ORS 310.140
Legislative findings

  • definitions

(1)

The Legislative Assembly finds that Article XI, section 11b, of the Oregon Constitution, was drafted by citizens and placed before the voters of the State of Oregon by initiative petition. Article XI, section 11b, of the Oregon Constitution, uses terms that do not have established legal meanings and require definition by the Legislative Assembly. Article XI, section 11b, of the Oregon Constitution, was amended by Article XI, section 11 (11), of the Oregon Constitution. This section is intended to interpret the terms of Article XI, section 11b, of the Oregon Constitution, as originally adopted and as amended by Article XI, section 11 (11), of the Oregon Constitution, consistent with the intent of the people in adopting these provisions, so that the provisions of Article XI, section 11b, of the Oregon Constitution, may be given effect uniformly throughout the State of Oregon, with minimal confusion and misunderstanding by citizens and affected units of government. As used in the revenue and tax laws of this state, and for purposes of Article XI, section 11b, of the Oregon Constitution:

(a)

Intentionally left blank —Ed.

(A)

“Actual cost” means all direct or indirect costs incurred by a government unit in order to deliver goods or services or to undertake a capital construction project. The “actual cost” of providing goods or services to a property or property owner includes the average cost or an allocated portion of the total amount of the actual cost of making a good or service available to the property or property owner, whether stated as a minimum, fixed or variable amount.

(B)

“Actual cost” includes, but is not limited to, the costs of labor, materials, supplies, equipment rental, property acquisition, permits, engineering, financing, reasonable program delinquencies, return on investment, required fees, insurance, administration, accounting, depreciation, amortization, operation, maintenance, repair or replacement and debt service, including debt service payments or payments into reserve accounts for debt service and payment of amounts necessary to meet debt service coverage requirements.

(b)

“Assessment for local improvement” means any tax, fee, charge or assessment that does not exceed the actual cost incurred by a unit of government for design, construction and financing of a local improvement.

(c)

“Bonded indebtedness” means any formally executed written agreement representing a promise by a unit of government to pay to another a specified sum of money, at a specified date or dates at least one year in the future.

(d)

Intentionally left blank —Ed.

(A)

“Capital construction” means, for bonded indebtedness issued prior to December 5, 1996, and for the proceeds of any bonded indebtedness approved by electors prior to December 5, 1996, that were spent or contractually obligated to be spent prior to June 20, 1997, the construction, modification, replacement, repair, remodeling or renovation of a structure, or addition to a structure, that is expected to have a useful life of more than one year, and includes, but is not limited to:
(i)
Acquisition of land, or a legal interest in land, in conjunction with the capital construction of a structure.
(ii)
Acquisition, installation of machinery or equipment, furnishings or materials that will become an integral part of a structure.
(iii)
Activities related to the capital construction, including planning, design, authorizing, issuing, carrying or repaying interim or permanent financing, research, land use and environmental impact studies, acquisition of permits or licenses or other services connected with the construction.
(iv)
Acquisition of existing structures, or legal interests in structures, in conjunction with the capital construction.

(B)

“Capital construction,” for bonded indebtedness issued on or after December 5, 1996, except for the proceeds of any bonded indebtedness approved by electors prior to December 5, 1996, that were spent or contractually obligated to be spent before June 20, 1997, has the meaning given that term in subparagraph (A) of this paragraph except as provided in subparagraphs (C) and (D) of this paragraph.

(C)

“Capital construction” includes public safety and law enforcement vehicles with a projected useful life of five years or more.

(D)

“Capital construction” does not include:
(i)
Maintenance and repairs, the need for which could be reasonably anticipated;
(ii)
Supplies and equipment that are not intrinsic to the structure; or
(iii)
Furnishings, unless the furnishings are acquired in connection with the acquisition, construction, remodeling or renovation of a structure, or the repair of a structure that is required because of damage or destruction of the structure.

(e)

Intentionally left blank —Ed.

(A)

“Capital costs” means costs of land and of other assets having a useful life of more than one year, including costs associated with acquisition, construction, improvement, remodeling, furnishing, equipping, maintenance or repair.

(B)

“Capital costs” does not include costs of routine maintenance or supplies.

(f)

Intentionally left blank —Ed.

(A)

“Capital improvements” means, for bonded indebtedness issued prior to December 5, 1996, and for the proceeds of any bonded indebtedness approved by electors before December 5, 1996, that were spent or contractually obligated to be spent before June 20, 1997, land, structures, facilities, personal property that is functionally related and subordinate to real property, machinery, equipment or furnishings having a useful life longer than one year.

(B)

“Capital improvements,” for bonded indebtedness issued on or after December 5, 1996, except for the proceeds of any bonded indebtedness approved by electors prior to December 5, 1996, that were spent or contractually obligated to be spent before June 20, 1997, has the meaning given that term in subparagraph (A) of this paragraph except as provided in subparagraphs (C) and (D) of this paragraph.

(C)

“Capital improvements” includes public safety and law enforcement vehicles with a projected useful life of five years or more.

(D)

“Capital improvements” does not include:
(i)
Maintenance and repairs, the need for which could be reasonably anticipated;
(ii)
Supplies and equipment that are not intrinsic to the structure; or
(iii)
Furnishings, unless the furnishings are acquired in connection with the acquisition, construction, remodeling or renovation of a structure, or the repair of a structure that is required because of damage or destruction of the structure.

(g)

“Direct consequence of ownership” means that the obligation of the owner of property to pay a tax arises solely because that person is the owner of the property, and the obligation to pay the tax arises as an immediate and necessary result of that ownership without respect to any other intervening transaction, condition or event.

(h)

Intentionally left blank —Ed.

(A)

“Exempt bonded indebtedness” means:
(i)
Bonded indebtedness authorized by a specific provision of the Oregon Constitution;
(ii)
Bonded indebtedness incurred or to be incurred for capital construction or capital improvements that was issued as a general obligation of the issuing governmental unit on or before November 6, 1990;
(iii)
Bonded indebtedness incurred or to be incurred for capital construction or capital improvements that was issued as a general obligation of the issuing governmental unit after November 6, 1990, with the approval of the electors of the issuing governmental unit prior to December 5, 1996;
(iv)
Bonded indebtedness incurred or to be incurred for capital construction or capital improvements if the issuance of the bonds is approved by voters on or after December 5, 1996, in an election that is in compliance with the voter participation requirements of Article XI, section 11 (8), of the Oregon Constitution, or if the issuance of the bonds is approved by voters on or after December 4, 2008, in an election that is in compliance with the voter participation requirements of Article XI, section 11 (8), of the Oregon Constitution, as limited by Article XI, section 11k, of the Oregon Constitution; or
(v)
Bonded indebtedness incurred or to be incurred for capital costs on or after January 1, 2011, if the issuance of the bonds is approved by voters in an election that is in compliance with the voter participation requirements of Article XI, section 11 (8), of the Oregon Constitution, as limited by Article XI, section 11k, of the Oregon Constitution.

(B)

“Exempt bonded indebtedness” includes bonded indebtedness issued to refund or refinance any bonded indebtedness described in subparagraph (A) of this paragraph.
(i)
“Incurred charge” means a charge imposed by a unit of government on property or upon a property owner that does not exceed the actual cost of providing goods or services and that can be controlled or avoided by the property owner because:

(A)

The charge is based on the quantity of the goods or services used, and the owner has direct control over the quantity;

(B)

The goods or services are provided only on the specific request of the property owner; or

(C)

The goods or services are provided by the government unit only after the individual property owner has failed to meet routine obligations of ownership of the affected property, and such action is deemed necessary by an appropriate government unit to enforce regulations pertaining to health or safety.

(j)

“Local improvement” means a capital construction project, or part thereof, undertaken by a local government, pursuant to ORS 223.387 (Description of real property) to 223.399 (Powers of local government concerning assessments for local improvements), or pursuant to a local ordinance or resolution prescribing the procedure to be followed in making local assessments for benefits from a local improvement upon the lots that have been benefited by all or a part of the improvement:

(A)

That provides a special benefit only to specific properties or rectifies a problem caused by specific properties;

(B)

The costs of which are assessed against those properties in a single assessment upon the completion of the project; and

(C)

For which the property owner may elect to make payment of the assessment plus appropriate interest over a period of at least 10 years.

(k)

Intentionally left blank —Ed.

(A)

“Maintenance and repairs, the need for which could be reasonably anticipated” means activities, the type of which may be deducted as an expense under the provisions of the federal Internal Revenue Code, as defined in ORS 305.842 (Application of Internal Revenue Code to certain property tax laws), that keep the property in ordinarily efficient operating condition and that do not add materially to the value of the property nor appreciably prolong the life of the property.

(B)

“Maintenance and repairs, the need for which could be reasonably anticipated” does not include:
(i)
Maintenance and repair of property that is required by damage, destruction or defect in design, or that was otherwise not reasonably expected at the time the property was constructed or acquired, or the addition of material that is in the nature of the replacement of property and that arrests the deterioration or appreciably prolongs the useful life of the property; and
(ii)
Street and highway construction, overlay and reconstruction.

(L)

“Projected useful life” means the useful life, as reasonably estimated by the unit of government undertaking the capital construction or capital improvement project, beginning with the date the property was acquired, constructed or reconstructed and based on the property’s condition at the time the property was acquired, constructed or reconstructed.

(m)

“Routine obligations of ownership” means a standard of operation, maintenance, use or care of property established by law, or if established by custom or common law, a standard that is reasonable for the type of property affected.

(n)

“Single assessment” means the complete assessment process, including preassessment, assessment or reassessment, for any local improvement authorized by ORS 223.387 (Description of real property) to 223.399 (Powers of local government concerning assessments for local improvements), or a local ordinance or resolution that provides the procedure to be followed in making local assessments for benefits from a local improvement upon lots that have been benefited by all or part of the improvement.

(o)

“Special benefit only to specific properties” shall have the same meaning as “special and peculiar benefit” as that term is used in ORS 223.389 (Procedure in making local assessments for local improvements).

(p)

“Specific request” means:

(A)

An affirmative act by a property owner to seek or obtain delivery of goods or services;

(B)

An affirmative act by a property owner, the legal consequence of which is to cause the delivery of goods or services to the property owner; or

(C)

Failure of an owner of property to change a request for goods or services made by a prior owner of the property.

(q)

“Structure” means any temporary or permanent building or improvement to real property of any kind that is constructed on or attached to real property, whether above, on or beneath the surface.

(r)

“Supplies and equipment intrinsic to a structure” means the supplies and equipment that are necessary to permit a structure to perform the functions for which the structure was constructed, or that will, upon installation, constitute fixtures considered to be part of the real property that is composed, in whole or part, of the structure and land supporting the structure.

(s)

“Tax on property” means any tax, fee, charge or assessment imposed by any government unit upon property or upon a property owner as a direct consequence of ownership of that property, but does not include incurred charges or assessments for local improvements. As used in this paragraph, “property” means real or tangible personal property, and intangible property that is part of a unit of real or tangible personal property to the extent that such intangible property is subject to a tax on property.

(2)

For purposes of subsection (1)(i) of this section, an owner of property may control or avoid an incurred charge if the owner is capable of taking action to affect the amount of a charge that is or will be imposed or to avoid imposition of a charge even if the owner must incur expense in so doing.

(3)

For purposes of subsection (1)(i)(A) of this section, an owner of property has direct control over the quantity of goods or services if the owner of property has the ability, whether or not that ability is exercised, to determine the quantity of goods or services provided or to be provided.

(4)

For purposes of subsection (1)(j) of this section, the status of a capital construction project as a local improvement is not affected by the accrual of a general benefit to property other than the property receiving the special benefit. [1991 c.459 §210; 1997 c.541 §258; 1999 c.21 §25; 1999 c.90 §33; 2001 c.660 §28; 2003 c.46 §24; 2003 c.77 §6; 2003 c.195 §23; 2003 c.802 §63; 2005 c.832 §18; 2007 c.614 §6; 2007 c.783 §125; 2008 c.45 §7; 2009 c.5 §17; 2009 c.909 §17; 2010 c.82 §17; 2011 c.7 §17; 2012 c.31 §17; 2013 c.377 §17; 2013 c.491 §1; 2014 c.52 §19; 2017 c.17 §27]

Source: Section 310.140 — Legislative findings; definitions, https://www.­oregonlegislature.­gov/bills_laws/ors/ors310.­html.

310.010
Determination of amount of money for county and other purposes
310.020
Levy of tax to defray county expenses
310.030
Levy of taxes required or permitted by law
310.040
Reducing levy where necessity for budget item eliminated
310.055
Operating taxes
310.060
Notice certifying taxes
310.061
Assessor to determine and report maximum school district operating tax when district certifies lesser rate
310.065
Procedure where notice not given
310.070
Procedure when taxes exceed limitations or are incorrectly categorized
310.090
Computation of rate for each item of tax
310.100
Taxes to apply to property shown by assessment roll
310.105
Rate adjustments to reflect nontimber offsets
310.110
Apportionment of taxes where taxing district lies in two or more counties
310.140
Legislative findings
310.143
Certification of taxes on taxable property subject to 1990 Measure 5 limits
310.145
Ordinance or resolution classifying and categorizing taxes subject to 1990 Measure 5 limits
310.147
Code area system
310.150
Segregation into categories
310.153
Total amount to be raised for each taxing district and item
310.155
Public school system limit
310.156
Certain community college library limits
310.160
Unit of property
310.165
Partially exempt or specially assessed property
310.170
Allocation by districts of distributions from unsegregated tax collections account among taxes subject to 1990 Measure 5 limits
310.190
Effect of election challenge on tax
310.193
Taxing district duty to notify assessor of challenge
310.200
Purpose
310.202
Definitions for ORS 310.200 to 310.242
310.204
“Hospital facility” defined
310.206
1997-1998 tax certification notice
310.208
1997-1998 urban renewal certification
310.210
Measure 5 imposed tax estimate
310.212
Measure 47 comparison taxes
310.214
Measure 47 comparison tax adjustments for certain nonschool taxing districts
310.216
Pre-reduction Measure 50 taxes
310.218
Preliminary reduction percentages
310.220
Assessor certification to Department of Revenue
310.222
Computation of 1997 Measure 50 reduction and supplemental statutory reduction
310.228
Determination of state replacement obligation
310.230
Adjustment of Measure 47 comparison taxes and supplemental statutory reduction to account for certain additions of value
310.232
Subtraction of urban renewal increment from assessed value
310.234
Nonschool taxing district 1997-1998 operating tax adjustment for timber offsets
310.236
Determination of taxing district 1997-1998 operating taxes and permanent and statutory rate limits for tax years after 1997-1998
310.237
Reallocation of Measure 47 comparison taxes and adjustment of rate limits for certain districts for 2000-2001 and later tax years
310.238
Rate conversion
310.240
Calculation of taxes imposed on urban renewal increment for 1997-1998
310.242
1997-1998 compression of consolidated rates
310.244
Adjustment of city’s post-compression tax rate under certain circumstances
310.246
Adjustment of permanent rate limit to correct mistakes by June 30, 1998
310.585
Distribution of certain property tax relief moneys to counties
310.595
Determination of apportionment to counties
310.622
Manufactured structures eligible as homesteads under tax laws of state
310.623
Floating home eligible as homestead
310.800
Property tax work-off programs
Green check means up to date. Up to date