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Eugene-backed annexation bill draws mixed testimony as special districts warn of service fragmentation
Summary
House Bill 4108 would allow property owners of noncontiguous parcels inside acknowledged UGBs to petition for voluntary annexation if served by city utilities; local governments and business groups supported the permissive pathway while special districts warned of revenue loss and operational challenges.
The House Committee on Housing and Homelessness took testimony on House Bill 4108, a measure to create a voluntary pathway for owners of noncontiguous parcels inside an acknowledged urban growth boundary to petition for annexation when city water and sewer already serve the property.
Representative Lisa Fragola, sponsor of the bill, said dash-1 amendments change the proposal from mandatory to discretionary and remove electricity from the list of required city services. Fragola told the committee the reform would allow cities to use existing infrastructure to support infill development without expanding urban growth boundaries.
Local officials and business groups voiced support. Tiffany Edwards, representing the Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce and the regional advocacy group Better Housing Together, said HB 4108 creates an opt-in pathway that preserves city discretion and can be paired with incentives such as tax abatements or fee relief to encourage infill.
Eugene Mayor Karen Knudson supported the permissive annexation pathway and described Eugene’s pilot of annexing streets to make more parcels contiguous. She urged removal of a subsection in dash-1 that would prohibit a city from withdrawing annexed property from a special district until contiguity is achieved, saying that provision would create administrative burdens and disincentivize voluntary annexation.
Representatives of fire and special districts opposed the measure in its current form. Ben Stange, fire chief of Polk County Fire District No. 1, and Mark Landauer of the Special Districts Association of Oregon warned that noncontiguous annexations can reduce property-tax revenue for districts and create fragmented service areas that complicate emergency response. Landauer said the dash-1’s removal of electricity from the service list widens the measure’s scope and asked for clearer definitions of subcontractors that could provide water or sewer services under the amendment.
Chair Marsh temporarily closed HB 4108 testimony to manage time; the committee invited written comments from those unable to speak. No committee action to approve or reject the bill was taken at the hearing.
