DLCD Releases Oregon Housing Needs Analysis Final Draft Recommendations Report: Leading with Production

NEWS RELEASE: November 10, 2022

CONTACT:
Sadie Carney, 503-383-6648, [email protected]
Sean Edging, 971-375-5362, [email protected]

Today, the Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD) in coordination with Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS) publish a final draft version of recommendations which describe the comprehensive, system-wide reforms Oregon needs to make meaningful progress in addressing Oregon’s housing crisis. The final draft recommendations document, Oregon Housing Needs Analysis Final Draft Recommendations Report: Leading with Production, contains ideas and methods that can be used to reverse decades of underinvestment in housing production.

Oregon’s housing undersupply threatens the core of our common purpose as Oregonians. To address this statewide need, the Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD) was charged by the Oregon Legislature in House Bill 2003 (2019) to develop policy recommendations that chart a new direction to meet housing needs more fully and equitably.

“Affordable housing is front of mind for so many across the state. Our collective humanity, as Oregonians, demands that we engage in bold, practical actions to support our local leaders in tackling one of the state’s biggest challenges. We know housing is a platform for quality of life and strong communities. As a government agency that exists to serve the people of Oregon, we will not be timid in pursuing solutions for the betterment of those we serve,” said OHCS Director Andrea Bell. “As the final draft recommendations detail, Oregon can’t move toward a more equitable economy, or address the full complexity of the homelessness crisis unless we substantially increase our supply of homes. OHCS and DLCD look forward to presenting these recommendations during the 2023 legislative session.”

This report offers recommendations on how the State of Oregon, and its communities, can work together to make real progress in addressing Oregon’s housing crisis. If implemented, these housing reforms would advance the following outcomes:

• Increased overall housing production

• Increased publicly funded and affordable housing production

• More inclusive and integrated communities

“Oregonians across the state are struggling to find housing at prices they can afford,” shared Land Conservation and Development Commissioner and executive director of the Fair Housing Council of Oregon, Allan Lazo. “These recommendations provide a real opportunity for legislators to take clear steps that will continue to evolve our housing planning system toward fulfilling its original intent to meet the housing needs of every person in Oregon. With these next steps, together, we can create a future with more equitable housing production, fewer houseless Oregonians, and safe, stable, and inclusive communities – ensuring that everyone has equal access to opportunity.”

Read: Oregon Housing Needs Analysis Final Draft Recommendations Report: Leading with Production Report

The ambitious recommendations in this report are informed by a robust stakeholder engagement process led by the inter-agency project team, including facilitation of two working groups as well as outreach to housing experts, land use planners, community members, and market-rate and affordable housing developers throughout the state.

Interested community members and others are encouraged to visit DLCD’s Oregon Housing Needs Analysis webpage to review project meeting materials, meeting summaries, meeting recordings, and other project related resources.

The Land Conservation and Development Commission will receive a staff presentation and accept public comments on the final draft recommendations report at their November 17-18, 2022 meeting. Please visit the Commission’s webpage to review the staff report or to sign up to provide public comments during the meeting.

This report would not be possible without the many stakeholders and partners who contributed to the overall process and project. OHCS and DLCD would like to extend their joint appreciation for this dedication of support, time, and expertise.
If you have questions or feedback about this project, contact the DLCD Housing Team at [email protected].

 

Goal 10: Housing – An adequate housing supply is a fundamental building block of a healthy community. Likewise, provision of housing for a community is one of the primary elements in a comprehensive plan for cities in Oregon. Housing takes many forms and should be built to serve people at a variety of incomes levels. A housing supply that meets community needs is one that offers people a range of different places to live, different community densities to choose from, and does not overburden the financial resources of any group living there.

Goal 10 planning, at a local level, asks that cities inventory their “buildable lands”, this refers to land inside an urban growth boundary that is suitable and available for residential use. This is determined, in large part, by local zoning codes. At a state level, both the administrative rules linked below, and Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 215 offer local governments guidance and requirements so that they can fulfill their obligation to provide housing for residents.

HB 2003 Overview – Oregon cities have long been required to study their community’s future housing needs when proposing to expand their urban growth boundary. House Bill 2003 requires cities over 10,000 to analyze what housing is needed for current and future residents every six or eight years. Cities within the Portland Metro Boundary are required to update their Housing Needs Analysis (HNA) every six years; cities outside the Portland Metro Boundary must update their Housing Needs Analysis every eight years.​

The bill also requires each city to adopt a Housing Production Strategy (HPS) within a year of the housing needs analysis deadline. The strategy must include a list of actions a city will take – such as revising regulations or providing financial incentives – to promote the development of all identified housing needs.

In addition to the adoption of the HNA schedule described above, House Bill 2003 requires cities over 10,000 population to adopt a Housing Production Strategy (HPS) one year following their HNA adoption deadline. The HPS must outline a list of specific tools, actions, and policies that the city plans to take to address the housing need identified in the HNA. This also includes the city’s plan and timeline for adopting and implementing each strategy. DLCD will review and approve each city’s HPS based on the adequacy of strategies to meet all identified housing needs, the appropriateness of strategies to facilitate the production of needed housing, as well as how well the strategies, taken as a whole, will achieve fair and equitable housing outcomes. Cities must reflect and evaluate the progress and effectiveness of their HPS at a mid-term checkpoint (every 3 or 4 years, depending on the HNA schedule) to see what strategies worked, which ones did not, and any course corrections being made to ensure all housing needs are addressed.

Throughout 2020, DLCD led rulemaking efforts to help cities comply with the requirements of House Bill 2003. This work established the components required for a Housing Production Strategy report and created compliance criteria for cities that fail to meet their housing need. The resulting Oregon Administrative Rules are in place and can be viewed on the Secretary of State web page (OAR 660-008-0045 through -0070).

Related Agency Work – Many precedent documents processes inform these draft recommendations:

1. OHCS and DLCD each published reports in 2021 (OHCS summary report, OHCS technical report, and DLCD report) describing technical elements of the new statewide methodology for calculating housing need and recommending legislative action to implement it.
2. In early 2022, OHCS and DLCD developed an initial framework document, titled Meeting Oregon’s Housing Needs: Next Steps for Equitable Housing Production, to describe how the new methodology might be incorporated into the state’s Goal 10 processes. The recommendations herein build from this framework.
3. DLCD and Communitas Consulting facilitated a working group, which met six times to inform recommendations. To review meeting materials and summaries, visit the DLCD Oregon Housing Needs Analysis webpage.
4. Kearns & West led six stakeholder focus groups and three follow-up sessions with partners from nonprofit, development, local government, and fair housing organizations to solicit input.
5. DLCD held 14 regional forums with local government planners, developers, elected officials, and advocacy groups around the state to inform recommendations.
6. In response to a 2022 legislative budget note and direction, DLCD led a parallel Housing Capacity Working Group, charged with considering specific reforms to the Housing Capacity Analysis and the process described in statewide planning Goal 14-Urbanization. This group met a total of seven times to inform recommendations, which are included in Recommendation 1.4 and Appendix A of this report.

1. ECONorthwest, conducted best practices research into what is working in other states and reviewed an audit of California’s housing planning system to inform these recommendations.

1. ECONorthwest completed a series of technical revisions to the initial pilot methodology and prepared a report summarizing these refinements, which is included in Appendix D of this report.
2. The University of Oregon conducted a literature review and a survey of planners, developers, and local governments regarding barriers to development and published a report summarizing their results, which is included in Appendix F of this report.

Oregon’s statewide land use planning program — originated in 1973 under Senate Bill 100 — protects farm and forest lands, conserves natural resources, promotes livable communities, facilitates orderly and efficient development, helps coordination among local governments, and enables citizen involvement.   The program affords all Oregonians predictability and sustainability to the development process by allocating land for industrial, commercial and housing development, as well as transportation and agriculture.   The Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD) administers the program. A seven-member volunteer citizen board known as the Land Conservation and Development Commission (LCDC) guides DLCD.   Under the program, all cities and counties have adopted comprehensive plans that meet mandatory state standards. The standards are 19 Statewide Planning Goals that deal with land use, development, housing, transportation, and conservation of natural resources. Periodic review of plans and technical assistance in the form of grants to local jurisdictions are key elements of the program.