With the passage of HB 3136, a longtime law restricting membership in planning commissions has been modified. Under Oregon law, a planning commission cannot have more than two people from the same occupation [with some attorney general opinions on what “occupation” means, allowing for thinner slices of concepts like “agriculture” into “ranching/orchardist/farmer” as different discreet occupations]. In 1973, a law was passed that added a further rider, “no more than two voting members of the commission may engage principally in buying, selling or developing of real estate for profit as individuals, or be members of any partnership, or officers or employees of any corporation that engages principally in buying, selling or developing of real estate for profit.” No other subcategory of occupations was called out, no other specific occupational restrictions were applied, it was a specific provision that said “we don’t trust you to be unbiased if you work in, around, or with real estate.”
To understand the reasoning behind the 1973 law that caused this specific callout, you need to understand planning in the mid-1900s. Planning commissions were typically appointed by the mayor, not the city council, there were no means to remove or replace naughty planning commissioners, and planning commissioners were not required to disclose when they or a close family member or personal business had a financial conflict or interest, city planning staff could be fired by the planning commission, the process had limited procedure, there was no process for appealing beyond the planning commission, and public notice was not required for land use decisions. All of those issues came up in 1971 when the planning commission in Tillamook County bypassed the objections of the residents, geologists, and the planning director to greenlight a motel-restaurant. The commission followed that up by firing the planning director for his opposition. The commission that year was comprised of nine people, with six of them allegedly financially interested in the outcome of the Twin Rocks Motel. A local petition demanded that the conflicted commissioners step down, but they refused, kicking off a flurry of inquiries to the state Attorney General to see if the commission was allowed to do the things it did. The conflicted six: 1 broker who was a Realtor®, 1 real estate broker/developer, 1 lumber supplier, 1 dairy farmer, 1 contractor, and 1 building materials supplier. All with fingers in the various pies of Tillamook County’s development.
The “Tillamook County Planning Wars,” as the event became known, led to demands on the legislature to plug the obvious holes in the planning process. The result was twin bills in 1973, HB 2548 and HB 2965, setting out an eleven-part solution to the corruption issues that plagued Tillamook and applying those solutions at the city and county level. One element of that eleven-part plan was the issue 2025’s HB 3136 resolves — the restriction on the number of real estate professionals on a planning commission. At a moment when tensions were high, a hammer solution was put in place to address the corruption of planning commissions by firing in all directions and hoping that something struck the target. Real estate professionals were the collateral damage of that blind-fire legislation.
As you all know, real estate professionals are not a monolith. The occupations have wide and varied opinions on development and growth. HB 3136 simply ensures that the real estate occupations are treated with the same, equal restrictions that all other occupations have. Planning commission membership laws will still restrict the membership of more than 2 people from the same occupation, but there won’t be a vague catchall grouping real estate professionals together and tamping them down.
With the bipartisan passage of HB 3136, now is the time for you, members of Oregon REALTORS®, to become active in your local community. Ask your city or county about their planning commission. If there’s an open space, think about joining. You will bring a special skillset to the commission that can help inform decisions for the betterment of the community. You will learn what sort of land use actions are percolating in your area. You will assist the city or county in that magnanimous act of volunteerism in local government. Your 2025 legislature has faith that you are not the individuals that the 1973 legislature feared you could be — live up to that promise and get involved.