477 - Oregon Legislative Assembly

Chapter 4772017 EDITION

Fire Protection of Forests and Vegetation

GENERAL PROVISIONS477.001 Definitions477.005 Policy477.009 Investigative authority of Attorney Gen-

eral for fire protection administration

SMOKE MANAGEMENT477.013 Smoke management plan; rules

URBAN INTERFACE FIRE PROTECTION477.015 Definitions477.017 Legislative findings, policy and purpose477.023 Fire protection system; integration with

existing laws; cooperative agreements477.025 Classification of lands to reflect different

protection problems477.027 Rules for classification of lands477.029 Local land classification committee;

members; officers; terms; rules477.031 Duties of committee477.052 Hearings on proposed classifications477.054 Appeal of classification decisions; proce-

dure477.057 State Forester to classify land if county

fails to act477.059 Obligation of landowner to comply with

standards; rules; certification by land-owner; penalty for failure to comply

477.060 Considerations in determining cost ofprotection; special or additional costs

477.061 Short title

HAZARD ABATEMENT477.062 Inadequately protected forestland de-

clared nuisance; notice to protect; workat expense of owner; collection of amountexpended

FIRE ABATEMENT477.064 Uncontrolled fire declared nuisance477.066 Duty of owner and operator to abate fire;

abatement by authorities477.067 Notice of fire477.068 Liability for cost of abatement; interest;

lien; foreclosure; attorney fees477.069 Negligence in origin and in failure to

control fire may be united in one com-plaint

477.085 Liability for cost of protecting land withina forest protection district

477.089 Recovery for property damage; liability forfirefighting costs

477.092 Liability for destruction of property bywildfire

477.095 Applicability of ORS 477.068, 477.085 and477.089

477.100 Ability of owner to suppress fire; limita-tion

477.120 Liability of owner or operator477.125 Liability of forest protective associations,

rangeland protection associations andpublic bodies; limitations

477.128 Expenditures for criminal defense relatedto fire suppression activities

NORTHWEST WILDLAND FIRE PROTECTION AGREEMENT

477.175 Definition of “all possible aid” for agree-ment

477.180 Ratification of amendment to agreement;withdrawal if Legislative Assembly fails toratify amendment

477.185 Use of local fire protection resources477.190 Authority of Governor to carry out

agreement477.195 Ratification of Northwest Wildland Fire

Protection Agreement477.200 Northwest Wildland Fire Protection

Agreement

FOREST PROTECTION DISTRICTS477.205 Definitions for ORS 477.205 to 477.281477.210 Duty of owner to protect forestland;

forester’s duty to provide protection uponnoncompliance

477.220 Lands not provided protection; lands notincluded within ORS 477.205 to 477.281

477.225 Establishment and change of forest pro-tection districts; rules

477.230 Basis for computing cost of protectionprovided by forester; costs to be in accor-dance with budget

477.232 Costs in excess of budget; amounts notexpended

477.235 Forester to prepare tentative budget esti-mates for districts

477.240 Advisory and guidance committees477.245 Owners entitled to be heard on budget

matters; public budget meetings to beheld in district

477.250 Notice of budget meeting; notice of pro-posed assessment

477.255 Holding of budget meeting; revision andsubmission of budget for final approval

477.260 Appeal to board477.265 Board to deal with budgets annually477.270 Budgeted cost of forester to be lien; col-

lection; deposit of amounts collected477.277 Additional assessment to maintain unen-

cumbered balance of Oregon Forest LandProtection Fund

477.281 Limitation on obligation of landowner forfire protection

477.295 Minimum assessment under ORS 477.270;combining lots; fees; rules

477.300 Use of funds in State Forestry Depart-ment Account for capital outlay expendi-tures of district

Title 38 (2017 Edition)

PROTECTION FROM FIRE

477.305 Forester to enforce prohibition againstlittering on forestland in districts

RANGELAND477.315 Definitions for ORS 477.315 to 477.325477.317 State Forester assistance to rangeland

protection association477.320 Request of rangeland owners for pro-

tection; hearings; determination; cooper-ative agreements for protection

477.325 Budget for rangeland protection; col-lection of costs; disposition of receipts

FIRE WARDENS477.355 Fire wardens generally477.360 Duties of fire warden for forest protection

district477.365 Duties and powers of wardens

COOPERATIVE CONTRACTS OR AGREEMENTS

477.406 Cooperative contracts or agreements forforest protection or forest related activ-ities; negotiation

477.408 Provisions of contract or agreement477.409 Contracts for off-season services for fire

prevention and suppression personnel477.410 Liability of parties; responsibility for

equipment; unemployment insurance andworkers’ compensation; sovereign immu-nity

477.412 Disposition and use of moneys receivedby forester under contract or agreement

477.415 Definitions for ORS 477.440 to 477.460477.440 Emergency Fire Cost Committee; mem-

bers; terms; vacancies477.445 Distribution of fire emergency funds by

committee477.450 Election of committee chairperson477.455 Meetings of committee; committee ad-

ministrator477.460 Duties of administrator; compensation

and expenses

FIRE PREVENTION(Fire Seasons)

477.505 State Forester may declare fire season indistrict

477.510 Acts prohibited during fire season477.512 Additional acts prohibited during fire sea-

son

(Permits)477.515 Permits required for fires on forestlands;

waiver; permit conditions; cooperativeagreements for permit administration;rules

477.520 Refusal, suspension or revocation of per-mits

477.532 Regional air quality authority’s functionslimited

(Restricted Uses)477.535 Forester may proclaim forestland subject

to restricted uses; coordination of stateand federal land restrictions

477.540 Notice of proclamation; suspension ortermination; reinstatement

477.545 Restricted uses during closure477.550 Violation of restrictions; access for fire

fighting permitted

(Smoke Management)477.552 Policy477.554 Program establishment; content477.556 Advisory committee; membership; terms;

staff477.558 Functions for advisory committee477.560 Oregon Forest Smoke Management Ac-

count; moneys paid to account; use477.562 Registration fee; rules

SNAGS; SLASHING AND OTHER DEBRIS477.565 Felling dead trees and snags; rules477.580 Determination of additional fire hazards;

notice to landowner; plan for reducinghazard; release from liability

MACHINERY REGULATIONS(Enjoining Violations)

477.605 Enjoining violations of ORS 477.615 and477.645 to 477.655

477.610 Standardization of fire-fighting equipmentused to protect forestland; rules

(General Regulations)477.615 Additional water supply and equipment;

rules477.625 Permit to use fire or power-driven ma-

chinery; exception; conditions; waiver ofpermit

477.630 Information in permit477.635 Authority to issue, refuse, suspend or re-

voke permit

(Fire Season Regulations)477.640 Use and refueling of power saws477.645 Internal combustion engines; rules477.650 Stationary internal combustion engines;

rules; waiver477.655 Fire-fighting tools and equipment at op-

eration area and on trucks; rules477.660 Additional protection facilities or services

at operation area477.665 Fire watch service; rules; waiver477.670 When use of fire or power-driven ma-

chinery prohibited

MISCELLANEOUS477.695 Removal of flammable material from rail-

road rights of way477.710 Starting of campfire or other open fire

restricted; exceptions477.720 Accidentally setting fire to forestland;

failure to prevent spread477.740 Unlawful use of fire477.745 Liability of parents for costs of suppress-

ing fire caused by minor child477.747 Policies and plans for restoration of

burned forestland

OREGON FOREST LAND PROTECTION FUND

477.750 Oregon Forest Land Protection Fund;source; use


FIRE PROTECTION OF FORESTS & VEGETATION

477.755 Appropriation of fund; limitation on ex-penditures

477.760 Reserve base of fund fixed; annual deter-mination of excess over base; tax leviesand assessments to maintain base

477.770 Rules relating to use of fund

477.775 Emergency fire suppression costs insur-ance; considerations; payment of premiumfrom fund

477.777 Agency request budget; expenditures; re-port

ASSESSMENT FOR FIRE SUPPRESSION COSTS

477.880 Acreage assessment; east side forestlands;certain forestlands west of CascadeMountains; rate

477.960 Collection of assessment477.970 Disposition of receipts

PENALTIES477.980 Enforcement policy; rules; factors consid-

ered477.985 Enforcement procedure477.993 Penalties


FIRE PROTECTION OF FORESTS & VEGETATION 477.001

GENERAL PROVISIONS477.001 Definitions. As used in this

chapter, unless the context otherwise re-quires:

(1) “Additional fire hazard” means a haz-ard that has been determined to exist by theforester pursuant to ORS 477.580.

(2) “Board” means the State Board ofForestry.

(3) “Campfire” means any open fire usedfor cooking, personal warmth, lighting, cere-monial or aesthetic purposes that is handbuilt and that is not associated with any de-bris disposal activities.

(4) “Department” means the State For-estry Department.

(5) “District” means a forest protectiondistrict organized under ORS 477.225.

(6) “Every reasonable effort” means theuse of the reasonably available personnel andequipment under the supervision and controlof an owner or operator, which are neededand effective to fight the fire in the judgmentof the forester and which can be brought tobear on the fire in a timely fashion.

(7) “Fire season” means a period desig-nated pursuant to ORS 477.505.

(8) “Fiscal year” means the period begin-ning on July 1 of any year and ending onJune 30 of the next year.

(9) “Forestland” means any woodland,brushland, timberland, grazing land or clear-ing that, during any time of the year, con-tains enough forest growth, slashing orvegetation to constitute, in the judgment ofthe forester, a fire hazard, regardless of howthe land is zoned or taxed. As used in thissubsection, “clearing” means any grassland,improved area, lake, meadow, mechanicallyor manually cleared area, road, rocky area,stream or other similar forestland openingthat is surrounded by or contiguous to for-estland and that has been included in areasclassified as forestland under ORS 526.305 to526.370.

(10) “Forest patrol assessment” meansthe costs levied and assessed under ORS477.270.

(11) “Forest protective association” or“association” means an association, group oragency composed of owners of forestlands,organized for the purpose of protecting suchforestlands from fire.

(12) “Forest resource” means the varioustypes of vegetation normally growing onOregon’s forestland, the associated harvestedproducts and the associated residue, includ-ing but not limited to brush, grass, logs,saplings, seedlings, trees and slashing.

(13) “Forester” means the State Foresteror authorized representative.

(14) “Governing body” of a county meansthe county court or board of county commis-sioners.

(15) “Grazing land” is defined by ORS477.205.

(16) “Open fire” means any outdoor firethat occurs in such a manner that com-bustion air is not effectively controlled andcombustion products are not effectivelyvented through a stack or chimney.

(17) “Operation” means any industrialactivity, any development or any improve-ment on forestland inside or within one-eighth of one mile of a forest protectiondistrict, including but not limited to the har-vesting of forest tree species, the clearing ofland, the use of power-driven machinery andthe use of fire, excluding, however, the cul-ture and harvesting of agricultural crops.

(18) “Operation area” means the area onwhich an operation is being conducted andthe area on which operation activity mayhave resulted in the ignition of a fire.

(19) “Operation in progress” means thattime when workers are on an operation areafor the purpose of an operation, including theperiod of time when fire watches are re-quired to be on the operation area pursuantto ORS 477.665.

(20) “Operator” means any person who,either personally or through employees,agents, representatives or contractors, iscarrying on or has carried on any operation.

(21) “Owner” means an individual, acombination of individuals, a partnership, acorporation, the State of Oregon or a poli-tical subdivision thereof, or an associationof any nature that holds an ownership inter-est in land.

(22) “Political subdivision” includes, butis not limited to, counties, cities and specialdistricts.

(23) “Rangeland” is defined by ORS477.315.

(24) “Routine road maintenance” is de-fined by ORS 477.625.

(25) “Side” means any single unit of alogging operation employing power-drivenmachinery.

(26) “Slashing” means the forest debrisor refuse on any forestland resulting fromthe cutting, killing, pruning, severing or re-moval of brush, trees or other forest growth.

(27) “State Forester” means the personappointed State Forester pursuant to ORS526.031 or the person serving in the positionon an interim or delegated basis.


477.005 PROTECTION FROM FIRE

(28) “Summit of the Cascade Mountains”is considered to be a line beginning at theintersection of the northern boundary of theState of Oregon and the western boundaryof Wasco County; thence southerly along thewestern boundaries of Wasco, Jefferson, Des-chutes and Klamath Counties to the south-ern boundary of the State of Oregon.

(29) “Timberland” is defined by ORS477.205.

(30) “Warden” means a fire warden ap-pointed under ORS 477.355. [1959 c.363 §2 (en-acted in lieu of 477.002); 1961 c.603 §1; 1965 c.253 §44;1967 c.429 §34; 1973 c.46 §1; 1983 c.22 §1; 1985 c.759 §32;1997 c.274 §1; 1999 c.59 §156; 1999 c.355 §2; 2003 c.54 §3]

477.002 [Amended by 1953 c.68 §19; subsection (2)of 1957 Replacement Part enacted as 1953 c.372 §2; sub-section (5) of 1957 Replacement Part enacted as 1953c.152 §1; amended by 1955 c.158 §1; repealed by 1959 c.363§1 (477.001 enacted in lieu of 477.002)]

477.003 [1959 c.363 §20; repealed by 1961 c.351 §1]477.004 [Repealed by 1965 c.253 §153]

477.005 Policy. (1) The preservation ofthe forests and the conservation of the forestresources through the prevention and sup-pression of forest fires hereby are declaredto be the public policy of the State of Ore-gon.

(2) In order to accomplish the purposesof the policy stated in this section:

(a) The need for a complete and coordi-nated forest protection system is acknowl-edged and the primary mission of the StateForestry Department in such a system isprotecting forest resources, second only tosaving lives. Structural protection, thoughindirect, shall not inhibit protection of forestresources; and

(b) This chapter shall include all personsand activities designated in this chapter, ir-respective as to whether or not such personor activity is concerned with the harvesting,cutting, removal or marketing of trees, tim-ber or other forest products. [Formerly 477.022;1965 c.253 §45; 1989 c.615 §5]

477.006 [Repealed by 1965 c.253 §153]

477.008 [Amended by 1965 c.253 §87; renumbered477.360]

477.009 Investigative authority of At-torney General for fire protection admin-istration. (1) For the purpose of aninvestigation as to liability for cost of hazardabatement, fire abatement or damages underthis chapter, the Attorney General, at therequest of the State Forester, may administeroaths and affirmations, take testimony or de-positions and by subpoena compel the:

(a) Attendance of witnesses;(b) Production of documents, including

but not limited to writings, drawings, graphs,charts, photographs, and other data compila-

tions from which information can be ob-tained and translated; and

(c) Production of any other tangible thingthat the Attorney General deems relevant ormaterial to the investigation.

(2) Each witness subpoenaed under sub-section (1) of this section shall receive thefees and mileage provided in ORS 44.415 (2).

(3) If a person fails to comply with asubpoena issued or a party or witness refusesto testify on any matters, the judge of thecircuit court of any county, on the applica-tion of the State Forester, shall compel obe-dience by proceedings for contempt as in thecase of disobedience of the requirements ofa subpoena issued from such court or a re-fusal to testify therein. [1993 c.697 §6]

477.010 [Repealed by 1965 c.253 §153]477.012 [Amended by 1965 c.253 §88; renumbered

477.365]

SMOKE MANAGEMENT477.013 Smoke management plan;

rules. (1) For the purpose of maintaining airquality, the State Forester and the Depart-ment of Environmental Quality shall approvea plan for the purpose of managing smoke inareas they shall designate. The plan shalldelineate regulated areas to which this sec-tion applies. The plan shall also include butnot be limited to considerations of weather,volume of material to be burned, distance ofthe burning from designated areas, burningtechniques and provisions for cessation offurther burning under adverse air qualityconditions. All burning permitted within theregulated areas shall be according to theplan. The plan shall be developed by theState Forestry Department in cooperationwith federal and state agencies, landownersand organizations that will be affected by theplan. The approved plan shall be filed withthe Secretary of State and may thereafter beamended in the same manner as its forma-tion.

(2) The State Forester shall promulgaterules to carry out the provisions of thesmoke management plan approved under thissection. [1997 c.274 §47; 2007 c.213 §1]


URBAN INTERFACE FIRE PROTECTION

477.015 Definitions. (1) As used in ORS477.015 to 477.061, unless the context other-wise requires, “forestland-urban interface”means a geographic area of forestland insidea forest protection district where there existsa concentration of structures in an urban orsuburban setting.



(2) As used in ORS 477.015 to 477.057,unless the context requires otherwise:

(a) “Committee” means a countyforestland-urban interface classification com-mittee.

(b) “Governing body” means the board ofcounty commissioners or county court of acounty, as the case may be. [1997 c.429 §§3,8]

477.016 [1963 c.107 §8; amended by 1965 c.253 §72;renumbered 477.300]

477.017 Legislative findings, policy andpurpose. (1) The Legislative Assembly findsthat:

(a) The forestland-urban interface situ-ation in Oregon is a result of both past andpresent conditions and that, given projectedtrends, the forestland-urban interface situ-ation will continue to grow.

(b) Urban and suburban structures, realproperty and natural resources are subject toincreased risks of catastrophic damage byforestland-urban interface fire events.

(c) There is greater complexity inforestland-urban interface fire protectionthan in either resource land fire protectionor urban structural fire protection.

(d) In dealing with the forestland-urbaninterface situation, major and long term sol-utions will involve local actions and effortsby property owners.

(e) One solution or set of solutions willnot fit all situations or areas of the state.

(2) The Legislative Assembly declaresthat:

(a) In order to ensure the protection ofhuman life, the safety of citizens and fireservice personnel and the highest possiblelevel of livability in Oregon, it is necessaryto provide a complete and coordinated fireprotection system within the forestland-urban interface in Oregon.

(b) All forestland-urban interface prop-erty owners have a basic responsibility toshare in this complete and coordinated pro-tection system by providing efforts againstfire.

(c) Public and property owner educationand awareness is critical to forestland-urbaninterface solutions and must occur at multi-ple levels.

(d) In administration of ORS 477.015 to477.061, it is the intent of the LegislativeAssembly that property owners who will beaffected by ORS 477.015 to 477.061 will be:

(A) Involved in the processes of develop-ment of administrative rules pursuant toORS 477.015 to 477.061; and

(B) Notified of the outcomes of classi-fication pursuant to ORS 477.015 to 477.057.

(3) The purpose of ORS 477.015 to 477.061is to:

(a) Provide a forestland-urban interfacefire protection system in Oregon that mini-mizes cost and risk while maximizing effec-tiveness and efficiency for protection of thevalues at risk from fire.

(b) Promote and encourage propertyowner efforts to minimize and mitigate firehazards and risks within the forestland-urbaninterface.

(c) Promote and encourage the involve-ment and interaction of all levels of govern-ment and the private sector that have adirect or indirect interest and role in theforestland-urban interface situation over thelong term. [1997 c.429 §§4,5,7; 2007 c.30 §1]

477.020 [1959 c.408 §§1,2,3,4,5; repealed by 1965 c.253§153]

477.022 [1953 c.372 §1; 1961 c.603 §2; renumbered477.005]

477.023 Fire protection system; inte-gration with existing laws; cooperativeagreements. (1) The forestland-urban inter-face in Oregon represents a unique fire pro-tection situation that requires that uniqueand special measures be taken to ensure ad-equate public safety and protection of prop-erty, development and natural resources.Therefore, it is declared to be the publicpolicy of the State of Oregon to encourageand provide a complete and coordinatedforestland-urban interface fire protectionsystem.

(2)(a) It is recognized that forestland-urban interface areas are already subject toother laws and to regulations of other agen-cies. It is the intent of ORS 477.015 to477.061 to integrate with and not replacethose other laws and regulations.

(b) In the event of an apparent conflictbetween the obligations imposed by ORS477.015 to 477.061 and by other laws or reg-ulations for which the forester is responsibleand has jurisdiction, the forester shall re-solve the conflict within the scope of theforester’s authority.

(c) Except as provided in paragraph (d)of this subsection, the obligations imposed byORS 477.015 to 477.061 do not supersede orreplace federal law or regulation, other statelaw or rules, or more restrictive local gov-ernment ordinance or code.

(d) In the event of an apparent conflictbetween the obligations imposed by ORS477.015 to 477.061 and a more restrictive lo-cal government ordinance or code, the StateForester may enter into a cooperative agree-ment with the governing body of a localgovernment, the terms of which provide thatORS 477.015 to 477.061 supersede the local



government ordinance or code in specifiedcases.

(e) In the event of an apparent conflictbetween the obligations imposed by ORS477.015 to 477.061 and the declaration, by-laws, rules or regulations of a homeownersassociation, the State Forester may enterinto a cooperative agreement with the home-owners association that allows the declara-tion, bylaws, rules or regulations of thehomeowners association to supersede ORS477.015 to 477.061 in specified cases. Theterm of a cooperative agreement entered intounder this paragraph may not exceed fiveyears.

(f) When a real property lot includes oneor more structures that have multiple own-ers, the State Forester may enter into a co-operative agreement with one or more of theowners, or a person designated as the repre-sentative of the owners, for the purposes ofmatters related to ORS 477.015 to 477.061.The term of a cooperative agreement enteredinto under this paragraph may not exceedfive years.

(g) Compliance with the obligations im-posed by ORS 477.015 to 477.061 does not re-lieve the owner of land of the requirementsof other laws or regulations that might applyto the land in question.

(3) To encourage development of a com-plete and coordinated forestland-urban inter-face fire protection system, it is declared tobe in the public interest that the State Boardof Forestry and the State Forester take alead role in statewide coordination of theforestland-urban interface situation withother state and federal agencies, local gov-ernments and private sector interests thatare concerned with fire protection in theforestland-urban interface. [1997 c.429 §6; 2007c.30 §2]

477.024 [1953 c.372 §3; 1955 c.318 §1; 1965 c.253 §57;renumbered 477.210]

477.025 Classification of lands to re-flect different protection problems. TheLegislative Assembly recognizes that theforestland-urban interface in Oregon variesby condition, situation, fire hazard and risk,that different forestland-urban interface fireprotection problems exist across the statebecause of this variability, that these differ-ent problems necessitate varied fire pre-vention and protection practices and that, inorder to give recognition to such differencesand their effect on the accomplishment of thepublic policy stated in ORS 477.023, certainclassifications of the forestland-urban inter-face within the State of Oregon are estab-lished by ORS 477.027 to 477.057. [1997 c.429§9]

477.026 [1953 c.372 §4; 1965 c.253 §59; renumbered477.225]

477.027 Rules for classification oflands. By administrative rule, the StateBoard of Forestry shall establish criteria bywhich the forestland-urban interface shall beidentified and classified. The criteria shallrecognize differences across the state in firehazard, fire risk and structural character-istics within the forestland-urban interface.The criteria shall include not less than threenor more than five classes of forestland-urban interface. [1997 c.429 §10; 2007 c.30 §3]

477.028 [1953 c.372 §5; 1957 c.83 §6; 1959 c.363 §3;1963 c.107 §1; repealed by 1965 c.253 §153]

477.029 Local land classification com-mittee; members; officers; terms; rules.(1) Pursuant to a request by the StateForester, the governing body of a countycontaining forestland-urban interface mayestablish a county forestland-urban interfaceclassification committee of five persons, ofwhom one shall be appointed by the StateForester, one by the State Fire Marshal andthree by the governing body. Of the membersappointed by the governing body, one mustbe an owner of land within the forestland-urban interface who permanently resides onthe land. Each appointing authority shallfile with the State Forester the name of itsappointee or appointees, and the persons sonamed shall constitute the committee for thecounty. Unless otherwise provided for by theappointing authority, members of the com-mittee shall serve a term of four years andmay be reappointed to any number of terms.Each member of the committee at all timesis subject to replacement by the appointingauthority, effective upon the filing with theState Forester by that authority of writtennotice of the name of the new appointee.

(2) The committee shall elect from amongits members a chair and a secretary and mayelect other officers as it finds advisable. Thecommittee shall adopt rules governing its or-ganization and proceedings and the perform-ance of its duties, and shall keep writtenminutes of all its meetings. A quorum of thecounty forestland-urban interface classifica-tion committee for official actions is threemembers, and a quorum of a committee es-tablished pursuant to subsection (4)(a) of thissection is four members.

(3) The governing body of the county mayprovide for the committee and its employeessuch accommodations and supplies and suchcounty funds not otherwise appropriated asthe governing body finds necessary for theproper performance of the committee’s func-tions. The members of the committee shallreceive no compensation for their services,but the governing body may reimburse themfor their actual and necessary travel andother expenses incurred in the performanceof their duties. By written agreement be-



tween the State Forester and the governingbody, the State Forestry Department mayprovide the functions or be responsible forpart or all of the expenses referred to in thissubsection.

(4) In the interest of efficiency, by writ-ten agreement between the State Foresterand the governing body, if a forestland clas-sification committee is established and activewithin a county pursuant to ORS 526.305 to526.340, the members of that committee mayalso serve on the county forestland-urbaninterface classification committee establishedby subsection (1) of this section. In the eventthat this agreement is made, the StateForester and the governing body shall ensurethat either:

(a) A State Fire Marshal appointee andan owner of land within the forestland-urbaninterface who permanently resides on theland are added to the county forestland clas-sification committee to bring the total num-ber of committee members to seven; or

(b) The State Fire Marshal approves ofthe current membership of the county for-estland classification committee and thecommittee includes an owner of land withinthe forestland-urban interface who perma-nently resides on the land. [1997 c.429 §11; 2007c.30 §4]

477.030 [1953 c.372 §6; 1959 c.363 §4; 1965 c.253 §60;1965 c.312 §1; renumbered 477.230]

477.031 Duties of committee. (1) Acounty forestland-urban interface classifica-tion committee established under ORS477.029 shall periodically identify all land tobe designated as forestland-urban interfacewithin the county based on the criteria de-veloped pursuant to ORS 477.027.

(2) The committee shall assign allforestland-urban interface forestland identi-fied under subsection (1) of this section toone of the forestland-urban interface classesdeveloped pursuant to ORS 477.027.

(3) Before making final designations andclassifications under this section, the com-mittee shall adopt proposed designations andclassifications. The committee shall publishnotice of the proposed designations and clas-sifications once a week for two consecutiveweeks in a newspaper of general circulationin the county, to be posted in three publicplaces within the county, and to be mailedto the owners of land that is affected by theproposed designations and classifications.The notice shall state the time and place forhearing or receiving objections, remon-strances or suggestions as to the proposeddesignations and classifications and the placewhere maps of the proposed designations andclassifications may be inspected. [1997 c.429§§12,13; 2007 c.30 §5]

477.032 [Renumbered 477.062]

477.033 [1953 c.372 §7; 1955 c.318 §2; 1957 c.83 §7;1961 c.603 §3; 1963 c.107 §2; 1965 c.253 §69; 1965 c.312 §2;1965 c.428 §10; renumbered 477.270]


477.035 [1953 c.372 §8; 1965 c.253 §70; 1965 c.312 §3;renumbered 477.285]


477.037 [1953 c.372 §9; 1959 c.363 §5; 1961 c.603 §5;repealed by 1965 c.253 §153]


477.039 [1953 c.372 §10; 1963 c.107 §3; 1965 c.253 §71;renumbered 477.291]


477.041 [1953 c.372 §11; 1965 c.253 §61; renumbered477.235]

477.042 [Amended by 1953 c.661 §2; renumbered477.071 and then 477.067]

477.043 [1953 c.372 §§12,16; 1957 c.32 §1; 1965 c.253§64; renumbered 477.245]

477.044 [Repealed by 1953 c.372 §22]477.045 [1953 c.372 §13; 1965 c.253 §65; renumbered

477.250]477.046 [Repealed by 1953 c.372 §22]477.047 [1953 c.372 §14; 1965 c.253 §66; renumbered

477.255]477.048 [Repealed by 1953 c.372 §22]477.049 [1953 c.372 §15; 1965 c.253 §67; renumbered

477.260]477.050 [Amended by 1953 c.37 §2; renumbered

477.073]477.051 [1953 c.372 §17; 1965 c.253 §68; renumbered

477.265]

477.052 Hearings on proposed classi-fications. (1) The county forestland-urbaninterface classification committee shall holda public hearing at the time and place statedin the notice published under ORS 477.031(3), or at such other time and place to whichthe hearing may be adjourned, to receivefrom any interested persons objections, re-monstrances or suggestions relating to theproposed designations and classifications.Following the hearing the committee maymake such changes in the proposed desig-nations and classifications as it finds to beproper, hold additional hearings as it findsnecessary, and thereafter shall make finaldesignations and classifications.

(2) All final action by the committee indesignating and classifying forestland-urbaninterface shall be by formal written order,which must include a statement of findingsof fact on the basis of which the order ismade, and must include a list of all landdesignated and classified. The committeeshall prepare one or more maps showing thefinal designations and classifications made.The original of the order shall be filed withthe county clerk of the county. The orderneed not meet the requirements of ORS



205.232 to be filed and recorded. A copy ofthe order certified by the secretary of thecommittee shall be sent to the StateForester.

(3) Copies of the order, lists of land andmaps required by this section shall be main-tained in designated offices of the foresterwhere they shall be made available for publicinspection. [1997 c.429 §14; 2007 c.30 §6]

477.053 [1953 c.372 §18; 1955 c.318 §3; 1961 c.603 §6;1965 c.253 §58; renumbered 477.220]

477.054 Appeal of classification deci-sions; procedure. (1) Any owner of landdesignated and classified under ORS 477.027to 477.057 who is aggrieved by the desig-nation or classification may, within 30 daysafter the date of the order making the desig-nation and classification, appeal to the cir-cuit court for the county. Notice of an appealshall be promptly served on the secretary ofthe committee or, if the designation andclassification was made under ORS 477.057,on the State Forester.

(2) The appeal shall be tried by the cir-cuit court as an action not triable by rightto a jury. [1997 c.429 §15; 2007 c.30 §7]

477.055 [1953 c.372 §19; repealed by 1965 c.253 §153and 1965 c.428 §18]

477.056 [1965 c.253 §47 (enacted in lieu of 477.070);1967 c.429 §57; renumbered 477.120]

477.057 State Forester to classify landif county fails to act. (1) The State Forestermay designate and classify forestland-urbaninterface, consistent with and as described inORS 477.031 to 477.054, if a designation andclassification of forestland-urban interface isnot made by the county forestland-urbaninterface classification committee within acounty in which such land is situated be-cause:

(a) The governing body of the countyfails to establish a county forestland-urbaninterface committee within two years afterthe State Forester makes a request underORS 477.029 (1);

(b) The committee fails to make a desig-nation and classification within five yearsafter being appointed, or the committee failsto make a designation and classificationwithin five years of the last designation andclassification made by the committee; or

(c) The committee fails to make a desig-nation and classification in a manner con-sistent with ORS 477.031 to 477.054.

(2) Designation and classification by theState Forester has the same force and effectas though made by a committee for thatcounty. However, designations and classi-fications made by the State Forester cease tobe effective if replaced by designations andclassifications made pursuant to ORS 477.052

by the appropriate committee. [1997 c.429 §16;2007 c.30 §8]

477.058 [1965 c.253 §49 (enacted in lieu of 477.148);1967 c.429 §58; renumbered 477.130]

477.059 Obligation of landowner tocomply with standards; rules; certifica-tion by landowner; penalty for failure tocomply. (1)(a) The State Board of Forestryshall by rule establish minimum standardsfor minimizing or mitigating:

(A) Fire hazards or risks on land withina forestland-urban interface due to the pres-ence of structures or the arrangement or ac-cumulation of vegetative fuels; and

(B) Other fire hazards or risks or combi-nations of fire hazards or risks.

(b) In adopting rules under this subsec-tion, the board shall take into account thevariability of the forestland-urban interfacein different parts of the state.

(c) An owner of land within a forestland-urban interface must comply with the mini-mum standards applicable to the land.

(2)(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b)of this subsection, but no more frequentlythan once every five years, the StateForester shall provide written notice of theapplicable minimum standards establishedunder this section to each owner of landwithin a forestland-urban interface, unlessthe owner requests a copy more frequently.

(b) The board need not give notice underparagraph (a) of this subsection to an ownerof land if the owner is a member of a home-owners association by reason of owning theland and the State Forester has entered intoa cooperative agreement with the homeown-ers association pursuant to ORS 477.023(2)(e) that provides for notice to ownersthrough the association.

(3) An owner of land within a forestland-urban interface must certify in writing to theState Forester that the owner has compliedwith the applicable minimum standards es-tablished under this section not later thantwo years after the order designating theland as being within the forestland-urbaninterface is filed with the county clerk underORS 477.052 (2). If a subsequent order is filedthat changes the classification of the land,the owner of the land must make a supple-mental certification in writing to the StateForester that reflects the measures that theowner has taken to comply with the applica-ble minimum standards established underthis section for the new classification notlater than six months after the new order isfiled.

(4) The State Forester shall accept certi-fications made to the forester under subsec-tion (3) of this section. Any owner of landwhose written certification has been ac-



cepted by the State Forester under this sub-section is not liable for the costs ofsuppressing a fire under subsection (6) of thissection, unless the State Forester subse-quently determines that the owner of landhas provided a false certification.

(5) The State Board of Forestry may re-quire periodic renewal of a certification ac-cepted by the State Forester undersubsection (4) of this section, and may re-quire supplemental certifications from theowner of land that reflect the measures thatthe owner has taken to comply with the ap-plicable minimum standards established un-der this section. An owner of land isresponsible for maintaining the land de-scribed by the certification in compliancewith the applicable minimum standards es-tablished under this section.

(6) The owner of land designated to bewithin a forestland-urban interface is liableto the State Forester for the costs of sup-pressing a fire that occurs on that land, asdescribed in subsection (7) of this section, if:

(a) The owner has failed to meet the ap-plicable minimum standards established un-der this section;

(b) The fire originates on the owner’sland;

(c) The ignition or spread of the fire isdirectly related to the owner’s failure tomeet the applicable minimum standards es-tablished under this section; and

(d) The fire requires action by theforester pursuant to ORS 477.066 (2).

(7) The liability of an owner of land un-der subsection (6) of this section may notexceed $100,000. The State Forester may notseek recovery under subsection (6) of thissection for any portion of the costs of sup-pressing a fire that are the ordinary costs ofthe regular personnel and equipment of theforest protection district in which the landis located. This subsection does not limit theliability of the owner under ORS 477.120.[1997 c.429 §17; 2007 c.30 §9]

477.060 Considerations in determiningcost of protection; special or additionalcosts. (1) In determining the annual cost ofprotection pursuant to ORS 477.230, theforester may consider and include the specialor additional cost of fire protection for prop-erty owners within a forestland-urban inter-face classification, including the special orunique costs of assessment processing andadministration.

(2) The forester shall identify special oradditional costs identified by subsection (1)of this section in the budget required by ORS477.230 to 477.300. These special or addi-tional costs are in addition to the annualcost of ORS 477.230 (1) and may not exceed

$25 annually for each real property lot. Onlythose owners of land within a forestland-urban interface classification in a forest pro-tection district shall bear the special oradditional cost of fire protection within theforestland-urban interface in a manner con-sistent with rules promulgated by the StateBoard of Forestry. [1997 c.429 §18; 2001 c.361 §1;2007 c.30 §10]

477.061 Short title. ORS 477.015 to477.061 shall be known as the OregonForestland-Urban Interface Fire ProtectionAct. [1997 c.429 §2; 2007 c.30 §11]

HAZARD ABATEMENT477.062 Inadequately protected forest-

land declared nuisance; notice to protect;work at expense of owner; collection ofamount expended. (1) All forestland that byreason of its lack of adequate fire protectionendangers life, forest resources or propertyis declared to be a public nuisance.

(2) Whenever the forester learns thereof,the forester may direct the owner or opera-tor of such forestland to take proper stepsfor its protection and advise the owner oroperator of means to that end. In case of re-fusal or neglect by either to take precautionsagainst fire required by law or when so di-rected by the forester in writing, within suchtime as is specified in the writing, then theforester may have such work done as theforester considers necessary for the pro-tection of life, forest resources or property,without the necessity of court action.

(3) The cost of work under subsection (2)of this section and the expense of any patrolrendered necessary by the want of adequateprotection of such forestland shall be recov-erable from the offender by an action prose-cuted in the name of the state.

(4) All moneys collected under this sec-tion shall be paid into the State Treasury,credited to the State Forestry DepartmentAccount and expended as other moneys inthat account are expended. [Formerly 477.032;1965 c.253 §50; 1997 c.274 §2]

FIRE ABATEMENT477.064 Uncontrolled fire declared nui-

sance. Any fire on any forestland in Oregonburning uncontrolled or without proper ac-tion being taken to prevent its spread, not-withstanding its origin, is declared a publicnuisance by reason of its menace to life, for-est resources or property. The spread of firein forestland across an ownership boundaryis prima facie evidence of fire burning un-controlled. [Formerly 477.034; 1997 c.274 §3]

477.066 Duty of owner and operator toabate fire; abatement by authorities. (1)Each owner and operator of forestland on



which a fire exists or from which it mayhave spread, notwithstanding the origin orsubsequent spread thereof, shall immediatelyproceed to control and extinguish such firewhen its existence comes to the knowledgeof the owner or operator, without awaitinginstructions from the forester, and shall con-tinue until the fire is extinguished.

(2) If the forester determines the fire iseither burning uncontrolled or the owner oroperator does not then have readily and im-mediately available personnel and equipmentto control or extinguish the fire, the forester,or any forest protective association oragency under contract or agreement with theState Board of Forestry for the protection offorestland against fire, and within whoseprotection area the fire exists, shall sum-marily abate the nuisance thus constitutedby controlling and extinguishing the fire.

(3) An owner may request in writing thatthe forester employ alternate fire preventionand suppression strategies or techniques onthe owner’s forestland. The forester may em-ploy some or all of the requested strategiesor techniques when, in the judgment of theforester, conditions warrant the use of thealternate strategies or techniques. [Formerly477.036; 1961 c.603 §7; 1965 c.253 §51; 1967 c.429 §1; 1983c.22 §2; 1999 c.355 §3]

477.067 Notice of fire. For the purposeof ORS 477.066, notification to the owner oroperator of the forestland, is considered suf-ficient notification to the owner of the exist-ence of a fire. [Formerly 477.042 and then 477.071]

477.068 Liability for cost of abate-ment; interest; lien; foreclosure; attorneyfees. (1) In case an owner or operator failsto perform the duty required by ORS 477.066,or is willful, malicious or negligent in theorigin or subsequent spread of the fire, theactual cost incurred by the forester or a for-est protective association or agency in con-trolling or extinguishing the fire shall bepaid by the owner or operator within 90 daysafter the date on which the first written de-mand for payment of the actual cost ismailed by the State Forester to the owner oroperator. If the actual cost is not paid withinsuch 90-day period, such amount shall bearinterest at 10 percent per year from the dateon which the first written demand for thepayment of the actual costs was mailed bythe State Forester and the actual cost to-gether with such interest may be recoveredfrom such owner or operator by an actionprosecuted in the name of the State of Ore-gon, or such forest protective association oragency, or both.

(2) An itemized statement of the actualcost incurred by the forester or associationor agency, or both, certified to by theforester, shall be accepted as prima facie ev-

idence of the actual cost in any proceedingauthorized by this section.

(3) The actual cost in cases covered byORS 477.066 shall constitute a general lienupon the real and personal property of suchowner or operator. A written notice of thelien, containing a description of the propertyand a statement of the actual cost, shall becertified under oath by the forester or anywarden and filed in the office of the countyclerk of the county in which the lands andpersonal property are situated within 12months after the calendar year within whichthe fire originated, and may be foreclosed inthe manner provided by law for foreclosureof liens for labor and material. In any pro-ceeding to foreclose a lien created under thissubsection, recovery for the plaintiff shallinclude, in addition to the amount of the ac-tual cost, interest on such amount at therate of 10 percent per year from the date ofthe filing of the written notice of the lien.

(4) Upon request of the forester, the dis-trict attorney for the district in which thelands and personal property are situated orthe Attorney General shall prosecute suchaction or foreclose the lien in the name ofthe State of Oregon or such forest protectiveassociation or agency, or both. Liens pro-vided for in this section shall cease to existunless suit for foreclosure is institutedwithin 12 months from the date of filing un-der subsection (3) of this section.

(5) In any action under subsection (1) ofthis section to recover actual cost and in anyproceeding to foreclose any lien created bysubsection (3) of this section, the court shallaward, in addition to costs and disburse-ments, reasonable attorney fees at trial andon appeal to the prevailing party. [Formerly477.038; 1955 c.218 §1; 1959 c.363 §6; 1961 c.603 §8; 1965c.253 §53; 1965 c.428 §§11,12; 1973 c.66 §1; 1981 c.897 §54;1983 c.22 §3; 1983 c.27 §1; 1997 c.206 §1]

477.069 Negligence in origin and infailure to control fire may be united inone complaint. Notwithstanding any otherlaw, in any action authorized by ORS 477.068to collect the costs incurred, the plaintiffmay unite in the same complaint causes ofaction based upon any or all of the groundstherein mentioned. [1957 c.157 §1; 1961 c.603 §9;1965 c.253 §54]

477.070 [Formerly 477.040; 1955 c.218 §2; 1959 c.363§7; 1961 c.603 §10; 1963 c.107 §4; repealed by 1965 c.253§46 (477.056 enacted in lieu of 477.070)]

477.071 [Formerly 477.042; 1961 c.603 §11; 1965 c.253§52; renumbered 477.067]

477.072 [Repealed by 1953 c.372 §22]477.073 [Formerly 477.050; 1957 c.83 §8; repealed by

1965 c.253 §153]477.074 [Repealed by 1953 c.372 §22]477.076 [Repealed by 1953 c.372 §22]477.078 [Repealed by 1953 c.372 §22]477.080 [Repealed by 1953 c.372 §22]



477.082 [Repealed by 1953 c.372 §22]

477.085 Liability for cost of protectingland within a forest protection district.Any person who willfully or negligently setsa fire or causes a fire to be set for which ef-forts to control or extinguish the fire in or-der to protect forestland within a forestprotection district from fire are exerted bythe forester or any forest protective associ-ation or agency under contract or agreementwith the State Board of Forestry is liable forthe actual costs incurred by the forester, as-sociation or agency in such efforts. The costsshall be recovered from the person liabletherefor in the same manner as costs recov-ered under ORS 477.068. [1965 c.428 §7; 1967 c.429§2; 1997 c.274 §3a; 1999 c.355 §4]

477.089 Recovery for property damage;liability for firefighting costs. (1) As usedin this section:

(a) “Economic and property damage”means the sum of:

(A) The lesser of the difference in thefair market value of property immediatelybefore and immediately after a wildfire orthe cost of restoring property to the condi-tion the property was in immediately beforea wildfire; and

(B) Any other objectively verifiable mon-etary losses.

(b) “Fair market value” means theamount, as determined by a state certifiedappraiser, that a willing buyer would pay toa willing seller for property in an arms-length transaction if both parties were fullyinformed about all advantages and disadvan-tages of the property and neither party isacting under a compulsion to buy or sell.

(c) “Forest tree species” means a treespecies that is capable of producing logs, fi-ber or other wood materials that are suitablefor the production of lumber, sheeting, pulp,firewood or other commercial forest pro-ducts.

(d) “State certified appraiser” means anindividual who has been certified as a statecertified appraiser under ORS 674.310 and isqualified to appraise the property that is thesubject of a fair market value determination.

(e) “Wildfire” means a fire that:(A) Results from a violation of this chap-

ter or of rules adopted under ORS 526.016 or526.041; or

(B) Originated on land used or capableof being used for growing forest tree speciesregardless of the existing use of the land.

(2) Except as provided in ORS 477.092and 477.095, in a civil action for propertydamage caused by a wildfire, the recoverabledamages are:

(a) The amount of economic and propertydamages, if the wildfire did not occur as theresult of recklessness, gross negligence,willfulness or malice; or

(b) Twice the amount of economic andproperty damages, if the wildfire occurred asthe result of recklessness, gross negligence,willfulness or malice.

(3) Except as provided in ORS 477.095and subject to any other provision of thischapter limiting the recovery of fire fightingcosts, a person who causes a wildfire is liableto any person or entity for the full amountof all expenses incurred by the person or en-tity in fighting the wildfire.

(4) The remedies provided under this sec-tion are in addition to any available criminalor civil penalties that may be assessed forthe violation of a statute or rule but, subjectto Article I, section 10, of the Oregon Con-stitution, are the exclusive remedies fordamages or injury to property caused by awildfire. This subsection does not:

(a) Prohibit the bringing of any crossclaim, counterclaim or joinder of parties;

(b) Prohibit the institution of a suit un-der ORS 496.705 for the recovery of damagesfor the unlawful taking of wildlife; or

(c) Affect the applicability of ORS 31.600to an action.

(5) This section does not create a newcause of action or alter any existing causeof action. [2013 c.307 §2]

Note: 477.089 and 477.092 were added to and madea part of ORS chapter 477 by legislative action but werenot added to any smaller series therein. See Preface toOregon Revised Statutes for further explanation.

477.090 [Formerly 477.310; 1971 c.743 §384; 1987 c.919§18; repealed by 2013 c.307 §8]

477.092 Liability for destruction ofproperty by wildfire. (1) As used in thissection, “wildfire” has the meaning giventhat term in ORS 477.089.

(2) A person is not liable in a civil actionfor injury to or destruction of property aris-ing out of a wildfire, except to the extentevidence demonstrates that:

(a) An action or inaction of the personconstituted negligence or a higher degree offault; and

(b) The action or inaction caused or con-tributed to the cause of the wildfire orcaused or contributed to the spreading of thewildfire. [2013 c.307 §3]

Note: See note under 477.089.

477.095 Applicability of ORS 477.068,477.085 and 477.089. (1) An owner of forest-land shall not be subject to the provisions ofORS 477.068 and 477.089, where the origin orsubsequent spread of a fire was the directresult of training activity by the Oregon Na-



tional Guard or of any component of theArmed Forces of the United States.

(2) Notwithstanding any other law, theOregon National Guard shall be subject tothe duties, requirements or penalties of ORS477.068, 477.085 and 477.089, where the originor subsequent spread of a fire was the directresult of training activity by the Oregon Na-tional Guard. [1997 c.274 §36; 2013 c.307 §6]

477.100 Ability of owner to suppressfire; limitation. (1) The State Forester, orany agency or organization with responsibil-ity under this chapter to suppress fires, maynot prohibit an owner or the owner’s agentfrom suppressing a fire occurring on theowner’s property or that poses a threat tothe owner’s property.

(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1) of thissection, the forester, agency or organizationmay prohibit an owner or the owner’s agentfrom suppressing a fire if the owner or agentconducts the action in a manner that theforester, agency or organization reasonablydetermines is likely to increase the risk ofinjury or damage to the personnel or equip-ment of the forester, agency or organization.[2005 c.802 §4]

477.101 [1959 c.363 §19; 1965 c.253 §135; repealed by1965 c.428 §§8,18]

477.102 [Repealed by 1953 c.372 §22]477.104 [Repealed by 1953 c.372 §22]477.106 [Repealed by 1953 c.372 §22]477.108 [Repealed by 1953 c.372 §22]477.110 [Repealed by 1953 c.372 §22]477.112 [Repealed by 1953 c.372 §22]

477.120 Liability of owner or operator.(1) Except as provided in subsections (2) and(3) of this section, the owner or operator offorestland is not subject to the obligationsor penalties of ORS 164.335 and 477.740 or477.064, 477.066 and 477.068 if:

(a) Forest patrol assessments are regu-larly paid for the forestland;

(b) Such forestland is protected pursuantto membership in a forest protective associ-ation in accordance with ORS 477.210, whichassociation has undertaken the control andsuppression of fires on such land as providedin the contract; or

(c) Such forestland is protected pursuantto cooperative agreement or contract underORS 477.406.

(2) The provisions of subsection (1) ofthis section do not apply to such owner oroperator if the owner or operator:

(a) Is willful, malicious or negligent inthe origin or subsequent spread of a fire onsuch forestland;

(b) Has caused or permitted an operationto exist on such forestland and a fire origi-nates thereon as a result of the operation;

(c) Has failed to give notice to theforester pursuant to ORS 527.670 (6), hasfailed to obtain a permit for the use of firein any form or power-driven machinery pur-suant to ORS 477.625 or has failed within thetime prescribed in any order or notice issuedby the forester to reduce, abate, or offset anyhazard determined to exist pursuant to ORS477.062 or 477.580 and a fire originates on orspreads to the area on which such hazardexists and for which no release has beengranted pursuant to ORS 477.580 (3) or (4);or

(d) Has caused or allowed any burning,including burning regulated by ORS 477.013or 477.515, whether or not a permit has beenobtained and a fire results from or is causedby such burning.

(3) Unless subsection (2)(a) or (c) of thissection applies, the owner or operator shallnot be obligated to pay that portion of theactual costs provided in ORS 477.068 whichare the ordinary costs of the regular person-nel and equipment of the forest protectiondistrict wherein the forestland is located.

(4) If subsection (2)(b) or (d) of this sec-tion applies and subsection (2)(a) and (c) ofthis section do not apply, the owner or oper-ator shall not be liable to the forester for firesuppression costs in excess of $300,000.

(5) The provisions of subsections (3) and(4) of this section do not apply to the owneror operator if the owner or operator fails tomake every reasonable effort.

(6) For the purpose of subsection (2)(b)of this section, if a fire originates while anoperation is in progress, there is a presump-tion, under ORS 40.120, that the fire origi-nated as a result of the operation. [Formerly477.056; 1971 c.743 §385; 1973 c.46 §2; 1983 c.22 §4; 1989c.615 §1; 1997 c.274 §48; 2007 c.847 §2]

477.125 Liability of forest protectiveassociations, rangeland protection asso-ciations and public bodies; limitations. (1)A forest protective association, rangelandprotection association as defined in ORS477.315 or public body as defined in ORS174.109, or a person acting as an agent of aforest protective association, rangeland pro-tection association or public body, is not lia-ble for any injury to persons or propertyresulting from carrying out the provisions ofthis chapter or while acting within the scopeof a duty imposed by this chapter.

(2) The exemption from liability providedby subsection (1) of this section does not ap-ply to any injury to persons or property re-sulting from willful misconduct or grossnegligence.

(3) An employee of a forest protectiveassociation, or a person acting as an agentof a forest protective association, is an agent



of a public body acting within the scope oftheir duties for purposes of ORS 30.260 to30.300, if the person:

(a) Engages in fire fighting activities oc-curring on lands located outside of the forestprotection district in which the associationis located; and

(b) Acts under the direction and controlof the forester. [2003 c.54 §2; 2005 c.105 §1; 2007 c.808§4; 2016 c.69 §1]

477.128 Expenditures for criminal de-fense related to fire suppression activ-ities. (1) As used in this section,“firefighter” means an employee of the StateForestry Department or of a forest protectiveassociation, as defined in ORS 477.001, whoseduties include the abatement of uncontrolledfire as described in ORS 477.064.

(2) The State Forester may authorize theexpenditure of funds from the State ForestryDepartment revolving account to pay costsand reasonable attorney fees that a fire-fighter who is charged with a misdemeanoror felony incurs to defend against thatcharge if the State Forester determines that:

(a) The firefighter was performing firesuppression activities under the directionand control of the State Forester or an au-thorized representative of the State Foresterat the time of the alleged misdemeanor orfelony;

(b) The alleged actions underlying thecharge, if true, are directly related to thefirefighter’s performance of fire suppressionactivities on forestlands; and

(c) The fire suppression actions of thefirefighter were within the range of reason-able fire suppression actions.

(3) This section does not confer any righton a firefighter to hearing or appeal regard-ing determinations made by the StateForester under subsection (2) of this section.

(4) This section does not authorize theexpenditure of moneys to pay costs or attor-ney fees incurred on appeal or in seekingpost-conviction relief. [2011 c.218 §1]

Note: 477.128 was enacted into law by the Legisla-tive Assembly but was not added to or made a part ofORS chapter 477 or any series therein by legislativeaction. See Preface to Oregon Revised Statutes for fur-ther explanation.

477.130 [Formerly 477.058; 1971 c.743 §386; 1973 c.46§3; 1997 c.274 §3b; repealed by 1999 c.355 §17]

477.132 [Repealed by 1953 c.375 §38]477.133 [1953 c.375 §31; 1957 c.309 §10; 1965 c.253 §79;

renumbered 477.420]477.134 [Repealed by 1953 c.375 §38]477.135 [1953 c.375 §32; 1957 c.309 §11; 1965 c.253 §80;

renumbered 477.425]477.136 [Repealed by 1953 c.375 §38]477.142 [1963 c.454 §2; 1965 c.253 §73; renumbered

477.315]

477.144 [1963 c.454 §3; 1965 c.253 §74; renumbered477.320]

477.146 [1963 c.454 §4; 1965 c.253 §75; renumbered477.325]

477.148 [1963 c.454 §5; repealed by 1965 c.253 §48(477.058 enacted in lieu of 477.148)]

477.152 [Amended by 1953 c.68 §19; 1955 c.450 §1;1959 c.363 §8; 1961 c.603 §12; 1963 c.107 §5; repealed by1965 c.253 §153]

477.154 [Amended by 1953 c.68 §19; 1963 c.107 §6;repealed by 1965 c.253 §153]

477.156 [Amended by 1953 c.68 §19; 1965 c.253 §99;renumbered 477.535]

477.158 [Amended by 1953 c.68 §19; 1957 c.32 §2; 1959c.363 §9; 1965 c.253 §101; renumbered 477.545]




477.165 [1953 c.68 §14; 1965 c.253 §94; renumbered477.510]

NORTHWEST WILDLAND FIRE PROTECTION AGREEMENT

477.175 Definition of “all possible aid”for agreement. As used in the NorthwestWildland Fire Protection Agreement as setforth in ORS 477.200, “all possible aid”means the assistance that a member canprovide in response to a request for aidwithout materially diminishing the overallfire prevention or protection capabilities ofthe member at the time of the request andfor the duration of the response to provideassistance. [1999 c.258 §3]

Note: 477.175 to 477.200 were enacted into law bythe Legislative Assembly but were not added to or madea part of ORS chapter 477 or any series therein by leg-islative action. See Preface to Oregon Revised Statutesfor further explanation.

477.180 Ratification of amendment toagreement; withdrawal if Legislative As-sembly fails to ratify amendment. If theNorthwest Wildland Fire Protection Agree-ment is amended in accordance with ArticleIX of the agreement, the Governor shall in-voke Article X of the agreement to withdrawfrom the agreement until such time as theLegislative Assembly ratifies the amendment,or during the interim between legislativesessions, until such time as the StateForester submits the amendment to theEmergency Board for review. The StateForester shall submit any amendment re-viewed by the Emergency Board to the nextLegislative Assembly for ratification. If theLegislative Assembly does not ratify theamendment prior to adjournment sine die,the Governor shall immediately invoke Arti-



cle X of the agreement to withdraw from theagreement. [1999 c.258 §4]



477.184 [Amended by 1953 c.68 §19; 1955 c.158 §2;1965 c.253 §112; renumbered 477.650]

477.185 Use of local fire protection re-sources. The Governor shall make reason-able efforts to use local available fireprotection resources within Oregon beforecalling on forces from other members of theNorthwest Wildland Fire Protection Agree-ment. [1999 c.258 §5]


477.186 [Amended by 1953 c.68 §19; 1955 c.158 §3;1957 c.32 §3; 1965 c.253 §113; renumbered 477.655]

477.187 [1953 c.68 §8; 1955 c.158 §4; 1965 c.253 §114;renumbered 477.660]

477.188 [Amended by 1953 c.68 §19; 1955 c.158 §5;1965 c.253 §115; 1965 c.428 §§13,14; renumbered 477.665]

477.190 Authority of Governor tocarry out agreement. The Governor maytake any action necessary to carry out theNorthwest Wildland Fire Protection Agree-ment as set forth in ORS 477.200. The Gov-ernor may delegate the authority grantedunder this section or ORS 477.180 and477.185 to the State Forester. [1999 c.258 §6]


477.195 Ratification of NorthwestWildland Fire Protection Agreement. (1)The Legislative Assembly of the State of Or-egon hereby ratifies the Northwest WildlandFire Protection Agreement set forth in ORS477.200, and the provisions of such agree-ment hereby are declared to be the law ofthis state upon such agreement becoming ef-fective as provided in subsection (2) of thissection.

(2) This agreement shall become effectivewhen it has been ratified by one or more ofthe states eligible to be parties to thisagreement and has been consented to by theCongress of the United States as required bysection 10, Article I of the Constitution ofthe United States. [1999 c.258 §1]


477.200 Northwest Wildland Fire Pro-tection Agreement. The provisions of theNorthwest Wildland Fire Protection Agree-ment are as follows:

__________________________________________

ARTICLE I

The purpose of this agreement is to pro-mote effective prevention, presuppression andcontrol of forest fires in the northwestwildland region of the United States and ad-jacent areas of Canada by providing mutualaid in prevention, presuppression and controlof wildland fires and by establishing proce-dures in operating plans that will facilitatesuch aid.

ARTICLE II

(1) This agreement shall become effectivefor those members ratifying it whenever anytwo or more members, the States of Oregon,Washington, Alaska, Idaho, Montana, theYukon Territory, the Province of British Co-lumbia or the Province of Alberta have rati-fied it, and when consented to by an Act ofCongress of the United States.

(2) Any state, province or territory notlisted in this Article which is contiguous toany member may become a party to thisagreement subject to unanimous approval ofthe members.

ARTICLE III

(1) The role of the members is to deter-mine from time to time such methods, prac-tices, circumstances and conditions as maybe found for enhancing the prevention, pre-suppression and control of forest fires in thearea comprising the members’ territory, tocoordinate the plans and the work of the ap-propriate agencies of the members and tocoordinate the rendering of aid by the mem-bers to each other in fighting wildland fires.

(2) The members may develop cooperativeoperating plans for the program covered bythis agreement. Operating plans shall includedefinition of terms, fiscal procedures, person-nel contracts, resources available and stan-dards applicable to the program. Othersections may be added as necessary.

ARTICLE IV

A majority of members shall constitute aquorum for the transaction of its generalbusiness. Motions of members present shallbe carried by a simple majority, except asstated in Article II. Each member shall haveone vote on motions brought before themembers.



ARTICLE V

Whenever a member requests aid fromany other member in controlling or prevent-ing wildland fires, the member agrees, to theextent the member possibly can, to render allpossible aid.

ARTICLE VI

(1) Whenever the forces of any memberare aiding another member under this agree-ment, the employees of such members shalloperate under the direction of the officers ofthe member to whom they are rendering aidand be considered agents of the member theyare rendering aid to and, therefore, have thesame privileges and immunities as compara-ble employees of the member to whom theyare rendering aid.

(2) No member or its officers or em-ployees rendering aid within another state,territory or province pursuant to this agree-ment shall be liable on account of any actor omission on the part of such forces whileso engaged or on account of maintenance oruse of any equipment or supplies in con-nection therewith to the extent authorizedby the laws of the member receiving the as-sistance. The receiving member, to the ex-tent authorized by the laws of the state,territory or province, agrees to indemnifyand save harmless the assisting member fromany such liability.

(3) Any member rendering outside aidpursuant to this agreement shall be reim-bursed by the member receiving such aid forany loss or damage to, or expense incurredin the operation of, any equipment and forthe cost of all materials, transportation,wages, salaries and maintenance of personneland equipment incurred in connection withsuch request in accordance with the pro-visions of Article V of this agreement. Noth-ing contained herein shall prevent anyassisting member from assuming such loss,damage, expense or other cost from lendingsuch equipment or from donating such ser-vices to the receiving member withoutcharge or cost.

(4) For purposes of this agreement, per-sonnel shall be considered employees of eachsending member for the payment of compen-sation to injured employees and death bene-fits to the representatives of deceasedemployees injured or killed while renderingaid to another member pursuant to thisagreement.

(5) The members shall formulate proce-dures for claims and reimbursement underthe provisions of this Article.

ARTICLE VII

(1) When appropriations for support ofthis agreement or for the support of commonservices in executing this agreement areneeded, costs will be allocated equally amongthe members.

(2) As necessary, members shall keep ac-curate books of account, showing in full themembers’ receipts and disbursements, andthe books of account shall be open at anyreasonable time to the inspection of repre-sentatives of the members.

(3) The members may accept any and alldonations, gifts and grants of money, equip-ment, supplies, materials and services fromthe federal or any local government or anyagency thereof and from any person, firm orcorporation for any of its purposes and func-tions under this agreement and may receiveand use the same subject to the terms, con-ditions and regulations governing such do-nations, gifts and grants.

ARTICLE VIII

(1) Nothing in this agreement shall beconstrued to limit or restrict the powers ofany member to provide for the prevention,control and extinguishment of wildland firesor to prohibit the enactment or enforcementof state, territorial or provincial laws, rulesor regulations intended to aid in such pre-vention, control and extinguishment ofwildland fires in such state, territory orprovince.

(2) Nothing in this agreement shall beconstrued to affect any existing or futurecooperative agreement between members ortheir respective federal agencies.

ARTICLE IX

(1) The members may request the UnitedStates Forest Service to act as the coordi-nating agency of the Northwest WildlandFire Protection Agreement in cooperationwith the appropriate agencies of each mem-ber.

(2) The members will hold an annualmeeting to review the terms of this agree-ment and any applicable operating plans andmake necessary modifications.

(3) Amendments to this agreement can bemade by simple majority vote of the membersand will take effect immediately upon pas-sage.



ARTICLE X

This agreement shall continue in forceon each member until such member takesaction to withdraw therefrom. Such actionshall not be effective until 60 days after no-tice thereof has been sent to all other mem-bers.

ARTICLE XI

Nothing in this agreement shall obligatethe funds of any member beyond those ap-proved by appropriate legislative action.__________________________________________

[1999 c.258 §2; 2003 c.14 §313]Note: See note under 477.175.

FOREST PROTECTION DISTRICTS477.205 Definitions for ORS 477.205 to

477.281. As used in ORS 477.205 to 477.281,unless the context requires otherwise:

(1) “Grazing land” means forestland,within a forest protection district, that hasbeen classified as Class 3, agricultural class,as provided by ORS 526.305 to 526.370.

(2) “Timberland” means forestland,within a forest protection district, that hasnot been classified as Class 3, agriculturalclass, under ORS 526.305 to 526.370. [1965 c.253§56]

477.210 Duty of owner to protect for-estland; forester’s duty to provide pro-tection upon noncompliance. (1) Duringthe season of the year when there is dangerof fire, every owner of forestland shall pro-vide adequate protection against the startingor spread of fire thereon or therefrom, whichprotection shall meet with the approval ofthe State Board of Forestry.

(2) Subsection (1) of this section is con-sidered to have been complied with if, onJanuary 1 of each year, the owner:

(a) Files with the forester a bona fideforest protection plan that meets with theapproval of the board; or

(b) Is a member in good standing in aforest protective association maintaining astandard of protection approved by the board.

(3) The forester shall make periodic in-spections of the protection facilities providedin order to ascertain compliance by theowner.

(4) In case any owner of forestland shallfail or neglect to file such a fire plan ormaintain the standard of protection approvedby the board, either through compliance withthe fire plan or membership in an approved

association, then the forester under the di-rection of the board shall provide forest pro-tection pursuant to ORS 477.205 to 477.281.

(5) The forester shall provide protectionpursuant to ORS 477.205 to 477.281 for for-estland owned by the state or by a politicalsubdivision located within a forest protectiondistrict, unless adequate protection as re-quired by this section is otherwise provided.[Formerly 477.024; 2003 c.14 §314]


477.214 [Repealed by 1953 c.68 §19]477.215 [1953 c.68 §16; 1965 c.253 §105; renumbered

477.620]477.216 [Amended by 1953 c.68 §19; repealed by 1957

c.32 §4 (477.217 enacted in lieu of 477.216)]477.217 [1957 c.32 §5 (enacted in lieu of 477.216);

1959 c.363 §10; 1965 c.253 §117; renumbered 477.565]477.218 [Amended by 1953 c.68 §19; 1965 c.253 §103;

renumbered 477.605]

477.220 Lands not provided protection;lands not included within ORS 477.205 to477.281. (1) The forester is not required toprovide protection for forestland that is ei-ther a small parcel or a tract isolated froma forest protection district and which land isfound by the forester as not practicable tobe included in a forest patrol system.

(2) ORS 477.205 to 477.281 do not applyto federal grazing land or federal timberlandwithin this state for which adequate pro-tection is provided unless the lands havebeen included within the boundaries of aforest protection district pursuant to a coop-erative agreement with the federal govern-ment approved by the State Board ofForestry.

(3) Upon written request of the owner oflands that have been incorporated within arural fire protection district, the forestershall determine whether the lands, or anypart thereof, are forestland. Thereafter, thoselands that have been so determined shall beincluded within ORS 477.205 to 477.281 un-less excluded pursuant to subsection (1) ofthis section. [Formerly 477.053; 2005 c.22 §358]

477.225 Establishment and change offorest protection districts; rules. TheState Forester, by rule, shall designate areasof forestland within this state as forest pro-tection districts within which the forester isrequired to provide protection pursuant tothis chapter. In establishing new boundariesor changes in boundaries of the districts, theState Forester may, for the purposes of ad-ministrative convenience, designate moun-tain ranges, rivers, streams, roads or otherrecognizable landmarks as boundaries.Boundaries may be established or changedonly after a public hearing. [Formerly 477.026;1997 c.274 §4]



477.230 Basis for computing cost ofprotection provided by forester; costs tobe in accordance with budget. (1) The an-nual cost of protection provided by theforester for forestland within a forest pro-tection district shall be as follows:

(a) Grazing land within the district shallbe protected by the forester at a pro ratacost per acre for all grazing land within thedistrict boundary. However, forest patrol as-sessments levied and assessed under ORS477.270 against such lands that are notowned by public agencies may not exceedone-half of the pro rata cost per acre, exclu-sive of any assessment per acre under ORS477.880.

(b) Timberland within the district shallbe protected by the forester at a pro ratacost per acre for all timberland within thedistrict boundary. However, forest patrol as-sessments levied and assessed under ORS477.270 against such lands that are notowned by public agencies may not exceedone-half of the pro rata cost per acre, exclu-sive of any assessment per acre under ORS477.880.

(2) The cost of protection described inthis section shall be in accordance with abudget for the district approved by the StateBoard of Forestry. [Formerly 477.030; 1971 c.60 §1;1973 c.184 §6; 1977 c.892 §48; 1983 c.16 §1; 1985 c.759 §32a;1989 c.769 §10; 1997 c.274 §5; 2005 c.22 §359]

477.232 Costs in excess of budget;amounts not expended. Subject to the for-est patrol assessment limitations set forth inORS 477.230:

(1) Actual costs incurred by the foresterin the prevention and suppression of fire ongrazing land or timberland located within aforest protection district, in excess of theamount budgeted as required by ORS 477.230,but not including those costs eligible forequalization by the Oregon Forest Land Pro-tection Fund, shall be, without regard toproceedings for the collection of the costs:

(a) Included in the budget for the nextfiscal year; and

(b) Levied and assessed against thegrazing land or timberland in the district.

(2) Budgeted amounts not expended maybe carried forward as a credit to the assess-ment rate for the ensuing year. [2005 c.802 §6]

Note: 477.232 was added to and made a part of477.205 to 477.281 by legislative action but was notadded to any other series. See Preface to Oregon Re-vised Statutes for further explanation.

477.235 Forester to prepare tentativebudget estimates for districts. Theforester shall prepare tentative budget esti-mates for each forest protection district forthe ensuing fiscal year beginning July 1, ina manner consistent with accounting and

budgetary procedures prescribed by the StateBoard of Forestry. [Formerly 477.041; 1967 c.429§3]

477.240 Advisory and guidance com-mittees. In any forest protection districtwherein the forester has entered into a co-operative agreement or contract with a for-est protective association or agencydescribed in ORS 477.406 (1), and the associ-ation or agency has appointed an advisoryand guidance committee for the purposes ofanalysis and review of the protection plansand budgets for the district, the forestershall prepare the protection plans and bud-gets in conjunction with the committee. [1965c.253 §63]


477.244 [Amended by 1953 c.68 §19; 1961 c.123 §2;1961 c.603 §13; 1965 c.253 §119; 1965 c.428 §§15,16; renum-bered 477.575]

477.245 Owners entitled to be heard onbudget matters; public budget meetingsto be held in district. (1) All owners oflands assessed under ORS 477.205 to 477.281shall have an opportunity to be heard onmatters pertaining to the budgeting of mon-eys required to defray the cost of protectionin each forest protection district. Theforester, under the direction of the StateBoard of Forestry, shall provide for theholding of a public budget meeting in eachdistrict on or before May 1 of each year.The meeting shall be held at any convenientplace designated by the forester.

(2) In forest protection districts whereinthe board has entered into cooperativeagreements or contracts with forest protec-tive agencies, the board may make provisionfor the holding of the public budget meetingrequired in subsection (1) of this section onthe same date and at the same place as aregular meeting of the agency. [Formerly477.043]



477.250 Notice of budget meeting; no-tice of proposed assessment. (1) Not morethan four weeks preceding each budgetmeeting, the forester shall cause notice ofsuch meeting to be published once a week fortwo consecutive weeks in one or more news-papers published in or having general circu-lation in each of the counties in the forestprotection district and in such other mediaof communication as the forester finds advis-able. However, the final publication shall bemade at least one week prior to the date ofthe meeting. The notice shall state the timeand place where the tentative budget for thedistrict may be inspected and shall state thetime and place of the meeting.



(2) Whenever the forester determinesthat any privately owned land should besubject to assessment for forest protectionand such land was not subject to the assess-ment during the preceding year, the forestershall give written notice by mail of the de-termination to each owner of such land notlater than March 1 of the year the assess-ment is to be made. The notice shall informthe owner of the acreage and tax lot numberof the lands to be assessed and the name andaddress of the nearest representative of theforester the owner may contact if review ofthe proposed assessment is desired. The no-tice shall also inform the owner of the pro-cedure for hearing and appeals prescribed inORS 477.205 to 477.281. [Formerly 477.045; 1979c.276 §1; 1999 c.355 §5]

477.255 Holding of budget meeting; re-vision and submission of budget for finalapproval. (1) The public budget meetingshall be held at the time and place as statedin the published notice, or at such other timeand place to which the meeting may be ad-journed.

(2) A member of the State Board of For-estry, or the forester, shall act as chairper-son of the meeting. The forester shall causethe minutes of the meeting to be preservedas a public record.

(3) During the meeting the chairpersonshall receive from any interested personssuggestions, advice, objections or remon-strances as to the proposed budget for thatforest protection district. The forester, underthe direction of the board, may makechanges in the budget proper and consistentwith law, and thereafter submit the budgetfor final approval under ORS 477.265.[Formerly 477.047]

477.260 Appeal to board. (1) Any ownerof grazing land or timberland within theboundary of the forest protection districtwho is adversely affected by the proposedbudget may file an appeal within 30 days af-ter the date of the public budget meeting.

(2) Any owner of grazing land ortimberland subject to ORS 477.205 to 477.281shall, upon request, be granted a hearing bythe State Board of Forestry on any subjectpertaining to the activities of the forester orboard affecting the land.

(3) Appeals and hearings shall be con-ducted by the board in accordance with rulesadopted pursuant to ORS 526.016 (4).[Formerly 477.049; 1997 c.274 §6; 1999 c.355 §6]

477.265 Board to deal with budgetsannually. The State Board of Forestry shallannually review the forest protection districtbudgets, make any changes in the budgetsthat are proper and consistent with law, andpass final approval on all district budgets

and the prorated acreage rates therein.[Formerly 477.051; 1999 c.355 §7]

477.270 Budgeted cost of forester tobe lien; collection; deposit of amountscollected. (1) Subject to the forest patrol as-sessment limitations set forth in ORS477.230:

(a) The budgeted cost of the forester, asprovided for in ORS 477.205 to 477.281, inproviding protection for privately owned for-estland shall be a lien upon such property,shall be reported by the forester to the gov-erning body of the county in which the landsare situated on or after July 1 of each fiscalyear, and shall be levied and collected by thegoverning body with the next taxes on theland in the same manner and with the sameinterest, penalty and cost charges as apply toad valorem property taxes in this state. Thegoverning body shall instruct the proper of-ficer to extend the amounts on the assess-ment roll in a separate account, and theprocedure provided by law for the collectionof taxes and delinquent taxes shall apply.Upon collection thereof, the governing bodyshall repay the entire amount collected tothe forester.

(b) In lieu of the procedures under para-graph (a) of this subsection, the forester, un-der the direction of the State Board ofForestry, may make direct billing of thebudgeted cost to owners of forestland andreceive payment of the cost therefrom. In theevent that under such billing procedures anyowners fail to make payment, the unpaidbudgeted cost shall become a lien against theproperty so billed and shall be levied andcollected with the next taxes on such prop-erty as described in paragraph (a) of thissubsection.

(c) The budgeted cost of the forester inproviding protection for forestland owned bythe state or by a political subdivision shallbe paid to the forester on or before the firstday of January of the fiscal year for whichsuch protection is to be provided.

(2) Except as provided in ORS 477.230 (2),all moneys received by the forester pursuantto this section shall be paid into the StateTreasury, credited to the State Forestry De-partment Account and used exclusively forthe purposes of ORS 477.205 to 477.281.[Formerly 477.033; 1983 c.16 §2; 1999 c.355 §8]

477.272 [Repealed by 1953 c.152 §10]477.274 [Repealed by 1953 c.152 §10]477.275 [1981 c.321 §14; 1983 c.109 §1; repealed by

1989 c.769 §6]477.276 [Repealed by 1953 c.152 §10]

477.277 Additional assessment tomaintain unencumbered balance of Ore-gon Forest Land Protection Fund. (1) Inaddition to any other assessment prescribed



by ORS 477.205 to 477.281, in any fiscal yearin which the Emergency Fire Cost Commit-tee determines pursuant to ORS 477.760 thatthe unencumbered balance of the OregonForest Land Protection Fund is less than$22.5 million, a surcharge shall be levied andassessed in the amount of $47.50 for eachimproved lot or parcel, except as provided inORS 477.760, to defray the increased cost offire suppression on forestland that is causedby the existence of the improvements.

(2) All surcharge moneys collected pur-suant to this section shall be paid into theOregon Forest Land Protection Fund.

(3) If an owner of forestland files a forestprotection plan with the forester which isapproved by the State Board of Forestry un-der ORS 477.210 (2), the owner shall not berequired to pay the surcharge levied undersubsection (1) of this section.

(4) Contiguous lots included in a com-bined lot that is described in ORS 477.295(3)(a) and whose owner has made applicationto the forester under ORS 477.295 (4) areconsidered one lot for purposes of subsection(1) of this section.

(5) As used in this section, a lot or parcelis “improved” if it is indicated as improvedin the county assessor’s property classifica-tion files or if a manufactured dwelling issited on the lot or parcel. [1989 c.769 §3; 1991c.639 §2; 1993 c.430 §1; 2003 c.685 §§1,6; 2005 c.802 §7; 2007c.779 §2]

477.278 [Repealed by 1953 c.152 §10]477.280 [Repealed by 1953 c.152 §10]

477.281 Limitation on obligation oflandowner for fire protection. (1) The ob-ligation of an owner of timberland or grazingland for payment of assessments and taxesfor fire protection of forestland is limited to:

(a) The payment of moneys pursuant toORS 321.015 (2), 477.277, 477.295, 477.760 (4)and 477.880 to maintain the Oregon ForestLand Protection Fund; and

(b) The payment of forest protection dis-trict assessments pursuant to ORS 477.060and 477.205 to 477.281.

(2) As used in this section, “obligation ofan owner of timberland or grazing land forpayment of assessments and taxes for fireprotection of forestland” does not include theduties or obligations of the owner under ORS477.066, 477.068 or 477.120 or the obligationsof an owner of land included in a rural fireprotection district pursuant to ORS 478.010.[1989 c.769 §9; 1991 c.639 §3; 1997 c.206 §2; 1999 c.59 §157;2003 c.685 §§2,7; 2005 c.802 §8; 2009 c.69 §1]

477.282 [1953 c.152 §2; 1965 c.253 §116; renumbered477.670]

477.284 [1953 c.152 §3; repealed by 1965 c.253 §153]477.285 [Formerly 477.035; repealed by 1989 c.769

§6]

477.286 [1953 c.152 §4; 1965 c.253 §106; renumbered477.625]

477.288 [1953 c.152 §5; 1965 c.253 §109; renumbered477.635]

477.290 [1961 c.603 §14; 1965 c.253 §110; renumbered477.640]

477.291 [Formerly 477.039; repealed by 1999 c.355§17]

477.295 Minimum assessment underORS 477.270; combining lots; fees; rules.(1) For purposes of making the levy and as-sessment of costs against forestland underORS 477.270, the minimum cost to providefire protection or suppression for any lot orparcel of real property separately assessedfor ad valorem taxes or other taxes providedby law in lieu thereof, on the current as-sessment roll shall be not less than $18.75,except as provided in ORS 477.760. Threedollars and seventy-five cents of each mini-mum assessment shall be paid into the Ore-gon Forest Land Protection Fund. Otherwise,such assessments shall be determined underORS 477.230 and 477.270.

(2) In any fiscal year in which the Emer-gency Fire Cost Committee determines pur-suant to ORS 477.760 that the unencumberedbalance of the Oregon Forest Land Pro-tection Fund has:

(a) Increased to an amount:(A) More than $22.5 million but less than

or equal to $30 million, the minimum assess-ment referred to in subsection (1) of thissection shall be $16.88 for each lot or parcel.Of that amount, $1.88 of each minimum as-sessment shall be paid into the Oregon For-est Land Protection Fund.

(B) More than $30 million, the minimumassessment referred to in subsection (1) ofthis section shall be $15 for each lot or par-cel. This amount shall be treated in the samemanner as assessments under ORS 477.230and 477.270.

(b) Decreased to an amount that is at orbelow $22.5 million, the minimum assessmentreferred to in subsection (1) of this sectionshall be $18.75 for each lot or parcel. Thisamount shall be treated in the same manneras assessments under subsection (1) of thissection.

(3) Upon application to the forester undersubsection (4) of this section, contiguous lotsheld under identical ownership shall be con-sidered as one combined lot for purposes ofsubsection (1) of this section. However, thefollowing may not be included in a combinedlot:

(a) Except as provided in this paragraph,a lot on which a structure has been placedor improvements made for the purpose oferecting any temporary or permanent struc-ture. One lot on which a single-family dwell-



ing has been placed, and lots on which thestructures and improvements that are appur-tenant to that single-family dwelling havebeen placed, may be included in a combinedlot that does not exceed 20 acres.

(b) A lot that is in a subdivision contain-ing lots that have been or are being offeredfor sale.

(c) A lot that is not designated forest oragricultural land for the purpose of land useor special tax assessment purposes.

(4) To qualify under subsection (3) of thissection, an owner of forestland shall makeapplication to the forester no later thanApril 15 of the fiscal year preceding eachfiscal year for which the owner desires theland to be assessed under subsection (3) ofthis section. The application shall be on aform prescribed by the State Forester. A feeof $25 per combined lot shall be paid to theforester at the time of first application forthe combined lot. An additional fee of $25per combined lot shall be paid to the foresterat the time of subsequent application, if anapplication for the combined lot was notmade for the previous fiscal year.

(5) The State Board of Forestry mayadopt rules for the administration of theprovisions of subsections (3) and (4) of thissection.

(6) For the purposes of this section,“lot” and “subdivision” have the meaningsgiven those terms in ORS 92.010. [1965 c.428§6; 1969 c.204 §1; 1977 c.153 §1; 1977 c.892 §49; 1981 c.321§13; 1983 c.108 §1; 1989 c.769 §7; 1991 c.623 §1; 1991 c.639§4; 1997 c.274 §7; 1999 c.355 §9; 2003 c.685 §§3,8; 2005 c.802§§9,10; 2007 c.779 §3]

477.300 Use of funds in State ForestryDepartment Account for capital outlayexpenditures of district. (1) Moneys avail-able at any time in the State Forestry De-partment Account for the purposes of thischapter, particularly ORS 477.205 to 477.281,which moneys are not specifically obligatedfor other purposes, may be used by theforester with the approval of the State Boardof Forestry for capital outlay expenditures inany forest protection district. Prior to themaking of such capital outlay expenditures,the forester and board may specify that theaccount shall be reimbursed for all or a partof such expenditures, over a period not toexceed 10 years, from any one or a combina-tion of the following sources:

(a) Forest patrol assessments of the dis-trict involved.

(b) Moneys derived from an associationunder ORS 477.406.

(c) Moneys derived from municipal,county, state or federal agencies under thischapter, for the protection of their forestlandfrom fire.

(2) Any reimbursement of capital outlayexpenditures required by the forester andboard under subsection (1) of this sectionshall be a pro rata amount from the sourceor sources involved, based upon forestlandacreage being protected in the district forwhich the expenditures are made. [Formerly477.016]



477.305 Forester to enforce prohibitionagainst littering on forestland in dis-tricts. The forester is authorized to enforcethe provisions of ORS 164.805 insofar as suchaffects forestland within forest protectiondistricts established under this chapter. [1965c.428 §2; 1971 c.743 §387]




477.312 [Amended by 1959 c.363 §13; repealed by1965 c.253 §153]

477.314 [Repealed by 1965 c.253 §153]

RANGELAND477.315 Definitions for ORS 477.315 to

477.325. As used in ORS 477.315 to 477.325:(1) “Rangeland” means any land:(a) That is located in that part of the

state lying easterly of the summit of theCascade Mountains;

(b) That has not been classified as Class1, Class 2 or Class 3 forestland under ORS526.305 to 526.370; and

(c) That contains isolated tracts of for-estland not so classified or not within a for-est protection district, or that is primarilyrangeland, undeveloped land or undevelopedarea containing sagebrush, juniper and simi-lar growths.

(2) “Rangeland protection association”means an entity that has the purpose of pro-tecting rangeland from fire and is:

(a) Organized by owners of rangelandthat is located within a rangeland protectionsystem established under ORS 477.320 andlies wholly outside any forest protection dis-trict; or

(b) Organized with the approval of acounty governing body to be a cost-neutralpart of the emergency management programin a county having 200,000 or more acres ofrangeland that are outside any forest pro-tection district and are not protected by anassociation formed under paragraph (a) ofthis subsection. [Formerly 477.142; 2003 c.14 §315;2016 c.69 §2]



477.317 State Forester assistance torangeland protection association. (1) Theforester may enter into cooperative agree-ments or contracts with a rangeland pro-tection association under the provisions ofORS 477.320 for the purpose of providing theassistance specified in subsection (2) of thissection.

(2) The forester may assist with organiz-ing a rangeland protection association,training association members and acquiringfirefighting equipment for the association.The forester may also assist a rangelandprotection association with payment for li-ability insurance and other administrativeexpenses of the association. The insuranceand administrative expense assistance maynot exceed 50 percent of the total of budg-eted operating costs and the cash equivalentof in-kind supplies and services of the asso-ciation in any fiscal year. The costs of as-sistance specified in this subsection may notbe paid from funds assessed from forestlandowners under ORS 477.230. [2007 c.808 §2; 2016c.69 §3]

477.320 Request of rangeland ownersfor protection; hearings; determination;cooperative agreements for protection. (1)Owners of rangeland may request the StateBoard of Forestry to hold a hearing on thesubject of providing protection from fire forrangeland. Upon receipt of such request, theboard or its authorized representative shallhold one or more public hearings in order toreceive from interested persons informationrelating to the providing of such protection,and shall cause public notice of the time andplace of each hearing to be given. The boardor its authorized representatives shall keepthe records of the proceedings of such hear-ings as public records.

(2) After the hearing referred to in sub-section (1) of this section, the board shalldetermine whether the rangeland should beincluded within a protection system. If theboard determines that rangeland should beincluded in a rangeland protection system,the board, in cooperation with interestedpersons, shall establish the extent and typeof protection to be provided and direct theforester or a rangeland protection associ-ation to provide the protection. Such pro-tection shall be commensurate with thevalues and uses of the rangeland to be pro-tected.

(3) After proceedings under subsections(1) and (2) of this section, the forester or arangeland protection association shall pro-vide the type and extent of protection deter-mined under subsection (2) of this section forrangeland determined to be included withina protection system under subsection (2) ofthis section. For the purpose of providing

such protection, the forester and a rangelandprotection association may enter into coop-erative agreements or contracts with eachother or, jointly or separately, with ownersof rangeland, individuals, associations, cor-porations, road districts, rural fire protectiondistricts or agencies of the federal govern-ment. [Formerly 477.144; 1999 c.355 §10; 2007 c.808 §5;2016 c.69 §4]

477.325 Budget for rangeland pro-tection; collection of costs; disposition ofreceipts. (1) Before June 1 each year, theowners of rangeland to be protected underORS 477.320, and all rangeland protectionassociations, shall prepare in cooperationwith the State Board of Forestry or its au-thorized representative, and submit to theboard, a proposed budget for the fiscal yearbeginning on the next succeeding July 1. Thebudget shall include the proposed cost ofsuch protection. At the meeting of the boardunder ORS 477.265, the board shall reviewthe budget, make any changes therein thatare proper and consistent with law, and passfinal approval thereon.

(2) The cost of protection of rangelandunder ORS 477.320 shall be in accordancewith the budget approved under subsection(1) of this section. The cost shall be collectedpursuant to the cooperative agreement orcontract entered into between the foresterand the owners of the rangeland under ORS477.320. All moneys received by the boardpursuant to this subsection shall be paid intothe State Treasury and credited to the StateForestry Department Account and shall beused exclusively for the purposes of ORS477.315 to 477.325. [Formerly 477.146; 1999 c.355§11; 2007 c.808 §3; 2016 c.69 §5]

FIRE WARDENS477.355 Fire wardens generally. (1) The

State Forester shall appoint one or moredistrict fire wardens for each forest pro-tection district.

(2) The State Forester shall appoint suchadditional fire wardens as are needed to en-force this chapter. [1965 c.253 §86; 1997 c.274 §8]

477.360 Duties of fire warden for for-est protection district. The district firewarden, under the direction of the StateForester, has charge of the fire preventionand suppression system in the forest pro-tection district of the warden and such otherduties as are required by law and the rulesof the State Board of Forestry. Any otherwardens serving in the district are subject tothe direction of the district fire warden.[Formerly 477.008; 1999 c.355 §12]

477.365 Duties and powers of wardens.(1) Under instructions from the forester asto their exercise of state authority, all ward-ens shall:



(a) Take proper steps for the preventionand extinguishment of fires within the local-ities in which they exercise their functions.

(b) Control the use of fire for clearingland during fire season, as provided by ORS477.505 to 477.520.

(c) Make such reports of their work andconditions within their localities as may berequested by the forester.

(d) Have the power of peace officers tomake arrests or issue citations pursuant toORS 477.985 for violation of this chapter orrules or orders adopted pursuant thereto.

(e) Enter upon the lands of any owneronly in the discharge of their fire preventionand suppression duties, provided that in soentering they exercise due care to avoid do-ing damage.

(f) Investigate the causes of fires and maysecure a fire origin area, at any time, for thepurpose of preserving evidence and conduct-ing an investigation pertinent to this chapterand control, restrict or prohibit access byany unauthorized person so long as is rea-sonably necessary in the judgment of thewarden.

(g) Make a written determination, on aform prescribed by the State Forester, of thepersonnel and equipment reasonably avail-able to an owner or operator who is requiredto make every reasonable effort pursuant toORS 477.120 (5) and revise such determi-nation as frequently as is necessary in thejudgment of the warden.

(h) Make a written determination, on aform prescribed by the State Forester, of theuse of any power-driven machinery in anyoperation pursuant to ORS 477.670 and revisesuch determination as frequently as is nec-essary in the judgment of the warden.

(2) The forester, or any warden comingunder the jurisdiction of the forester, mayadminister oaths in investigations of vio-lations of this chapter and the preparationof reports thereon. [Formerly 477.012; 1971 c.743§388; 1993 c.697 §4; 1997 c.274 §9; 2003 c.14 §316]

477.370 [Formerly 477.014; 1987 c.158 §104; repealedby 1997 c.274 §55]

477.375 [1965 c.253 §91; repealed by 1997 c.274 §55]


COOPERATIVE CONTRACTS OR AGREEMENTS

477.406 Cooperative contracts oragreements for forest protection or for-est related activities; negotiation. (1) Theforester and a forest protective associationmay enter into a contract or agreement witheach other or, jointly or separately, with a

federal or state agency, political subdivision,corporation, responsible organization or re-sponsible landowner or group of landownersfor the prevention and suppression of fire onforestland or on land other than forestland,or both, to prevent and suppress fire.

(2) Contracts and agreements under sub-section (1) of this section, and all renewalsand revisions thereof, must be negotiated inaccordance with procedures specified byrules of the State Board of Forestry.

(3) The forester and a forest protectiveassociation may enter into a contract oragreement for the accomplishment of forestryrelated activities.

(4) Contracts and agreements betweenthe forester and a forest protective associ-ation under subsections (1) and (2) of thissection may include the purchase from theforester of supplies and equipment needed toprovide and support fire protection services.[1967 c.429 §24 (enacted in lieu of 477.405); 1969 c.204§2; 1993 c.415 §1; 1999 c.355 §13]

477.408 Provisions of contract oragreement. Contracts or agreements underORS 477.406 may provide, among otherthings, for any or all of the parties to do anyone or more of the following:

(1) Exchange services on a cooperativebasis.

(2) Provide services, supplies and equip-ment in return for cash payment or othercompensation.

(3) Loan or lease equipment.(4) Subcontract obligations. [1967 c.429 §26;

1993 c.415 §2]

477.409 Contracts for off-season ser-vices for fire prevention and suppressionpersonnel. (1) The Department of Transpor-tation and the Douglas Forest Protective As-sociation, the Coos Forest ProtectiveAssociation, the Walker Range Forest Pro-tective Association or any successor associ-ation may enter into contracts that providefor seasonal fire prevention and suppressionpersonnel employed by an association to ren-der off-season services to the Department ofTransportation. Services provided under acontract described in this section must beoff-season services that State Forestry De-partment personnel were authorized to per-form under one or more contracts oragreements between the Department ofTransportation and the State Forestry De-partment entered into on or before January1, 2012.

(2) A contract under this section shallspecify the functions or activities to be per-formed and by what means the functions oractivities are to be performed. The contractshall provide for:



(a) Identifying the responsibilities of theparties in ensuring payment of wages to thepersonnel for the off-season services.

(b) The term or duration of the contract.(c) The rights of the parties to terminate

the contract.(3) A contract under this section may

exclude any clause or condition required byORS 279B.220, 279B.225, 279B.230, 279B.235,279B.270 or 279C.500 to 279C.530 from thecontract.

(4) If the Department of Transportationenters into a contract under this section, thedepartment shall submit a summary of thecontract to the Oregon Department of Ad-ministrative Services within the 30-day pe-riod immediately following the effective dateof the contract. The summary must includethe following information:

(a) Names of the parties to the contract.(b) Date of the contract.(c) Subject matter of the contract.(d) The location at which a person may

obtain a copy of the contract.(5) The Department of Transportation

shall submit a summary under subsection (4)of this section to the Oregon Department ofAdministrative Services through electronicmeans. [2012 c.19 §2]

477.410 Liability of parties; responsi-bility for equipment; unemployment in-surance and workers’ compensation;sovereign immunity. (1) Unless otherwiseprovided in a contract or agreement, and ex-cept as provided in subsection (2) of thissection:

(a) A party to a contract or agreementunder ORS 477.406, who is performing ser-vices for the benefit of another party, is notliable for injury or damages to persons orproperty inflicted by the actions of suchother party.

(b) If equipment is loaned or leased pur-suant to a contract or agreement under ORS477.406, the party to have primary use of theequipment under the contract or agreementis responsible for any and all damages or lossto such equipment or for insuring the equip-ment against loss or damage in a manneracceptable to the party owning the equip-ment.

(c) If the services of personnel are in-volved pursuant to a contract or agreementunder ORS 477.406, the party to have pri-mary control over such personnel under thecontract or agreement shall provide suchunemployment insurance and workers’ com-pensation coverage as may be required bylaw.

(2) Nothing in ORS 477.406 to 477.412 orin any contract or agreement under ORS477.406 constitutes a waiver by the State ofOregon of its immunity from suit under sec-tion 24, Article IV of the Oregon Constitu-tion, in addition to any waiver otherwiseprovided by law. [1967 c.429 §27]

477.412 Disposition and use of moneysreceived by forester under contract oragreement. All money received by theforester pursuant to a contract or agreementdescribed in ORS 477.406 shall be paid intothe State Treasury, credited to the StateForestry Department Account and used pur-suant to law for the purposes of the contractor agreement. [1967 c.429 §28]

477.415 Definitions for ORS 477.440 to477.460. The definitions in ORS 321.005 applyto ORS 477.440 to 477.460. [1965 c.253 §78; 1967c.429 §35; 1981 c.321 §8]


477.425 [Formerly 477.135; 1967 c.429 §13; 1977 c.182§2; repealed by 1981 c.321 §12]

477.430 [1965 c.253 §82; 1967 c.429 §5; repealed by1981 c.321 §12]

477.440 Emergency Fire Cost Commit-tee; members; terms; vacancies. (1) TheState Board of Forestry shall appoint anEmergency Fire Cost Committee consistingof four members, who shall be forest land-owners or representatives of forest landown-ers whose forestland is being assessed forforest fire protection within a forest pro-tection district. At least one member shallbe selected from each forest region of thestate. Members shall serve at the pleasureof the board.

(2) Members of the Emergency Fire CostCommittee shall be appointed by the boardfor four-year terms. Appointments under thissubsection shall be made by the board within60 days after July 21, 1987. If there is a va-cancy for any cause, the board shall make anappointment to become immediately effectivefor the unexpired term. [Formerly 527.280; 1983c.759 §12; 1987 c.919 §19]

477.445 Distribution of fire emergencyfunds by committee. The Emergency FireCost Committee shall supervise and controlthe distribution of funds from the OregonForest Land Protection Fund established un-der ORS 477.750. [Formerly 527.282; 1967 c.429 §6;1981 c.321 §7]

477.450 Election of committee chair-person. After July 1, 1961, the EmergencyFire Cost Committee shall meet and electone of its members chairperson. The chair-person shall hold office for a period deter-mined by the committee. Whenever the officeof chairperson of the committee becomes va-cant, the committee at its next regular or



special meeting shall elect one of its mem-bers to fill the vacancy. [Formerly 527.288]

477.455 Meetings of committee; com-mittee administrator. (1) Regular meetingsof the Emergency Fire Cost Committee shallbe held quarterly prior to the day set formeetings of the State Board of Forestry, asotherwise provided by law. Special meetingsof the committee may be called by its chair-person or by three members. The act or de-cision of any three members shall be deemedthe act or decision of the committee.

(2) A staff member of the State ForestryDepartment shall be designated by the StateForester to serve as administrator for thecommittee. [Formerly 527.296; 1987 c.919 §21; 1991c.639 §9]

477.460 Duties of administrator; com-pensation and expenses. (1) The adminis-trator shall act as secretary of theEmergency Fire Cost Committee and shallcarry out the provisions of ORS 477.440 to477.460 in such manner as the committeeshall direct. The salary and other expensesof the administrator shall be paid from theOregon Forest Land Protection Fund as areother expenses of the committee.

(2) Members of the committee are enti-tled to compensation and expenses as pro-vided in ORS 292.495. [Formerly 527.292; 1969 c.314§51; 1981 c.321 §6; 1987 c.919 §22]

FIRE PREVENTION(Fire Seasons)

477.505 State Forester may declarefire season in district. (1) When conditionsof fire hazard exist in a forest protectiondistrict or any part thereof, the StateForester may designate for that district orany part thereof the date of the beginning ofa fire season for that year. The fire seasonshall continue for that district or partthereof until ended by order of the StateForester when conditions of fire hazard nolonger exist in that district or part thereof.

(2) The State Forester may, during thesame year and for the same district undercircumstances similar to those described insubsection (1) of this section, designate oneor more subsequent fire seasons. [1965 c.253§93; 1969 c.204 §3; 1997 c.274 §10]

477.510 Acts prohibited during fireseason. It is unlawful, during a fire seasoninside or within one-eighth of one mile of aforest protection district, to:

(1) Smoke while working in or travelingthrough any operation area.

(2) Use fuse and caps for blasting unlessapproval is granted by the forester. [Formerly477.165; 1997 c.274 §11]

477.512 Additional acts prohibitedduring fire season. (1) As used in this sec-tion:

(a) “Exploding target” means a device:(A) Designed for use or used as a target

for small arms ammunition or for otherprojectiles;

(B) Consisting of a flammable substanceor flammable combination of substances; and

(C) Capable of exploding when struck bysmall arms gunfire or by other projectiles.

(b) “Small arms” means a shotgun, rifle,pistol or revolver.

(c) “Tracer ammunition” means a bulletthat contains a flammable substance de-signed to ignite upon firing of the bullet andto burn with sufficient brightness to allowobservation of the bullet trajectory.

(2) A person violates this section if, dur-ing a fire season declared under ORS 477.505for a forest protection district or a part of aforest protection district:

(a) The person discharges an explodingtarget or tracer ammunition on land that isinside the district or is within one-eighth ofa mile of the district; or

(b) Tracer ammunition discharged by theperson crosses above land that is inside thedistrict or is within one-eighth of a mile ofthe district.

(3) Violation of this section is a Class Aviolation. In addition to any enforcement of-ficer specifically identified in ORS 153.005,the State Fire Marshal, the State ForestryDepartment or the State Forester may issuea citation for a violation under this section.[2013 c.223 §2; 2016 c.123 §2]

Note: 477.512 was added to and made a part ofORS chapter 477 by legislative action but was not addedto any smaller series therein. See Preface to OregonRevised Statutes for further explanation.

(Permits)477.515 Permits required for fires on

forestlands; waiver; permit conditions;cooperative agreements for permit ad-ministration; rules. (1) It is unlawful to setor cause to be set an open fire inside orwithin one-eighth of one mile of a forestprotection district, either on one’s own landor on the land of another, without first se-curing a written permit for burning from theforester and complying with the conditionsof the permit. In granting permits for burn-ing:

(a) The forester may waive the require-ment that permits be secured prior to burn-ing, except during a fire season or whenrequired under rules adopted pursuant tosubsection (4) of this section.



(b) The forester shall prescribe conditionsnecessary to be observed in setting a fire andpreventing it from spreading out of control.

(c) The forester may prescribe conditionsnecessary to be observed in maintaining airquality.

(2) Any permit obtained through willfulmisrepresentation is void.

(3) To avoid confusion or duplication ofadministration and to promote governmentefficiency, the forester may enter into a co-operative agreement with a county, a city ora rural fire protection district that:

(a) Allows the forester to administer therequirements of this section, in conjunctionwith the enforcement authority of ORS477.980 to 477.993, on lands not otherwisesubject to the requirements of this chapter;or

(b) Allows the cooperating agency to ad-minister the burning permit requirements ofORS chapter 476 or 478, as appropriate, in-cluding applicable enforcement authority, onlands otherwise subject to the requirementsof this chapter.

(4) All burning allowed under this sectionshall comply with applicable rules that maybe adopted by the State Board of Forestryand the Department of Environmental Qual-ity.

(5) The provisions of this section do notapply to campfires. [1965 c.253 §95; 1969 c.204 §204;1969 c.680 §1; 1971 c.297 §1; 1997 c.274 §12; 1999 c.355 §14]

477.520 Refusal, suspension or revoca-tion of permits. The forester may refuse,suspend or revoke a permit authorized by orissued under ORS 477.515 (1), when neces-sary in the judgment of the forester to pre-vent danger to life, health, forest resourcesor property. The forester may also refuse,suspend or revoke a permit authorized by orissued under ORS 477.515 (1), when neces-sary in the judgment of the forester, and af-ter consultation with the EnvironmentalQuality Commission to prevent air pollution,as defined in ORS 468A.005. [1965 c.253 §96; 1969c.680 §2; 1997 c.274 §13]


477.526 [1967 c.429 §15 (enacted in lieu of 477.525);repealed by 1969 c.204 §8]

477.530 [1965 c.253 §98; repealed by 1997 c.274 §55]

477.532 Regional air qualityauthority’s functions limited. None of thefunctions of the Environmental QualityCommission under ORS 477.013, 477.515 and477.520 shall be performed by any regionalair quality authority established pursuant toORS 468A.105. [1969 c.680 §5; 1997 c.274 §49]

(Restricted Uses)477.535 Forester may proclaim forest-

land subject to restricted uses; coordi-nation of state and federal landrestrictions. (1) If the forester determinesthat any forestland inside or within one-eighth of one mile of a forest protection dis-trict is particularly exposed to fire danger,by proclamation the forester may designatesuch forestland as an extra fire hazard andmay restrict the use of such forestland.

(2) The proclamation shall designate thearea to which and the period during whichthe restrictions apply, and require that thearea be subject to use only upon the condi-tion that entrants comply with all the re-strictions for the area.

(3) The proclamation shall designate thetype of closure as:

(a) Regulated closure;(b) Permit closure; or(c) Absolute closure.(4) For the purpose of consistency and

coordination between all affected agencies inthe administration of forestland restrictions,a plan shall be developed by the forester, incooperation with federal, state and localgovernmental agencies, landowners and or-ganizations affected by the restrictions. Theprimary objective of the plan is uniformityof regulations regardless of land ownership.The plan must recognize variation in firedanger and must specify levels of closure byunique but easily recognizable geographicboundaries. [Formerly 477.156; 1967 c.429 §45; 1989c.615 §3; 1997 c.274 §14]

477.540 Notice of proclamation; sus-pension or termination; reinstatement.(1) The forester shall cause a notice of theclosure proclaimed under ORS 477.535 to beposted in conspicuous locations that are inor near the designated areas. The forestershall cause a notice of each proclamation tobe published in at least one newspaper pub-lished in each forest protection district con-taining the designated areas. Each publishednotice shall describe the area, type, re-strictions and effective date of closure, andthe manner in which permits may be securedif the area is subject to a permit closure.

(2) The proclamation shall remain inforce until the time designated therein ex-pires or until the forester finds that the re-stricted use is no longer requisite and byorder suspends or terminates it. A rein-statement of a closure after a suspensiondoes not require the notices described insubsection (1) of this section. [Formerly 477.160;1967 c.429 §46; 1969 c.204 §5; 1997 c.274 §15; 1999 c.355§15]



477.545 Restricted uses during closure.(1) Regulated closures require entrants intodesignated areas to comply with the require-ments set forth in the proclamation underORS 477.535, which requirements in thejudgment of the forester are necessary toprevent danger to life, forest resources orproperty.

(2) Permit closures make the area subjectto entry only through permit issued by theforester. The permit shall contain require-ments which in the judgment of the foresterare necessary to prevent danger to life, forestresources or property. The forester may,during periods of fire hazard conditions, re-fuse, suspend, revoke or restrict such per-mits.

(3) Absolute closures restrict the areas toall forms of use and shall be designated onlyduring periods of extreme fire hazard condi-tions endangering life, forest resources orproperty. [Formerly 477.158; 1967 c.429 §47; 1969 c.204§6; 1997 c.274 §16]

477.550 Violation of restrictions; ac-cess for fire fighting permitted. (1) Exceptas provided in subsection (2) of this section,it is unlawful to enter any restricted areaexcept in compliance with ORS 477.535 and477.545, or to violate any of the requirementsor restrictions under such sections.

(2) Nothing in this section applies to anowner’s right of entry upon the land of theowner or prohibits free access to any areaby anyone for the sole purpose of preventingor extinguishing fires. [Formerly 477.162; 1967c.429 §48]

(Smoke Management)477.552 Policy. It is the policy of the

State of Oregon:(1) To improve the management of pre-

scribed burning as a forest management andprotection practice; and

(2) To minimize emissions from pre-scribed burning consistent with the air qual-ity objectives of the federal Clean Air Actand the State of Oregon Clean Air Act Im-plementation Plan developed by the Depart-ment of Environmental Quality under ORS468A.035. [1989 c.920 §2]

477.554 Program establishment; con-tent. (1) With the advice and assistance ofthe advisory committee established underORS 477.556, and subject to the review of theState Board of Forestry, the State Forestershall adopt and implement programs formeeting the objectives set forth in ORS477.013 and 477.552 to 477.562. The programsshall include:

(a) Collection, analysis and distributionof information regarding prescribed burning

and other alternative fuel management tech-niques;

(b) Assistance to landowners wanting toevaluate alternative burning and nonburningfuel management strategies and the col-lection of data regarding fuel conditions ex-isting before and after treatment;

(c) Aerial monitoring of prescribed burn-ing activity;

(d) Distribution of information to the De-partment of Environmental Quality on prog-ress toward meeting federal and state airquality standards;

(e) Establishment of a system to trackforest burning on a geographically specificbasis; and

(f) Collection, analysis and distributionof information regarding emissions fromwildfires for comparison with prescribedburning.

(2) The programs shall be administeredby the State Forestry Department. [1989 c.920§3; 1997 c.274 §50; 2007 c.213 §2]

477.556 Advisory committee; member-ship; terms; staff. (1) An advisory commit-tee shall be created by the State Forester toadvise and assist the State Forester in car-rying out the programs required by ORS477.013, 477.515 and 477.552 to 477.562. Theadvisory committee shall consist of fivemembers as set forth in subsections (2) and(3) of this section.

(2) The following three members shall beappointed by the State Forester:

(a) One member representing a nonin-dustrial forest landowner;

(b) One member representing an indus-trial forest landowner; and

(c) One member representing the public.(3) In addition to the members designated

in subsection (2) of this section, represen-tatives of the following federal agencies shallbe invited to serve as members of the advi-sory committee:

(a) A representative of the United StatesForest Service.

(b) A representative of the United StatesBureau of Land Management.

(4) Each member of the advisory commit-tee shall serve for a term of two years.

(5) Members of the advisory committeeare entitled to compensation as provided inORS 292.495.

(6) A vacancy for any cause occurringbefore the expiration of a term shall be filledfor the unexpired term by a person appointedby the State Forester.

(7) A staff member of the State ForestryDepartment shall be designated by the State



Forester to serve as secretary for the com-mittee. [1989 c.920 §4; 1997 c.274 §51]

477.558 Functions for advisory com-mittee. The advisory committee created un-der ORS 477.556 shall:

(1) Advise the State Forestry Departmentin collecting information about prescribedburning operations; and

(2) Advise the State Forestry Departmenton the collection, analysis and distributionof information required under ORS 477.554.[1989 c.920 §5; 2007 c.213 §3]

477.560 Oregon Forest Smoke Man-agement Account; moneys paid to ac-count; use. (1) The Oregon Forest SmokeManagement Account is established separateand distinct from the General Fund in theState Treasury.

(2) The following moneys shall be cred-ited to the Oregon Forest Smoke Manage-ment Account:

(a) Nonrefundable registration fees re-ceived by the State Forestry Department forClass 1 forestland under ORS 526.324 to beburned west of the summit of the CascadeMountains, not including Hood RiverCounty.

(b) Fees received by the State Foresterfor Class 1 forestland under ORS 526.324treated by a prescription burn method underORS 477.515 (1) west of the summit of theCascade Mountains, not including HoodRiver County.

(c) Fees for federal forestland includedwithin the regulated area under ORS 477.013to be treated by any prescription burnmethod subject to the provisions of the Stateof Oregon Clean Air Act ImplementationPlan and the federal Clean Air Act receivedby the State Forester.

(3) The moneys in the Oregon ForestSmoke Management Account are appropri-ated continuously for and shall be used bythe State Forester exclusively for the admin-istration of the smoke management programapproved under ORS 477.013 and 477.554.[1989 c.920 §7; 1997 c.274 §52; 2007 c.213 §4]

477.562 Registration fee; rules. (1) TheState Forestry Department shall collect anonrefundable registration fee for Class 1forestland under ORS 526.324 to be burnedwest of the summit of the Cascade Moun-tains, not including Hood River County.

(2) Any owner of Class 1 forestland underORS 526.324 and any agency managing Class1 forestland under ORS 526.324 lying withinthe regulated area as described in the planrequired under ORS 477.013 shall registerwith the State Forester, in accordance withrules adopted by the State Forester, the

number of acres to be burned prior to De-cember 31 of the same year.

(3) The State Forester shall establish byrule the amount of fees to be collected underthis section. The fees may not exceed:

(a) Fifty cents per acre for registration.(b) $5 per acre for forestland classified as

Class 1 under ORS 526.324 that has beentreated by any prescription burn method au-thorized by the issuance of a permit underORS 477.515 (1).

(4) Federal lands included within theregulated area under the provision of thesmoke management plan approved underORS 477.013 shall also be subject to the feesauthorized under subsection (3) of this sec-tion for forestland to be treated by any pre-scription burn method subject to theprovisions of the State of Oregon Clean AirAct Implementation Plan and the federalClean Air Act.

(5) The State Forester may establish aminimum fee per billing, combining the feesin subsections (1) and (3) of this section. Thecombined minimum fee may not exceed $30.

(6) In order to efficiently collect fees es-tablished by this section, the State Foresteris authorized to enter into contracts oragreements with a federal land managementagency, a person or a public body as definedin ORS 174.109. Such a contract or agree-ment may provide for payment methods suchas estimated annual payments with periodicadjustment to ensure the recovery of actualfees due, or semiannual or quarterly consol-idated billings.

(7) Notwithstanding ORS 291.238, moneyscollected under this section shall be depos-ited in the Oregon Forest Smoke Manage-ment Account established under ORS477.560. [1989 c.920 §8; 1991 c.919 §15a; 1997 c.274 §53;2007 c.213 §5]

SNAGS; SLASHING AND OTHER DEBRIS

477.565 Felling dead trees and snags;rules. (1) In an operation area on forestlandinside or within one-eighth of one mile of aforest protection district:

(a) If power-driven machinery is used atany location to load and assemble forest pro-ducts, the operator shall fell all dead treesand snags of such size and within such dis-tance of the equipment as may be requiredby rules promulgated by the State Forester.

(b) On forestland west of the summit ofthe Cascade Mountains, the operator shallfell all dead trees and snags within the oper-ation area of such size, at such times and insuch manner as may be required by rulespromulgated by the State Forester.



(2) Rules promulgated under this sectionshall prescribe such felling as reasonably isnecessary to prevent the spread of fire.[Formerly 477.217; 1967 c.429 §49; 1997 c.274 §17]

477.570 [Formerly 477.242; repealed by 1973 c.46 §8]477.575 [Formerly 477.244; 1969 c.680 §3; 1973 c.46

§4; repealed by 1987 c.154 §1]

477.580 Determination of additionalfire hazards; notice to landowner; planfor reducing hazard; release from liabil-ity. (1) Following the issuance of a permitpursuant to ORS 477.625, and after slashinghas been created in an operation area insideor within one-eighth of one mile of a forestprotection district, the forester may make adetermination if such slashing and debris ex-ists on the operation area in sufficient quan-tity and arrangement as to constitute anadditional fire hazard that endangers life,forest resources or property, and if such areais in need of additional work or protection toreduce, abate or offset the additional firehazard. Whenever practical, the forestershall make the determination referred to inthis subsection during the administration andenforcement of the Oregon Forest PracticesAct.

(2) If the forester determines that an ad-ditional fire hazard exists on the operationarea sufficient to endanger life, forest re-sources or property, and that such area is inneed of additional work or protection to re-duce, abate or offset the additional fire haz-ard, the forester shall so notify thelandowner and operator or their represen-tatives in writing of such determination.Pursuant to rules promulgated by the StateForester, the notice to the landowner or op-erator shall contain provisions for offsettingthe additional fire hazard by burning, im-provements, extra protection or other means.The notice shall also specify a reasonabletime for completion of the provisions con-tained therein.

(3) When the forester finds that the pro-visions set forth in subsection (2) of thissection have been complied with or that theadditional hazard has been, in the opinion ofthe forester, sufficiently reduced by othermeans to offset the hazard, the forester shallimmediately issue to the operator or land-owner a release from all obligations imposedby ORS 477.120 (2)(c).

(4) If the forester determines that an ad-ditional fire hazard exists, the forester shall,at the request of the owner or operator, withthe approval of the owner, grant a releaseupon payment by the owner or operator ofsuch sum of money as the forester finds nec-essary to provide additional protection ormeans necessary to reduce or offset the ad-ditional hazard created by such slashing and

other debris. In no event may this sum ex-ceed the least of:

(a) $6 for each 1,000 board feet of timberharvested in an operation;

(b) The forester’s estimated cost of re-ducing or providing other means to offset theadditional hazard; or

(c) $10 for each acre in a stand improve-ment operation where no timber is harvested.

(5) Moneys received under subsection (4)of this section shall be placed in the StateTreasury, credited to the State Forestry De-partment Account and used exclusively forthe purposes of forest protection within thedistrict.

(6) Any owner of forestland may makewritten request to the forester to assume allobligations for the disposal or reduction ofany additional fire hazard determined to ex-ist thereon. If the forester then determinesthat the owner can comply with such obli-gation, the forester shall immediately issueto all other persons involved a written re-lease of such obligations.

(7) Any order or determination made bythe forester pursuant to this section is finalunless modified or vacated in an appeal tothe State Board of Forestry taken within 30days after issuance of the order. [1965 c.253§121; 1965 c.428 §16; 1967 c.429 §54; 1973 c.46 §5; 1975 c.74§1; 1979 c.222 §1; 1997 c.274 §18; 2003 c.14 §317; 2017 c.17§44]

477.585 [1967 c.429 §56; repealed by 1973 c.46 §8]

MACHINERY REGULATIONS(Enjoining Violations)

477.605 Enjoining violations of ORS477.615 and 477.645 to 477.655. Any personviolating any provisions of ORS 477.615 and477.645 to 477.655 may be enjoined in an ap-propriate judicial proceeding from the fur-ther use of such equipment until the personcomplies with these sections. [Formerly 477.218;1997 c.274 §19]

477.610 Standardization of fire-fightingequipment used to protect forestland;rules. (1) Notwithstanding any other law,the State Forester, in cooperation with otherforest protection associations and agencies,shall carry on a continuous program for thestandardization of equipment used for theprotection of forestland from fire, and mayissue rules, with the approval of the StateBoard of Forestry, for such standardizationwhere it is the finding of the forester andboard that such standardization is econom-ically feasible.

(2) The provisions of ORS 476.410 to476.440 shall not apply to equipment used forthe protection of forestland from fire. [1965c.76 §§2,3; 1999 c.355 §16]



(General Regulations)477.615 Additional water supply and

equipment; rules. (1) During a fire seasoninside or within one-eighth of one mile of aforest protection district, when, in the judg-ment of the forester, an operation is of suffi-cient size or so planned and operated as tojustify additional protection from fire, theowner or operator, when so directed by theforester in writing, shall provide, within suchtime as is specified in the writing, additionalwater supply and equipment for use in firesuppression that is in conformity with rulespromulgated by the State Forester.

(2) All such equipment shall be kept inconstant readiness for instant use in fightingforest fires. However, nothing in this sectionprohibits the use of the equipment by theoperator for sprinkling roads or other useswithin the operation area.

(3) Rules promulgated under this sectionshall prescribe such water supply and equip-ment as reasonably are necessary to provideimmediate and effective suppression of fireson forestland and may provide for the use ofalternate methods and equipment. [Formerly477.212; 1967 c.429 §17; 1995 c.605 §2; 1997 c.274 §20]


477.625 Permit to use fire or power-driven machinery; exception; conditions;waiver of permit. (1) Every person con-ducting an operation inside or within one-eighth of one mile of a forest protectiondistrict that uses fire in any form or power-driven machinery shall first obtain from theforester a written permit, which shall requirethat the holder of the permit:

(a) Take reasonable precautions that inthe judgment of the forester are necessary inthe use of fire and power-driven machineryto prevent the spread of fire on or from anoperation area.

(b) Designate a representative authorizedto act on all matters having to do with firecontrol, which representatives shall be avail-able at all times by direct means of commu-nication with the forester.

(c) If operating west of the summit of theCascade Mountains, close down any part orall of the operation during any period of timewhen notified that, in the judgment of theforester, conditions exist as described in ORS477.670.

(2) Routine road maintenance is exceptedfrom the requirement to obtain a permit tooperate power-driven machinery under thissection. As used in this subsection “routineroad maintenance” means grading, cleaningditches, culvert cleaning, spot rocking ormechanical brushing along the roadside tomaintain visibility.

(3)(a) The forester may waive the re-quirement to obtain a written permit underthis section when in the judgment of theforester the operation will not constitute afire hazard sufficient to justify the require-ment.

(b) Waiver of the requirement to obtaina written permit under this section does notrelieve the owner and operator of the re-sponsibility for complying with other appli-cable duties, requirements or penalties ofthis chapter. [Formerly 477.286; 1991 c.634 §1; 1997c.274 §21]

477.627 [1975 c.185 §3; repealed by 1975 c.185 §6]

477.630 Information in permit. (1) Eachpermit issued under ORS 477.625 shall in-clude:

(a) The legal description of the area uponwhich any operation is to be conducted, oran alternate description of the area permit-ted by the forester;

(b) The name and address of the operatorand owner; and

(c) Any other information considered bythe forester to be necessary for the adminis-tration of the rules promulgated under thischapter.

(2) The information required in subsec-tion (1) of this section shall be provided bythe operator or owner, prior to issuance ofthe permit by the forester. [1965 c.253 §108; 1975c.185 §1; 1997 c.274 §22]

477.635 Authority to issue, refuse,suspend or revoke permit. The forestermay issue the permits required in ORS477.625 and suspend or revoke such permitsbecause of violation of the terms thereof ornoncompliance with this chapter. Theforester shall refuse to issue a permit to anyperson for the conduct of an operation when,in the judgment of the forester, an excessiveamount of forest debris in and around theoperation area results in an extreme firehazard that endangers life, forest resourcesor property. [Formerly 477.288; 1997 c.274 §23]

(Fire Season Regulations)477.640 Use and refueling of power

saws. During a fire season, every person us-ing, operating or fueling a saw powered byan internal combustion engine inside orwithin one-eighth of one mile of a forestprotection district shall comply with therules of the State Forester relating thereto,promulgated for the prevention and sup-pression of fire. [Formerly 477.290; 1997 c.274 §24]

477.645 Internal combustion engines;rules. (1) During a fire season every personoperating an internal combustion engine in-side or within one-eighth of one mile of aforest protection district shall equip and



maintain the engine in conformity with rulespromulgated by the State Forester. Theserules shall prescribe such equipment as rea-sonably is necessary to prevent the escapeof fire from such an engine.

(2) Escape of fire from any engine de-scribed in this section is prima facie evi-dence that it has not been equipped andmaintained adequately in compliance withrules promulgated under this section.[Formerly 477.182; 1967 c.429 §18; 1997 c.274 §25]

477.650 Stationary internal com-bustion engines; rules; waiver. (1) Duringa fire season every person operating a sta-tionary internal combustion engine inside orwithin one-eighth of one mile of a forestprotection district shall provide at each en-gine on an operation area a water supply,and equipment for its use in fire suppression,in conformity with rules promulgated by theState Forester. These rules shall prescribesuch water supply and equipment as reason-ably are necessary to prevent the spread offire and may provide for the use of alternatemethods and equipment.

(2) When a person has equipped one en-gine as required by subsection (1) of thissection, any additional engines operated bythe person within 150 feet of the equippedengine shall be exempt from the require-ments of subsection (1) of this section.

(3) For the purposes of this section, aninternal combustion engine shall be consid-ered stationary if it is operated for a periodof more than two days exclusively at one lo-cation in an operation area.

(4) The forester in writing may waive anyrequirement of this section when an opera-tion will not constitute a fire hazard suffi-cient to justify the requirement. [Formerly477.184; 1967 c.429 §19; 1997 c.274 §26]

477.655 Fire-fighting tools and equip-ment at operation area and on trucks;rules. During a fire season inside or withinone-eighth of one mile of a forest protectiondistrict:

(1) Every person conducting an operationshall provide and maintain, at the operationarea or at a location designated by theforester, fire-fighting tools that are in con-formity with rules promulgated by the StateForester. The tools shall be used only forfighting fire and for no other purpose.

(2) Each internal combustion engine usedin an operation area shall be equipped withfire-fighting tools and equipment that are inconformity with rules promulgated by theState Forester.

(3) All trucks driven over roads throughforestland, excepting county roads and statehighways, shall be equipped with fire-fightingtools and equipment that are in conformity

with rules promulgated by the StateForester.

(4) For purposes of this section, the rulespromulgated by the State Forester:

(a) Shall prescribe such type and numberof tools and equipment for extinguishing firesas reasonably are necessary to suppress fires,and the manner of storing such tools whennot in use.

(b) May provide for the use of alternatemethods, tools and equipment.

(5) The tools and equipment prescribedby these rules shall be kept in constant re-pair and readiness for instant use. [Formerly477.186; 1967 c.429 §20; 1997 c.274 §27]

477.660 Additional protection facilitiesor services at operation area. During afire season when in the judgment of theforester any operation inside or within one-eighth of one mile of a forest protection dis-trict has a fire hazard requiring additionalprotection, the operator shall provide suchother facilities or services as the forester bywritten notice may direct. [Formerly 477.187; 1967c.429 §21; 1997 c.274 §28]

477.665 Fire watch service; rules;waiver. (1) During a fire season inside orwithin one-eighth of one mile of a forestprotection district, every operator usingpower-driven machinery in an operation areashall provide fire watch service on the oper-ation area. The fire watch service shall con-sist of not less than one competent person,who shall be constantly on duty at timesprescribed by rules promulgated by the StateForester. These rules shall require fire watchservice at such times and at such places asthe spread of fire on or from the operationarea to forestland reasonably may be ex-pected.

(2) The forester may modify or waive, inwriting, any requirement of this section asto any operation whenever the fire hazard isnot sufficient to justify the requirement.[Formerly 477.188; 1967 c.429 §22; 1969 c.204 §7; 1997 c.274§29; 1999 c.59 §158]

477.670 When use of fire or power-driven machinery prohibited. During a fireseason inside or within one-eighth of onemile of a forest protection district situatedwest of the summit of the Cascade Moun-tains, if the forestland in such district, orany part thereof, is susceptible in the judg-ment of the forester to damage by fire, theforester shall issue notice to that effect.Thereafter the use of fire in any form by anyperson in any operation area or the use ofpower-driven machinery for any operation, isunlawful unless approved by the forester.Approval shall be granted only when in thejudgment of the forester the activity will notconstitute a fire hazard sufficient to justify



the requirement. [Formerly 477.282; 1993 c.415 §3;1997 c.274 §30]



MISCELLANEOUS477.695 Removal of flammable mate-

rial from railroad rights of way. (1) Everyperson operating a railroad of any kind inthis state inside or within one-eighth of onemile of a forest protection district shall an-nually or more often, if so ordered in writingby the forester, in a manner and to an extentordered by the forester, destroy or remove allflammable growth and flammable materialfrom the right of way of the railroad. Allburning done to comply with this sectionmust be in accordance with ORS 477.505 to477.520 and 477.625.

(2) The forester shall allow a reasonableperiod of time for compliance with this order.[1965 c.253 §125; 1971 c.562 §1; 1997 c.274 §31]


477.710 Starting of campfire or otheropen fire restricted; exceptions. It is un-lawful for any person to start a campfire orother open fire without first clearing thearea immediately around and above it of ma-terial that will carry fire, or leave a campfireor other open fire unattended, or permit acampfire or other open fire to spread. Thissection does not apply to any activity con-ducted in compliance with ORS 477.365,477.515, 477.625, 478.960, 526.041, 526.360 or527.670. [Formerly 477.304; 1967 c.429 §50; 1993 c.430§2; 1997 c.274 §32]

477.715 [1965 c.253 §129; repealed by 1971 c.743 §432]

477.720 Accidentally setting fire toforestland; failure to prevent spread. (1)It is unlawful, having accidentally set fire toany forestland, or any place from which firemay be communicated to forestland, to failto extinguish the fire or use every possibleeffort so to do.

(2) It is unlawful, having built a fire onor near forestland, through carelessness orneglect to permit the fire to spread to orthrough the forestland. [1965 c.253 §130]


477.735 [Formerly 477.308; 1971 c.743 §389; repealedby 1987 c.905 §37]

477.740 Unlawful use of fire. A personcommits the offense of unlawful use of fireif the person:

(1) In the ignition of a fire:(a) Unlawfully sets on fire, or causes to

be set on fire, any grass, grain, stubble or

other material being or growing on any landswithin the state;

(b) Intentionally or negligently allowsfire to escape from the person’s own land, orland of which the person is in possession orcontrol; or

(c) Accidentally sets any fire on theperson’s own land or the land of another andallows it to escape from control without ex-tinguishing it, or making a bona fide effortto do so.

(2) Having knowledge of a fire burningon the person’s own land, or land of whichthe person is in possession or control, failsor neglects to make a bona fide effort to ex-tinguish the same, regardless of whether ornot the person is responsible for the startingor existence thereof. [1971 c.743 §307; 1993 c.697§7; 1997 c.274 §33]

477.745 Liability of parents for costsof suppressing fire caused by minor child.(1) In addition to any other remedy providedby law, the parent or parents of anunemancipated minor child shall be liable forcosts incurred by the forester in suppressingfires on forestland caused by such minorchild. However, a parent who is not entitledto legal custody of the minor child at thetime of the fire shall not be liable for suchdamages.

(2) The legal obligation of the parent orparents of an unemancipated minor child topay damages under this section shall be lim-ited to not more than $5,000 payable to theforester for one or more acts.

(3) When an action is brought under thissection on parental responsibility for acts oftheir children, the parents shall be named asdefendants therein and, in addition, the mi-nor child shall be named as a defendant. Thefiling of an answer by the parents shall re-move any requirement that a guardian adlitem be required.

(4) Nothing in subsections (1) to (3) ofthis section applies to:

(a) Foster parents.(b) Parents who have filed a petition for

the unemancipated minor child under ORS419B.809. [1995 c.605 §6; 2001 c.622 §52]

477.747 Policies and plans for restora-tion of burned forestland. The State For-estry Department, the State Parks andRecreation Department, the State Depart-ment of Fish and Wildlife, the Departmentof State Lands and any other state agencywith oversight responsibilities for state for-estlands shall promote the effective use ofstate resources by adopting and implement-ing policies and management plans to beginefforts to restore and recover forestlandsburned by fire so that social, economic and



environmental values are not lost due to de-lay. These agencies shall coordinate, to theextent needed, to promote the efficient useof state resources in developing their firerestoration and recovery policies and plans.The Oregon Department of AdministrativeServices may assist state agencies under thissection in developing contract and otherprocedures to expedite restoration and re-covery efforts. The Oregon Department ofAdministrative Services shall provide appro-priate contracting assistance and exceptionsas may be necessary to expedite restorationand recovery efforts. [2003 c.456 §1]

Note: 477.747 was enacted into law by the Legisla-tive Assembly but was not added to or made a part ofORS chapter 477 or any series therein by legislativeaction. See Preface to Oregon Revised Statutes for fur-ther explanation.

OREGON FOREST LAND PROTECTION FUND

477.750 Oregon Forest Land Pro-tection Fund; source; use. (1) The OregonForest Land Protection Fund is created, sep-arate and distinct from the General Fund.This fund shall be held by the State Treas-urer as a trust fund for the uses and pur-poses provided in ORS 477.750 to 477.775 and477.880. The State Treasurer shall depositand invest moneys in the fund as providedby law, taking into account its uses andpurposes. Interest earned by the fund shallbe credited to the fund.

(2) Notwithstanding any other law andas limited by ORS 477.750 to 477.775 and477.880, that part of the suspense accountcreated by ORS 321.145 that is derived fromthe tax levied by ORS 321.015 (2) after re-funds and other costs permitted by law, shallbe credited to the Oregon Forest Land Pro-tection Fund. [1969 c.524 §2; 1983 c.16 §3; 1985 c.759§33; 1989 c.769 §12; 1989 c.966 §57]

477.755 Appropriation of fund; limita-tion on expenditures. (1) As used in thissection, “annual expenditure” means the ex-penses of the Oregon Forest Land ProtectionFund obligated in any 12-month period desig-nated by the Emergency Fire Cost Commit-tee by rule, corresponding to the policyperiod of any insurance for emergency firecosts.

(2) Notwithstanding ORS 291.238, themoneys in the Oregon Forest Land Pro-tection Fund are continuously appropriatedto the Emergency Fire Cost Committee forthe purposes of:

(a) Equalizing emergency fire suppressioncosts for safeguarding forestland in any for-est protection district;

(b) Paying necessary administrative ex-penses, not to exceed the limit authorized bythe Legislative Assembly each biennium;

(c) Contributing to the payment of emer-gency fire suppression costs insurance pre-miums, subject to the payment limitationestablished in ORS 477.775 (4);

(d) Paying costs related to the availabil-ity and mobilization of emergency fire sup-pression resources on a statewide basis; and

(e) Paying for nonroutine purchases ofsupplemental fire prevention, detection orsuppression resources that will enhance theability of the forester to perform fire pro-tection responsibilities within a forest pro-tection district.

(3) Notwithstanding any other provisionof law, the annual expenditure from the Or-egon Forest Land Protection Fund from re-venues received from ORS 321.015 (2),477.277 (1), 477.295 (1) and (2), 477.750 (1) and(2), 477.760 (4) and 477.880 may not exceedthe lesser of:

(a) $13.5 million; or(b) The sum of:(A) The lesser of $10 million or 50 per-

cent of the eligible annual fire suppressioncosts determined by the committee;

(B) Necessary administrative expenses asdetermined by the committee and authorizedunder the limit described in subsection (2)(b)of this section;

(C) Contributions to the payment ofemergency fire suppression costs insurancepremiums, subject to the payment limitationestablished in ORS 477.775 (4);

(D) The lesser of $3 million or three-fifthsof the actual cost of activities described inORS 477.777 (1)(b) and (c); and

(E) Any amounts expended for nonrou-tine purchases described in subsection (2)(e)of this section. [1969 c.524 §3; 1989 c.23 §1; 1991 c.639§5; 2003 c.685 §§4,9; 2005 c.802 §§11,12; 2013 c.619 §§1,2,3]

477.760 Reserve base of fund fixed;annual determination of excess overbase; tax levies and assessments tomaintain base. (1) The reserve base of theOregon Forest Land Protection Fund is $22.5million. On or about the last day of Februaryof each year the Emergency Fire Cost Com-mittee shall meet and determine the unen-cumbered balance of the fund as of thepreceding February 16.

(2) In order to maintain the reserve baseof the fund at $22.5 million, the EmergencyFire Cost Committee may request and theState Treasurer may approve transfers to thefund in accordance with ORS 293.205 to293.225, if the moneys in this fund fall belowthe reserve base, whether or not there aresufficient moneys in the fund to pay the ob-ligations of the fund. Repayment of any suchtransfers shall be made from moneys paidinto the fund pursuant to ORS 321.015 (2),



477.277 and 477.880 and from such othermoneys as may be credited to the fundtherefor.

(3) If the committee determines that themoneys in the fund exceed:

(a) The reserve base, and that no repay-ment obligations are outstanding from trans-fers made pursuant to subsection (2) of thissection, then the Department of Revenueshall reduce the taxes described in ORS321.015 (2) by 50 percent for the followingcalendar year and the surcharge for eachimproved lot or parcel described in ORS477.277 and the assessments described inORS 477.880 shall be reduced by 50 percentfor the following fiscal year.

(b) $30 million, and that no repaymentobligations are outstanding from transfersmade pursuant to subsection (2) of this sec-tion, then the Department of Revenue maynot collect the taxes described in ORS321.015 (2) for the following calendar yearand the surcharge for each improved lot orparcel described in ORS 477.277 and the as-sessments described in ORS 477.880 may notbe collected until the calendar year or fiscalyear following the determination of the com-mittee that the unencumbered balance in thefund is less than or equal to $22.5 million.

(4)(a) Notwithstanding any other pro-vision of law, if the funds referred to in sub-section (2) of this section are inadequate tocover repayment of transfers from the StateTreasurer or from other sources, the StateForester shall increase the following taxes,assessments and charges in an amount ade-quate to ensure repayment of the transfers,and any interest accrued thereon, allowingfor contingencies in valuation, assessmentand collection:

(A) The harvest tax referred to in ORS321.015 (2).

(B) The surcharge on developed lots re-ferred to in ORS 477.277.

(C) The minimum assessment referred toin ORS 477.295.

(D) The acreage assessments referred toin ORS 477.880 (2).

(b) The increases to taxes, assessmentsand charges shall be apportioned based uponthe proportionate levels of revenues receivedfrom each source by the Oregon Forest LandProtection Fund. Any such increases shall becomputed on or before January 1 of eachyear, and shall be based upon revenues re-ceived during the previous four quarters.Any such increases shall be made in the ap-propriate calendar or fiscal year followingthat in which the requested transfers fromthe State Treasurer or from other sourcesare made. [1969 c.524 §4; 1985 c.158 §1; 1985 c.759 §34;

1989 c.769 §4; 1991 c.639 §6; 1993 c.653 §21; 2003 c.685§§5,10; 2005 c.802 §§13,14]

477.765 [1969 c.524 §5; repealed by 1985 c.759 §40]

477.770 Rules relating to use of fund.The Emergency Fire Cost Committee shallpromulgate rules relating to the dispositionof moneys from the Oregon Forest LandProtection Fund. Under such rules thecommittee may require that prior to thepayment of moneys from the fund the forestprotection district expend an amount foremergency fire suppression not to exceed aper acre amount determined to be 10 percentof the total budgeted amount of all districtsas set forth in ORS 477.220 to 477.415 dividedby the total protected acres of all districts.However, any such amount per acre shallapply uniformly to each forest protectiondistrict. [1969 c.524 §6; 1977 c.182 §3; 1981 c.321 §5;2007 c.847 §3]

477.775 Emergency fire suppressioncosts insurance; considerations; paymentof premium from fund. (1) Prior to Febru-ary 1 of each year, the Emergency Fire CostCommittee and the forester shall consult re-garding the purchase of emergency fire sup-pression costs insurance and the level ofcoverage to purchase for the fire season ofthat year.

(2) In determining whether the purchaseof insurance is advisable, the forester andthe committee shall consider:

(a) The cost, coverage and deductible ofinsurance available from private insurancecarriers;

(b) The funding available for fire sup-pression from the Oregon Forest Land Pro-tection Fund and other sources;

(c) The current condition of forests;(d) Long-term weather predictions;(e) Available fire fighting resources; and(f) Available funds for the purchase of

insurance.(3) If the committee and the forester

agree to purchase insurance, the forestershall purchase insurance through the OregonDepartment of Administrative Services tocover any lawful expense incurred by theState Forestry Department, or contractors orcooperators, that is payable by the OregonForest Land Protection Fund. The insurancemay be obtained through negotiation orcompetitive bids, whichever is in the bestinterest of the state, its contractors andcooperators.

(4) The Oregon Forest Land ProtectionFund may not be charged for payment ofmore than one-half of any premium for theinsurance. [1969 c.524 §10; 1985 c.158 §2; 1989 c.91 §1;1989 c.769 §11; 1991 c.639 §7; 2005 c.802 §15]



477.777 Agency request budget; ex-penditures; report. (1) As part of the prep-aration of the agency request budgetsubmitted to the Oregon Department of Ad-ministrative Services pursuant to ORS291.208 for the State Forestry Department,the State Forester shall prepare, in additionto any amounts budgeted for forest pro-tection districts pursuant to ORS 477.205 to477.281, a request for a General Fund appro-priation for the following purposes:

(a) Providing funds for the purchase ofemergency fire suppression costs insuranceunder ORS 477.775.

(b) Acquiring and placing centrally man-aged fire suppression resources for statewideuse.

(c) Acquiring fast-mobilizing, short-termcontingency resources to be used based onpredictions of severe fire weather, wide-spread lightning events or serious resourceshortage due to a heavy fire season in thisstate, in the western region of the UnitedStates or nationally.

(d) Enhancing forest protection districtresources in cases where land productivityor other economic factors seriously limit theability of the forester to perform fire pro-tection responsibilities.

(e) Mitigating forest patrol assessmentrates in cases where land productivity orother economic factors seriously limit theability of the owners of forestlands in theforest protection district to comply with ORS477.210 (1).

(2) The State Forester shall utilize crit-ical discretion in the expenditure of thefunds provided to the State Forestry Depart-ment pursuant to the separate request re-quired under subsection (1) of this section.

(3) The State Forester shall report to theEmergency Board, each year, after the closeof the fire season, on:

(a) The nature and severity of the fireseason;

(b) The moneys expended on fire sup-pression;

(c) The balance remaining from the bien-nial appropriation; and

(d) Any matters arising out of the fireseason that may require attention or warrantfuture consideration by the board or theLegislative Assembly.

(4) When reporting the nature and sever-ity of the fire season under subsection (3) ofthis section, for each fire consuming 1,000 ormore acres, the State Forester shall provideinformation regarding the resulting losses onprivate lands of timber, buildings, fencingand livestock and of grazing land capacity ifthe land is expected to be unavailable for

two or more grazing seasons. [2005 c.802 §2; 2013c.619 §4; 2015 c.517 §1; 2016 c.117 §72]

477.780 [1969 c.524 §14; repealed by 1985 c.759 §40]477.805 [1967 c.429 §37; repealed by 1985 c.759 §40]477.810 [1961 c.689 §2; 1965 c.253 §145; repealed by

1967 c.429 §61]477.820 [1961 c.689 §3; 1967 c.429 §39; repealed by

1985 c.759 §40]477.830 [1961 c.689 §§4,5(3); 1969 c.524 §11; 1977 c.182

§4; 1981 c.321 §2; repealed by 1985 c.759 §40]477.840 [1961 c.689 §5(1),(2); repealed by 1969 c.524

§15]477.850 [1961 c.689 §6; repealed by 1985 c.759 §40]

ASSESSMENT FOR FIRESUPPRESSION COSTS

477.880 Acreage assessment; east sideforestlands; certain forestlands west ofCascade Mountains; rate. (1) An assess-ment for the cost of fire protection and sup-pression is levied upon the owners of allforestland that has been classified underORS 526.305 to 526.370 and that is protectedfrom the start or spread of fire thereon ortherefrom by:

(a) The forester under ORS 477.210 (4),with the approval of the State Board of For-estry;

(b) The United States of America throughcontract or agreement with the forester orboard;

(c) Any forest protective agency undercontract or agreement with the forester orboard pursuant to ORS 477.406; or

(d) Any forest protective agency, de-scribed in paragraph (c) of this subsection,under a contract or agreement with theUnited States of America wherein suchagency agrees to protect specific federal for-estlands, and in return, the United States ofAmerica agrees to protect specific lands ofsuch agency.

(2) Except as otherwise provided in ORS477.760, for each fiscal year the assessmentlevied per acre of ownership of forestlanddesignated in subsection (1) of this sectionshall be:

(a) Seven and one-half cents for all for-estlands east of the summit of the CascadeMountains and all forestlands which havebeen classified Class 3, agricultural class,under ORS 526.305 to 526.370; or

(b) Five cents for all forestlands not de-scribed in paragraph (a) of this subsection.[1969 c.524 §§7,8; 1981 c.321 §3; 1985 c.759 §35; 1989 c.769§5; 1991 c.639 §8; 2003 c.14 §318; 2007 c.779 §4]

477.885 [1969 c.524 §9; repealed by 1985 c.759 §40]477.910 [1959 c.320 §1; 1965 c.253 §146; repealed by

1967 c.429 §61]477.920 [1959 c.320 §7; repealed by 1985 c.759 §40]477.930 [1959 c.320 §2; 1967 c.429 §41; repealed by

1985 c.759 §40]



477.940 [1959 c.320 §3; 1967 c.429 §42; 1969 c.524 §12;1981 c.321 §4; repealed by 1985 c.759 §40]

477.950 [1959 c.320 §4; 1961 c.689 §7; 1965 c.428 §17;repealed by 1969 c.524 §15]

477.960 Collection of assessment. (1)Insofar as applicable, the assessment leviedunder ORS 477.880 shall be due and payableto the forester in like manner and procedure,including penalties and interest, as set forthfor the collection of the protection costsprovided in ORS 477.270. Wherever applica-ble, the assessment levied under ORS 477.880shall be combined with the budgeted costcertified to the county under ORS 477.270 asone amount for each account listed so thatthe officer in charge of the roll can extendthe amounts on the assessment roll in a sep-arate column in a single figure.

(2) The minimum assessment set forth inORS 477.295 shall be applied to the combinedamount described in subsection (1) of thissection. [1959 c.320 §5; 1961 c.689 §8; 1965 c.312 §4; 1967c.179 §1; 1967 c.429 §43; 1985 c.759 §36; 1991 c.459 §417]

477.970 Disposition of receipts. The re-ceipts from the assessment levied by ORS477.880 shall be paid into the Oregon ForestLand Protection Fund. [1959 c.320 §6; 1961 c.689§9; 1967 c.429 §44; 1985 c.759 §37]

PENALTIES477.980 Enforcement policy; rules;

factors considered. The State Board ofForestry, by rule, shall establish the en-forcement policy for violations prescribed inORS 477.993. In determining the enforcementpolicy, the board may consider the followingfactors:

(1) Prior violation of the same or similarstatutes, rules or orders.

(2) The gravity and magnitude of the vi-olation.

(3) Whether the violations were repeatedor continuous.

(4) Whether the cause of the violationwas an unavoidable accident or a willful,malicious or negligent act.

(5) Whether the violation directly threat-ened human life or caused property damageof $10,000 or more. [1993 c.697 §2; 1999 c.1051 §101]

477.985 Enforcement procedure. In ad-dition to any other persons permitted to en-force violations, the State ForestryDepartment and the State Forester, or any

employee specifically designated by the de-partment or by the State Forester, may issuecitations for violations established underORS 477.993 in the manner provided by ORSchapter 153. [1993 c.697 §3; 1999 c.1051 §102; 2011c.597 §138]

477.990 [Amended by 1953 c.68 §19; subsection (5)of 1957 Replacement Part enacted as 1953 c.68 §17; sub-sections (11) and (12) of 1957 Replacement Part enactedas 1953 c.152 §§6,7; repealed by 1959 c.363 §14 (subsec-tions (1) to (5) of 477.993 (1963 Replacement Part) en-acted in lieu of 477.990)]

477.992 [Repealed by 1959 c.363 §21]

477.993 Penalties. (1) Violation of anyof the provisions of ORS 477.510, 477.515,477.535 to 477.550, 477.565, 477.615, 477.625,477.635 to 477.670, 477.695, 477.710, 477.720or 477.740, or any rule or order adopted pur-suant thereto, is a violation punishable asfollows:

(a) For the first offense, as a Class D vi-olation.

(b) For the second offense, as a Class Cviolation.

(c) For the third offense, as a Class Aviolation.

(2) Multiple violations of any single re-quirement of this chapter, or of any rule ororder adopted pursuant thereto, in an opera-tion area shall be considered a single vio-lation. However, each day a violationcontinues shall be considered a separate vio-lation.

(3) Notwithstanding subsection (1) of thissection, violations of any of the statuteslisted in subsection (1) of this section whichproximately cause human injury, loss of hu-man life or property damage of $10,000 ormore, and unauthorized entry into a firescene secured under the authority of ORS477.365 (1)(f), may be punishable as a ClassA misdemeanor.

(4) Violations and punishments set forthin this section and ORS 477.740 are in addi-tion to and not in lieu of the provisions ofORS 164.305 to 164.335. [Subsections (1) and (2)of 1963 Replacement Part and subsections (1) to (3) en-acted as 1959 c.363 §15 (in lieu of 477.990); subsection (6)of 1963 Replacement Part enacted as 1959 c.408 §6; sub-section (7) of 1963 Replacement Part enacted as 1959c.320 §8; subsection (8) of 1963 Replacement Part enactedas 1961 c.689 §11; subsection (5) enacted as 1961 c.603§15; 1965 c.253 §136; 1971 c.562 §2; 1971 c.743 §390; 1993c.697 §8; 1995 c.605 §4; 1997 c.274 §34; 1999 c.1051 §103]


477 - Oregon Legislative Assembly

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