Committee hears House Bill 1153 on state model urban-forestry ordinances; testimony sharply divided

Representative Divina Duer introduced House Bill 1153 on Jan. 29 to the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee and described the measure as an attempt to balance tree retention and housing production. "This bill is my attempt to find that balance between development and housing and tree retention," Representative Duer said.

The bill would require the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to develop model urban-forestry ordinances and provide technical assistance to jurisdictions that adopt them. Staff summarized the measure to the committee, saying it includes provisions on tree banks (planting or fee-in-lieu programs to compensate for tree removal), criteria for identifying trees critical to retain during development, a prohibition on requiring retention of special trees outside a trees critical area if doing so would, for example, reduce allowed density, incentives for developers…