ORS Chapter 285c — Economic Development III

ORS 285c.609. Request by county; local negotiation training; community services fee agreement; distribution of fee proceeds. (1) A determination under ORS 285C.606 (1) by the Oregon Business Development Commission that a project shall be exempt from property taxation under ORS 307.123 must be requested by official action of the governing body of the county taken at a regular or duly called special meeting thereof by the affirmative vote of a majority of its members. (2) The governing body of any Oregon county shall forward appropriate prospective eligible projects to the Oregon Business Development Department for processing. (3) For purposes of this section, for projects located on a federally recognized Oregon Indian reservation, the governing body of a county shall be considered to be the governing body of the federally recognized Oregon Indian tribe. (4) The county may not make the request under subsection (1) of this section unless, after a public hearing: (a) The county and, if the proposed eligible project will be located within the boundaries of a city or port, the city or port have entered into an agreement with the business firm, as described in this subsection. The Oregon Business Development Department shall make available, in a timely manner, training materials related to negotiation techniques in such circumstances to the county, city or port, as applicable. (b) The agreement provides for the payment of a fee by the business firm, as follows: (A) The fee shall be for community services support that relates to the direct impact of the eligible project on public services. (B) The fee shall be in an amount equal to 25 percent of the property taxes that would, but for the exemption, be due on the exempt property in each assessment year, but not exceeding $3 million in any year. (C) The fee shall be paid annually during the tax exemption period, as of a date set forth in the agreement. (c) The agreement provides for the refunding or crediting of overpayments, for interest on late payments or underpayments and for the manner in which the appeal of the assessed value of the property included in the project will affect the fee. (5) The maximum fee amount allowed under subsection (4)(b) of this section shall be adjusted each year for the property tax year beginning on July 1 by multiplying $3 million by the ratio of the increase, if any, in the monthly averaged Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, West Region, for the 12 consecutive months ending December 31 of the prior calendar year over the monthly averaged index for the 12 consecutive months ending December 31, 2023. The amount of any increase determined under this subsection shall be rounded to the nearest multiple of $1,000. (6) The agreement described in subsection (4) of this section may provide for any other requirements related to the project. (7)(a) The fee collected under subsection (4)(b) of this section shall be distributed by the county based on an agreement. The agreement is effective only if the following public bodies have entered into the agreement: (A) The county and the city or port, if any, in which the eligible project is located; (B) All special districts in the code area in which the eligible project is located that provide services related to public safety, fire prevention and response, ambulance or other emergency medical response or emergency communications; and (C) Local taxing districts listed in ORS 198.010 or 198.180, other than ports, that constitute at least 75 percent of the property tax authority of all local taxing districts listed in ORS 198.010 or 198.180, other than ports, in the code area in which the eligible project is located. (b) If an effective agreement is not entered into under paragraph (a) of this subsection within three months after the date of the determination by the commission under ORS 285C.606 (1), the commission shall, by official action, establish a formula for distributing the fee collected under subsection (4)(b) of this section. [Formerly 285B.386; 2017 c.490 3; 2023 c.298 38] Note: See note under