Community Associations Institute (CAI) Oregon Legislative Action Committee spent the 2026 legislative session advocating on behalf of approximately 585,000 Oregonians living in 240,000 homes in more than 4,000 community associations across the state.

Legislative Overview

Oregon’s 2026 legislative session began on February 2 and concluded on March 6. As it’s an even-numbered year, this was a 35-day “short session,” meaning legislators focused on urgent or minor budgetary fixes. Regular sessions in odd-numbered years are longer, typically lasting 160 days and focus on approving the state budget and major policy changes.

To become law, legislation in Oregon must be passed by both houses in the identical form, and once passed, it is signed by three officers: the Speaker of the House, the Senate President, and the Chief Clerk of the House or Secretary of the Senate (depending on where the bill originated). The enrolled bill is then sent to the Governor who has five full weekdays to either sign it into law or veto the bill. If the bill is delivered after the Legislative Assembly has adjourned sine die, the Governor has 30 full weekdays to take action.

If the Governor chooses to sign the bill, it will become law on January 1 of following year or on the prescribed effective date due to Oregon State Statute.  The Governor may allow a bill to become law without his/her signature, or the Governor may decide to veto the bill.  The Governor’s veto may be overridden by a two-thirds vote of both houses. Learn more about how laws are created in Oregon.

CAI Legislative Action Committees (LACs) support legislation that aligns with CAI’s public policy positions and opposes legislation that does not. If a LAC believes it may need to consider or adopt any legislative or regulatory position that would be in conflict with these official positions, it must submit a request for a deviation to be considered by CAI’s Government & Public Affairs Committee and/or Board of Trustees.

During the 2026 legislative session, OR LAC tracked 20 pieces of legislation in Oregon, directly advocating on those with potential implications on the community association industry. Below are the highlights:

Priority Legislation

SB 1551 – Relating To Fire Hardening Of Residential Properties; And Prescribing An Effective Date

OR LAC supported this legislation after successfully proposing amendment language that was incorporated by the bill author. As originally drafted, the bill raised concerns related to implementation and unintended consequences, most notably through the inclusion of a rigid numeric cost threshold that would have required volunteer boards to make construction pricing determinations they are not equipped to perform.

OR LAC supported the bill’s intended purpose of encouraging wildfire mitigation and ensuring homeowners are not unreasonably blocked from installing fire-hardened building materials. Fire hardening is critically important for public safety, community resilience, and long-term housing stability, particularly in wildfire-prone regions of the state.

OR LAC offered an amendment to mitigate these problems, testifying during a committee hearing. The amendment successfully offered by OR LAC appropriately resolves these concerns by:

• Removing the arbitrary percentage-based cost limitation;
• Allowing associations to consider cost as part of a reasonableness analysis rather than as a fixed statutory mandate;
• Preserving homeowner access to compliant fire-hardened materials; and
• Maintaining the ability of associations to apply community-specific design guidelines and standards in a manner that is not arbitrary or capricious.

Following constructive engagement with the sponsor and the introduction of the –1 amendment, OR LAC shifted from a neutral position to supporting the legislation as amended. Once the bill was amended, CAI launched a grassroots campaign asking advocates across Oregon to urge their legislators to support it.

As a result, 9 advocates sent a total of 18 messages to 15 Oregon state legislators in support of SB 1551. CAI and OR LAC appreciate the bill sponsor’s willingness to work collaboratively with stakeholders to thoughtfully address the practical concerns raised by community associations, homeowners, and professional managers across Oregon.

Status: Successfully became law – Signed by Governor on 3/31. Chapter 86, 2026 Laws – Effective date, June 5, 2026.

HB 4064 – Relating to acquisitions of real property by foreclosure for delinquent taxes; prescribing an effective date

OR LAC opposed this legislation, which sought to establish when homeowners and condominium association assessments accrue on property deeded to the county in the tax foreclosure process. Specifically, this legislation would have permitted counties to defer payment of community association assessments for up to six months, severely undermining the financial health of neighborhoods, condominiums, and homeowner associations across Oregon. Allowing a government entity to unilaterally dismiss contractual obligations risks normalizing non-payment, which then encourages similar demands from other parties. This undermines the binding nature of covenants that sustain community associations. OR LAC has opposed versions of this legislation over the past several years.

Community assessments fund critical services such as landscaping, waste management, security, infrastructure repairs, and utilities. These are contractual obligations tied to real, recurring expenses—not discretionary consumer debt. The six-month payment delay included in this bill, would have disrupted cash flow, forcing associations to deplete emergency reserves, halt maintenance, or levy special assessments on homeowners to compensate. This unfairly shifts the county’s financial burden onto residents, many of whom are already taxpayers. Such delayed payments could result in deferred maintenance of roads, streetlights, or stormwater systems, creating safety hazards and long-term liabilities. Associations may also struggle to pay vendors, leading to service interruptions in trash collection or security—outcomes that directly impact quality of life.

This bill does not align with CAI’s public policy on effective collection of community association assessments. CAI opposes the intervention of federal, state, or local governments by statute, ordinance, or regulation in collection or oversight of collection of assessments from owners. Community associations are creations of contract. Any kind of governmental involvement in the collections of associations interferes with the contractual covenants and undermines the association as a private entity.

CAI’s public policy on foreclosures by community associations to collect delinquent assessments expresses support for legislation that provides a fair and equitable process for the foreclosure of association liens for common expense assessments. CAI supports processes that protect homeowners, property values, and the financial health of community associations by ensuring foreclosures by community associations are completed in a timely and reasonable manner and are a final resort after other reasonable attempts have been made.

Status: Bill died – In committee upon adjournment. 

MONITORING

CAI LACs monitor legislation with the potential to impact those living and working in community associations across their state, as well as legislation that may indirectly or unintentionally impact community associations.

HB 4080 – Relating To Portable Solar Photovoltaic Energy Devices; Prescribing An Effective Date

OR LAC monitored this legislation, which would have allowed a retail electricity consumer to install and use portable solar photovoltaic energy devices with up to a total maximum generating capacity of 1,200 watts. Under this legislation, a provision of a planned community’s governing document or landscaping or architectural guidelines that imposes irrigation requirements on an owner or the association would have been void and unenforceable if:

• The Governor has declared that a severe, continuing drought exists or is likely to occur in a political subdivision within which the planned community is located;
• The Water Resources Commission has found that a severe, continuing drought exists or is likely to occur in a political subdivision within which the planned community is located;
• An ordinance is adopted by the governing body of a political subdivision within which the planned community is located that requires conservation or curtailment of water use; or
• A rule is adopted by the association under subsection (2) of this section to reduce or eliminate irrigation water use.

Under this bill, an association may adopt rules that:

• Require the reduction or elimination of irrigation on any portion of the planned community.
• Permit or require the replacement of turf or other landscape vegetation with xeriscape on any portion of the planned community.
• Require prior review and approval by the association or its designee of any plans by an owner or the association to replace turf or other landscape vegetation with xeriscape.
• Require the use of best practices and industry standards to reduce the landscaped areas and minimize irrigation of existing landscaped areas of common property where turf is necessary for the function of the landscaped area.

This bill died after failing to be voted on by the deadline. Had the bill progressed further through the legislative process, OR LAC would have sought an amendment to explicitly allow for associations to establish reasonable restrictions related to the use of solar panels by homeowners. CAI supports environmental and energy efficiency policies that recognize and respect the governance and contractual obligations of community association residents as the best mechanism to enact sustainable environmental policies.

Status: Bill died – In committee upon adjournment. 

SB 1561 – Relating To Restoration Of Dwellings Damaged By Involuntary Causes

OR LAC monitored this legislation, which requires local governments to approve restoration or replacement of dwellings rendered uninhabitable under an alternative process that is not a land use decision. OR LAC monitored this legislation for potential impacts on community associations engaging in recovery efforts. CAI encourages all communities and their residents to be ready for natural disasters. This legislation also relates to CAI’s federal advocacy work around disaster response and recovery.

Natural disasters do not discriminate based on the type of community you live in- they devastate lives and create hazards that can impede recovery efforts. Currently, community associations are not eligible for vital federal funds for debris removal and other recovery efforts, leaving associations to make tough choices, and potentially overwhelming state and local resources. CAI supports a federal legislative or regulatory change to the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act so that community associations are eligible for federal assistance following a disaster, including, but not limited to, debris removal and cleanup to accelerate post-disaster recovery. CAI supports efforts by state legislatures to expand disaster recovery coverage and capabilities amongst community associations.

Status: Became law – Signed by Governor on 3/31. Chapter 89, 2026 Laws – Effective date, January 1, 2027.

Get Involved in CAI’s Oregon Advocacy Work through Your Local Chapter!

In addition to strong and effective advocacy work in Salem, CAI has established two chapters in Oregon to provide information, resources, education programs and best practices designed to help you and your communities throughout Oregon thrive – the Western Oregon Chapter and the Central Oregon Regional Chapter.

Not a member yet? Join a growing global network of more than 51,000 community managers, management company executives, homeowner leaders, and business partners, and open up a world of opportunities for professional growth, networking and industry knowledge.

Learn more and join today at https://www.caioregon.org/