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House Rules committee hears bill to require simple majority for city and county charter changes
Summary
A public hearing on House Bill 3,687 centered on whether the Legislature should require a simple majority to adopt or amend city and county charters. Sponsor Representative Willie Choatsen said the measure codifies existing practice; Oregon Business & Industry warned it could limit local authority over tax thresholds.
House Committee on Rules Chair Bowman opened a public hearing March 20 on House Bill 3,687, a one‑page measure that would require a simple majority vote to adopt, amend, revise or repeal a county charter and to adopt, amend, revise, repeal or surrender a city charter.
Representative Willie Choatsen, House District 46, told the committee the bill "codifies what is happening in almost every single city across Oregon" and aims to ensure "our local government stays responsive to its people" by aligning the vote standard for city charter changes with the majority threshold explicitly stated for counties and metropolitan service districts in the Oregon Constitution (Article VI, Section 10).
The bill drew immediate questions about…
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