Relating to the Ocean Beach Fund; prescribing an effective date.
Summary
SB 358 creates a new dedicated fund, the Ocean Beach Fund, in the State Treasury to support Oregon’s coastal state recreation areas. The bill directs that an amount equal to 1 percent of state transient lodging tax collections from state recreation areas along the ocean shore be transferred into the fund. Those moneys are continuously appropriated to the State Parks and Recreation Department for costs tied to managing those coastal recreation areas.
The bill defines the kinds of management expenses that may be paid from the fund broadly, including visitor safety signage, emergency response, shoreline armoring and sand management, marine debris removal, increased recreational use and tourism, beachfront development pressures, and responses to severe storms and erosion. It also allows the department to create accounts or subaccounts within the fund and to use fund moneys for administrative costs. The measure amends ORS 320.335 to carve out this 1 percent transfer from transient lodging tax collections before the remaining balance is sent to the Oregon Tourism Commission. The bill takes effect 91 days after adjournment sine die, and the tax allocation change applies to charges on or after January 1, 2026.
Impact
SB 358 would change Oregon’s transient lodging tax distribution by diverting a small portion of tax revenue generated at coastal state recreation areas into a new special fund rather than sending all remaining proceeds to tourism-related uses. It would create a continuing funding source for the State Parks and Recreation Department to manage ocean shore recreation areas, while leaving the rest of the transient lodging tax structure intact. The bill would affect ORS 320.335 and establish new statutory authority for the Ocean Beach Fund and related spending.
Sentiment
No committee transcripts or recorded votes were provided, so there is no direct evidence of support or opposition from the legislative record included here. Based on the bill text, the measure appears framed as a practical funding mechanism for coastal park management, visitor safety, and erosion-related needs, suggesting a maintenance and infrastructure-oriented policy goal rather than a controversial policy shift. The absence of recorded debate or votes means sentiment cannot be assessed beyond the bill’s stated purpose.
Contention
The main potential point of contention is the reallocation of transient lodging tax revenue: the bill reduces the amount flowing to the Oregon Tourism Commission by reserving 1 percent for the Ocean Beach Fund. Stakeholders focused on tourism promotion could view that as a diversion of revenue, while supporters of coastal parks and local coastal communities may see it as necessary dedicated funding for safety, debris removal, storm response, and shoreline management. Another possible issue is the breadth of allowable uses, which includes both operational costs and broader coastal pressures such as beachfront development and tourism growth.