

• Required tree density, planting, and landscaping standards, including parking lots
• Tree preservation or planting tied to land use approvals
• Trees in geographic areas managed by an overlay zone or plan district

Trees in certain geographic areas have specific tree regulations under the Zoning Code. Some of these areas include the Portland International Airport Plan District, Rocky Butte Plan District, and environmentally sensitive areas (also call environmental overlay zones). The Zoning Code regulates pruning and tree removal and replacement in these areas. 

Contact Portland Permitting & Development, which implements the Zoning Code, to learn more. 

Here are a few ways the City is reducing tree preservation, planting, and care costs for Portlanders.

• Free trees from the City's Yard Tree Giveaway can now be used for planting that's required as part of a tree removal permit for private property. For property owners with limited mobility or accessibility needs, the City will also deliver and plant the trees.
• To provide more flexibility and lower tree planting costs, in November 2025, the City reduced the minimum tree stock size requirement on private property when there is no development project. City tree planting experience on private property showed smaller stock trees survive and grow as well as larger sizes.
• To help property owners meet City requirements more easily and quickly, the City developed an online, self-issue permit for minor street tree pruning and a process that allows property owners to self-certify that trees required as part of a permit have been planted.
• Thanks to funding from the Portland Clean Energy Community Benefits Fund (PCEF):
  • In July 2025, the City eliminated nearly all tree permit fees, including fees for tree removal and replanting, street tree pruning, street tree chemical treatments, and administrative reviews and appeals. In addition, replanting waiver application fees were cut in half.
  • In 2025, the City began pilot programs to reduce tree care costs for property owners. The Tree Care Assistance program provides income-qualified property owners within the City of Portland with financial assistance for the maintenance and care of existing trees located at single-family, owner-occupied homes. And Portland Street Tree Care is piloting a citywide program to care for Portland's street trees. The programs include free removal of dead, dying, or dangerous trees, inspection and pruning for tree health, as well as free planting of new trees.
  • The City is also expanding programs to provide free yard trees and free planting and follow‑up care to help young trees get established along streets and in schools, parks, apartment complexes, and businesses. Find your free trees!