PORTLAND, Ore. — The Lincoln County School District is doubling down on its position to tax wildfire survivors looking to rebuild their homes. District Superintendent Dr. Karen Gray said other Oregon school districts are breaking the law by providing disaster victims a waiver.
“We are 100% for getting exceptions due to natural hazards and stand ready to do that but we cannot until we get legal permission to do so,” said Gray in a written statement to KGW. “The board cannot be asked to break the law even if other districts do so.”
A KGW investigation found hundreds of wildfire victims could face hefty new construction taxes to rebuild their homes.
The Construction Excise Tax allows local school districts to charge for construction, if they want. The tax money helps accommodate growth, so districts can pay for larger classrooms and improved buildings. In Lincoln County, the construction excise tax is $1.24 per square foot for new or replacement homes.
Earlier this month, community members asked the Lincoln County School Board to provide a waiver for wildfire victims, making them exempt from paying the Construction Excise Tax.
“It’s ridiculous,” said John Parrott of Otis. Parrott and his family are hoping to rebuild after losing their home in the Echo Mountain fire.
“My insurance is only going to cover about two-thirds of what I had and they want to get $2,000 from me on top of that?” asked Parrott.
School board members have said they want to help but can’t provide exemptions to wildfire victims because of how state law is written. Superintendent Gray said she was told by Oregon state Rep. David Gomberg that school districts do not have the discretion to waive the Construction Excise Tax for wildfire victims. Gomberg said his information is based on a phone conversation with the Office of Legislative Counsel. Legislative Counsel declined to comment.
It is not clear if the Lincoln County School District has independently conferred its own counsel or any other lawyers. Superintendent Gray has declined multiple requests for interviews and did not respond to an email seeking clarification.
The former state senator who sponsored the 2007 legislation creating the Construction Excise Tax suggested the Lincoln County School District is misinterpreting the law. Ryan Deckert explained school districts have the leeway to provide waivers.
“I’d be really disappointed and surprised if they charged the wildfire victims this fee because it would relatively easy for them not to do it,” said Deckert.
A KGW investigation found some school districts provide tax waivers for victims of natural disasters. The Greater Albany school district doesn’t charge a construction excise tax for “replacement due to fire or flood loss equal to or less than the square footage of the original structure prior to the loss.”
The North Santiam School District waived its construction excise tax for victims of the Beachie Creek Fire during an Oct. 15 board meeting. The temporary waiver applies to new construction within the North Santiam School District boundaries until March 2021. Homeowners requesting an exemption had to own and occupy the property at the time of the fire. North Santiam already had an exemption for replacement homes that were equal to or smaller than the original structure. North Santiam Superintendent Andy Gardner told KGW the district’s Construction Excise Tax exemptions have never been challenged.
Rep. Gomberg drafted proposed legislation that would allow school districts to waive the construction excise tax for those impacted by a declared natural disaster or emergency. If approved, the waiver would be retroactive for wildfire victims but there is no guarantee when or if the legislation will be approved.
“They need to help us now,” said Parrott, standing in his Otis neighborhood scorched by wildfire.