New state rules on foreclosure surplus push Morrow County to plan property-management changes
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Summary
County staff warned that House Bill 2089 expands notice, posting and sale procedures for tax-foreclosed properties, creates new reporting and appraisal steps, and shifts surplus-claims handling to the state treasury — prompting the assessor and county officials to recommend a county property-manager role and budget contingency for potential claims or litigation.
County officials told commissioners that recent state legislation responding to the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Tyler v. Hennepin imposes substantive new duties on counties that foreclose for unpaid taxes.
Assessor staff explained that House Bill 2089 increases due-diligence steps to locate property owners, prescribes font and multilingual posting requirements for pre-sale notices, and requires counties to notify and remit any sale surplus to the Oregon Department of the Treasury so the state will administer claimant processes. The law also directs new appraisal or valuation procedures for properties the county retains or sells and narrows the entities eligible to make surplus claims in ways still being litigated.
The assessor warned the new rules will significantly increase staff workload and legal exposure; staff are reviewing a list of properties in the county affected by foreclosures since 2022. The assessor recommended naming a county property manager (or designating the assessor’s office) to oversee the foreclosure-to-sale process, preparing to hire or contract additional property-management capacity, and adding a contingency line in the next budget to cover possible claim payments or litigation costs.
Commissioners agreed to bring a formal proposal to the January meeting to name a property manager and directed staff to delay deeding additional foreclosed parcels to the county until operational procedures are finalized and legal counsel is consulted.
Next steps: appoint a property manager and develop a written policy and budget line for surplus/claims handling; schedule auction and realtor/eviction logistics as needed.
