In early 2024 the Josephine County Commissioners introduced and approved revisions to Chapter 19 of the county comprehensive plan to relax or eliminate minimum wildfire and safety mitigation standards for development of structures throughout the county. Josephine County is the only area in Oregon that does not fund a county wide fire district.
At the local hearing Rogue Advocates stressed these changes could be detrimental to public safety and increase the potential of catastrophic wildfires in rural areas. Although these changes affect most property owners in the county no notices of the hearings were mailed to anyone. The most significant revision is the county will no longer require property owners seeking building permits to show they have the abilty to fight a structure fire or have contracted with a fire protection service (Rural Metro) to protect their property in case of fire.
The non-profit Rogue Advocates has appealed these ordinance revisions to the Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA) as they contend the changes fail to comply with state law. The stated purpose of chapter 19 that mirrors state law “…is to establish minimum wildfire and safety mitigation standards for development, replacement, substantial improvement or relocation of structures. This chapter is intended to reduce threats to human life and safety, to structures and to wildlands, and to improve access in emergencies.”
Josephine county is one of the most fire prone counties in the state. “These revisions directly threaten the safety of the residents and their properties in Josephine Ccounty,” stated Steve Rouse, President of Rogue Advocates. “We participated in the Commissioners hearings and these changes are contrary to the intent of codes that have been in place for decades. Our concerns fell on deaf and apparently ignorant ears.”
Commissioners West and Baertschiger both stressed that the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) would provide structural fire protection to justify eliminating the code requirement to contract with a fire protection service to obtain most building permits. They cited the ODF surcharge on property tax statements as proof of the ODF structural fire protection. ODF’s Natalie Weber clarified the facts, “We offer no structure fire protection whatsoever. We’re not set up for it”.
Rogue Advocates will be represented by the non-profit Crag Law Center during the LUBA hearing process while county counsel, who drafted the ordinance revisions, will defend the county code changes. The expected timeline for the LUBA hearing and decision will be well into the fire season.