629-025-0021 Permits — Large Commercial Events (1) Permits Required: A Person must obtain a permit from the Forester to sponsor, promote or conduct a Large Commercial Event on State Forest Land. (2) The Forester may issue a permit for a Large Commercial Event when the following requirements are satisfied: (a) Compliance with, or the ability and willingness to comply with, applicable health and safety standards found in OAR 629-025-0022; (b) Conflict with traditional recreation activities is minimized; (c) All expenses, risks, and liabilities are borne by the Organizer rather than the general public or the Department; and (d) Damage to forest resources or improvements is negligible or is reasonably mitigated. (3) Permit Application Procedure: A Person requesting a permit for a Large Commercial Event must complete and submit a permit application including the following information to the Forester at least 60 days prior to the date of the proposed event: (a) Date of the event; (b) A map of the proposed event area including potentially sensitive ecological areas; (c) Estimated total and peak attendance at the proposed event; (d) Estimated total and peak demand for parking at the proposed event; (e) Name, address, date of birth and phone number of the Organizer; (f) Description of the planned activities; (g) A plan for timely clean-up, and proposed mitigation and restoration activities to ensure potential damage to forest resources or improvements is negligible; and (h) Additional information the Forester deems necessary. (4) Compliance With Other Rules: All activities must comply with applicable state and local codes, rules, and ordinances. Additional state and local permits required must be obtained by the Organizer prior to the beginning of the activity. (5) Approval or Denial of Permits: The Forester may approve, with conditions, or deny the permit application consistent with the requirements of applicable law. The following must be considered in evaluating the permit applications: (a) The ability of the Organizer to finance, plan and manage the activity in accordance with sanitation, safety, medical care, fire control, security, crowd, noise, and traffic control requirements, and consistent with the protection of forest resources or improvements; (b) The extent to which the proposed activity, in both nature and timing, threatens interference with traditional recreational use or interferes with the convenience of neighboring landowners and the general public; (c) Whether permanent alteration to or on State Forest Land may occur; (d) Whether activities may continue for more than 120 hours in any 90 day period; (e) Whether the Organizer has a history of: (A) Acting as an Organizer for a gathering without obtaining a required Large Commercial Event permit; or (B) Violating, or recklessly allowing others to violate, the terms and conditions of a Large Commercial Event permit issued to the Person. (f) The experience of the Organizer in performing similar activities in the past; and (g) Measures undertaken to mitigate any changes in customary forest usage or damage to forest resources or improvements caused by the activity. (6) Revocation: The Forester may revoke the permit effective immediately on notice to the applicant in the event of any emergency, significant law enforcement problem, substantial threat to public welfare, safety or property arising from or is likely to affect the activity, or upon any breach of permit conditions. The applicant must terminate the activity immediately upon receipt of notice from the Forester that the permit has been revoked. The Forester may refund, in whole or in part, the permit fee if a permit is revoked in accordance with this subsection only if such amount is not necessary to reimburse the Department for its reasonable and necessary costs related to administration, monitoring, or enforcement activities taken up to and through date of permit revocation. (7) Permit Modification: The Forester may amend a Large Commercial Event permit with the Organizer’s consent. (8) Miscellaneous Provisions: An application for a Large Commercial Event will only be considered by the Forester if; (a) The Organizer or its principal representative is at least 18 years of age; and (b) The Organizer or sponsor-organization has satisfied all outstanding liabilities and requirements arising out of any prior activity involving property under the jurisdiction of the Forester. (9) Assignments: A permit is nontransferable and may not be assigned to any other Person without prior written approval of the Forester. (10) Fees: (a) Application Fee: An Organizer must pay an application fee of $150 for the processing and review of a Large Commercial Event permit, which is refundable only if the application is withdrawn prior to any review of the application by the Department. (b) Monitoring and Enforcement Fee: (A) An Organizer must pay a monitoring and enforcement fee when, at the Forester's sole discretion, the Forester deems Department personnel are required to undertake monitoring and enforcement of the permit conditions to protect the public or forest resources or improvements. Situations that may require enforcement and monitoring personnel include, but are not limited to: (i) Activities involving open fire; (ii) Activities spanning large spatial areas; (iii) Activities involving the consumption of alcohol; (iv) Activities requiring traffic controls; or (v) Other activities posing significant risk to public or forest resource or improvement safety. (B) The fee for monitoring and enforcement must be billed by the Department at the actual hourly overtime rate for the assigned Department personnel at the time of the event. The Organizer must be responsible for all fees associated with monitoring and enforcement, including, but not limited to, travel time of Department personnel to and from the site. Statutory/Other Authority: ORS 526.291 Statutes/Other Implemented: ORS 526.287 – 526.299 History: DOF 1-2016, f. & cert. ef. 3-11-16