Oregon Zoning & Land Use Laws

Oregon ADU Law

Oregon has a statewide ADU law — Oregon House Bill 2001 (HB 2001) — Middle Housing in Medium and Large Cities — effective 2019-08-08. This law preempts local ordinances — cities and counties cannot impose restrictions stricter than the state standard. Key provisions include: Eliminates single-family-only zoning in Oregon cities with population 10,000 or more — duplexes must be allowed by-right in all residential zones; Cities with population 25,000 or more must allow middle housing (duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, cottage clusters, townhomes) by-right in all residential zones; Cities may not impose design standards that make middle housing effectively infeasible, and 5 more. The most recent amendment was HB 3414 (2023): House Bill 3414 clarified HB 2001 compliance requirements and reinforced LCDC enforcement authority over non-compliant jurisdictions. Required additional cities to update their development codes to fully implement middle housing requirements.

Lot Split Law

Oregon Senate Bill 458 (SB 458) — Middle Housing Lot Division: SB 458 (effective July 1, 2022) requires Oregon cities that must allow middle housing under HB 2001 to also allow lot divisions for middle housing. Property owners who develop middle housing on a single lot may split the lot to create separate parcels for individual unit ownership — enabling condo-like or fee-simple ownership of townhomes, duplexes, and cottage clusters. Cities may not require a minimum lot size lower than the applicable zone minimum when dividing lots for middle housing.

Cottage Food Law

Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 616 authorizes cottage food operations. Oregon allows direct sales of non-potentially-hazardous cottage food products (baked goods, jams, jellies, candy, dried herbs, roasted nuts, honey) from a home kitchen without a commercial kitchen license. No annual revenue cap for direct-to-consumer sales. Sales allowed at farmers markets, roadside stands, and directly from the home. Cottage food producers must register with the Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA). Products must be labeled with producer name, address, product name, ingredients, net weight, and allergen information. ODA registration fee is approximately $20/year. Oregon also allows Home Bakery operations under ORS 616.695 with slightly different requirements. Oregon does not cap cottage food revenue for direct sales but sales through retail intermediaries may have additional licensing requirements. Contact Oregon Department of Agriculture Food Safety Division: https://www.oregon.gov/ODA/programs/FoodSafety/Pages/CottageFood.aspx

Recent Legislative Changes

Oregon Cities with Zoning Data