Oregon House OKs more stability for manufactured home park residents

Oregonians living in the many manufactured home parks throughout the state are one step closer to having more stability in their communities following the passage of House Bill 2008 .

The bill increases the fees landlords are required to pay tenants if they force relocation and requires the Office of Manufactured Dwelling Park Community Relations to recalculate those relocation fees annually and in line with inflation. It has been more than a decade since those fees were last increased.

Rep. Julie Fahey (D-Junction City) and Rep. Pam Marsh (D-Ashland) were the co-chief sponsors of the bill. Rep. Brian Clem (D-Salem) was a sponsor.

“Despite being called mobile homes, these homes are not actually easy or affordable to move,” Rep. Fahey said. “If it is even possible to move a home, it can cost thousands of dollars. This bill provides more financial stability for the residents of these communities.”

The bill also requires park owners, upon the sale of a park, to notify the Manufactured Communities Resource Center, and it makes small changes to co-op membership requirements to allow manufactured park non-profit co-ops to better take advantage of a federal Rural Development program.

There are more than 1,000 manufactured home parks in Oregon, with 62,000 sited homes serving as a vital affordable housing option for many working individuals and families.

“In my community, I have seen how financially disastrous these events can be in the lives of hardworking people,” Rep. Marsh said. “At a time when affordable housing is at a premium in communities throughout Oregon, this bill provides needed protections.”

The bill, which passed the House 54-6, moves to the Oregon Senate for consideration.

In other action, he Oregon House of Representatives unanimously passed House Bill 2505 , a step toward ending “dark money” campaign spending in Oregon.

Right now, individuals or groups can disseminate information about a candidate leading up to an election, and as long as their materials do not clearly state support or opposition using specific words like “elect” or “vote for” or “vote against,” they don’t have to report their spending. HB 2505 is designed to increase transparency by requiring the reporting of communications (of an aggregate $750 or more) that refer to a candidate within 30 days of a primary or 60 days of a general election.

The bill changes some existing reporting requirements to include selected and targeted communications about candidates that don’t necessarily advocate directly for or against the candidate. That means that ads, mailers, billboards, etc. referring to a candidate on the ballot would be considered campaign materials if they’re produced during a campaign season.

“Disclosure is one of the most basic forms of campaign finance regulation, and HB 2505 aims to close a loophole in Oregon’s campaign disclosure laws,” said Rep. Nancy Nathanson (D-Eugene).

Rep. Nathanson is a chief sponsor of the bill with Sen. Brian Boquist (R-Dallas).

Oregon seeks to be the third state, joining California and Montana, to have an expanded definition of “communication” under its independent expenditure law.

“This bill will limit the influence of dark money in our campaigns. Our citizens, our voters want to know where the money comes from,” Rep. Nathanson added. “This bill is about increasing transparency.”

The bill now goes to the Oregon Senate.