In February 2026, Governor Tina Kotek supported a bill to double the property tax benefits for data centers from 5 to 10 years. The backlash from environmental and consumer groups and local activists was intense. Kotek quickly changed course with an amended bill to place a 1-year moratorium on new property tax breaks for data centers within Standard Enterprise Zones, which exist almost exclusively in western Oregon, impacting in particular Washington County.
The amended bill passed in March and took effect June 1. Between its passage and its implementation date, a mad rush to submit applications resulted in the city of Hillsboro approving 17 tax exemptions for data centers.
1000 Friends of Oregon has filed a lawsuit to challenge those approvals, stating that “Out of public view and in a hurry, City and County staff approved those applications without the required public notice and without authorization or oversight from their respective public bodies.” Plaintiffs in the suit include the state’s largest teachers union, the Oregon Education Association; Tax Fairness Oregon; the Tualatin Riverkeepers; and local farmers and activists.
XRPDX will continue to closely follow this lawsuit and other developments against the rush to build ever more data centers in Washington County. (The photo shows cranes in Hillsboro working on a new data center; photo credit: Claire Stock.)
For more, see a detailed article in the Hillsboro Herald: https://hillsboroherald.com/the-real-cost-of-growth-hillsboro-proposes-non-stop-utility-rate-hikes-while-tech-giants-heavy-load-our-systems/
