A bill to gut Metro of its authority to establish the urban growth boundary and set planning criteria for cities was pronounced dead in a Monday meeting of the Oregon House Transportation and Economic Development Committee.
"House Bill 3438 (has) some constitutional problems and we won't be hearing (it) today or later," said co-chair Tobias Read, D-Beaverton, in Monday's committee worksession.
"Constitutional problems" implies the bill lacks the votes to move forward.
The bill, co-sponsored by Reps. Patrick Sheehan, R-Clackamas, and Matt Wand, R-Troutdale, came as officials in Damascus continue to express frustration with Metro's planning requirements. Damascus Mayor Steve Spinnett has said that his city effectively can't re-zone properties until the city's comprehensive plan is complete, a process that has taken nine years and is still going.
The bill drew lively testimony from Metro opponents at a Friday hearing. Metro Council President Tom Hughes, testifying against the bill, said the Damascus urban growth boundary expansion was caused by state rules, not Metro policy, and that the agency's approach to growth benefits the region as a whole.
The bill's demise was not unexpected. In an interview after the hearing on Friday, Sheehan said the bill was a conversation starter, and his proposal, to be enacted, would take "a lot of time, a lot of consideration and a lot of debate."