Oregon Governor Tina Kotek directed the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) to continue to accept all appeals of the Oregon Statewide Wildfire Hazard Map up to the March 10 deadline, but to pause on referring these appeals to the Office of Administrative Hearings until after the legislative session concludes. The session must end no later than June 29.

The Governor’s decision allows the Legislature to carry out a public process for deliberating changes to the map requirements absent potential conflicts driven by a concurrent appeals process through the Office of Administrative Hearings. In addition, the pause will prevent Oregonians who elect to appeal their wildfire hazard zone designation from incurring potentially unnecessary legal fees between March and June of this year, if the Legislature makes changes to the Oregon Statewide Wildfire Hazard Map.

“Oregonians have raised concerns over the current Oregon Statewide Wildfire Hazard Map, and this issue runs parallel to our urgent need for long term, sustainable funding for wildfire response and mitigation,” Governor Kotek said. “The Legislature is rising to the occasion on these challenges. This pause will allow for the transparent, public process required to address both. Lives and lands depend on it.”

Those who wish to appeal the assignment of wildfire hazard zones or designation as wildland-urban interface still must submit the appeal to ODF by March 10, 2025. No attorney is required for this first step in the appeal process. This step simply ensures that those who wish to appeal are in the queue.

If the Legislature does not change the map or appeals process this session, ODF will refer the list of received appeals to the Office of Administrative Hearings following the session and continue the appeals process outlined in existing law.

Senate Minority Leader Daniel Bonham (R-Hood River) said he and Senator Noah Robinson (R-Cave Junction) introduced SB 678 to put an end to this broken system once and for all. Oregonians deserve real solutions, not bureaucratic mismanagement. SB 678, undoes changes in law by Senate Bill 762 (2021) and changes how to class wildfire risk, effective July 1, 2025.

“This is not just a bad policy—it’s a failure of leadership to push through a deeply flawed policy (SB 762 from 2021) championed by Senator Jeff Golden and then-Speaker Tina Kotek. Now, we are calling on Democrats in the Legislature and Governor Kotek to join us in fixing it,” Bonham said.

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

Over 100,000 homeowners have been left in limbo, facing rising insurance costs, government overreach, and uncertainty about the future of their own property.

Jeff Golden (D-Ashland), credited for the wildfire mapping fiasco, chairs the Committee on Natural Resource and Wildfire, which is now sponsoring SB 78, making it harder for those affected by his mapping to rebuild. This bill restricts what kind and how big a replacement dwelling may be built on the land as a result of destruction or demolition of the dwelling. The law has already caused problems limiting the timeline of when the dwelling must be finished, and how soon after rebuilding the demolished building’s debris must be removed. Also proposed are prohibitions on new building structures. SB 79 prohibits homes not for farm or forest uses in sensitive or unsuitable areas within resource lands.

SB 75 defines "high wildfire hazard area" for purposes of developing an accessory dwelling unit on lands zoned for rural residential uses or a replacement dwelling.

See these bills and more at Oregon Citizens Lobby Alerts for ways to respond.


--Donna Bleiler

Post Date: 2025-02-19 11:52:51

Last Update: 2025-02-19 19:37:34