Relating to determinations of navigability on Oregon waterways.
Summary
SB 74 updates Oregon’s process for determining whether a waterway, or part of a waterway, is navigable and therefore subject to state interests. The bill amends the statutes governing the State Land Board and the Department of State Lands so the department may initiate a navigability study when there is sufficient economic justification or a broad and substantial public interest, must notify affected property owners, and must prepare a draft report with findings and conclusions after the study. It also requires public notice, a local public hearing, and an opportunity for written comments and evidence before the board can adopt the report or send it back for further work.
The bill also addresses how the state’s claimed interest may extend to current submerged and submersible lands, including allowing the department to negotiate deed exchanges with affected owners and, in those negotiations, to prioritize state ownership of the current waterway rather than require an equal-value exchange. It authorizes conveyance of mineral and geothermal rights in exchanged property, excludes meandered lakes from this special treatment, and preserves the role of courts in private property disputes. Once the board issues a declaration, the declaration must be recorded in county deed records and notice must be sent to affected owners and other interested parties, with judicial review available under existing law.
Impact
SB 74 changes ORS 274.404, 274.406, and 274.408, refining the administrative process for state navigability determinations and the recording and notice requirements that follow. It gives the Department of State Lands more explicit authority to study waterways, negotiate property exchanges tied to navigability findings, and define the state’s interest in current submerged and submersible lands, while also clarifying that board declarations are binding on the state unless modified on review. The bill affects the State Land Board, the Department of State Lands, county clerks, waterfront property owners, and other interested parties in navigability and title disputes.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have received generally favorable but not unanimous support. It passed the Senate committee unanimously, then passed the Senate floor 23-6, and later passed the House committee unanimously before a 38-15 House floor vote. That pattern suggests broad legislative support for updating the navigability process, alongside a meaningful minority of lawmakers who remained unconvinced or concerned about the bill’s effects.
Contention
The main points of contention likely center on property rights, state land claims, and the breadth of the Department of State Lands’ authority. The bill allows the department to prioritize state ownership in deed exchanges and to extend the state’s interest to current submerged and submersible lands, which may concern affected landowners and lawmakers wary of expanding state claims. At the same time, the bill preserves judicial review and states that it does not affect private real property claims, reflecting an effort to balance state resource management with private ownership interests.