Salem, OR – This week, the members of the House Committee on Housing and Homelessness heard testimony for House Bill 2258. The legislation aligns with the Governor’s efforts to cut the bureaucratic red tape that stands in the way of an affordable home for every Oregonian.

House Bill 2258 would provide a series of pre-approved building plans, streamlining approval processes and eliminating barriers to building small apartments, single-unit dwellings, duplexes, townhomes, and other middle housing options. The bill would also create land use and design standards for the plans, providing clarity and predictability for developers, cities, and counties.

“Families struggling with the high cost of housing are forced to make impossible choices – between staying in the communities they love and finding a place they can afford. This affordability crisis deepens our homelessness crisis,” Governor Kotek said. “It demands creative, practical solutions to increase the supply of homes quickly. We have to cut red tape and get out of our own way. Pre-approved building plans just makes sense.”

“Solving the housing crisis requires us to be creative, innovative and focused on the end goal — more homes on the ground,” Representative Pam Marsh (D-Ashland), Chair of House Housing and Homelessness Committee, said. “I’m grateful to the Governor and her team for their leadership in cutting through the bureaucracy that imposes years of delay on housing projects. We just can’t keep waiting.”

Currently, housing providers face long, unpredictable permitting processes across different cities and counties. The same building plan is often subjected to local review every time it is submitted, even if it had previously received a permit. This red tape blocks or stalls projects, making them more costly. This practical solution will increase the supply of homes quickly, lower costs over time, and give Oregonians more options that meet their needs and budgets.

The building plans would be developed by the Building Code Division (BCD) within the Department of Consumer and Business Services (DCBS), and the land use and design standards to be applied to the building plans would be developed by the Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD). The building and land use plans would be applicable to specific sites that are especially suitable for development, such as vacant and relatively flat lots not within environmentally sensitive areas.

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