Hillsboro City Council Legislative Work Session and Regular Meeting - October 6, 2026

On October 6, 2026, the Hillsboro City Council met for an evening work session on state and federal legislative priorities followed by a regular council meeting. The council received a government relations update, heard extended public testimony on data centers and Hillsboro Airport development, advanced a first-reading ordinance on data and energy storage, and adopted a transportation funding priority change. No formal decisions were made during the legislative work session; the regular meeting included multiple roll-call votes.

Legislative Work Session - 2027 State/Federal Priorities

• City Manager Robbie Hammond, participating remotely, said the draft legislative priorities were being presented months earlier than usual and would be adopted for the 2027 session; he expected many changes after the election.
• Government Relations Manager Ariel Nelson introduced the expanded government relations team, including Michaela Kennedy, Tracy Rainey, and Andy Smith. The session was framed as early feedback, not decision-making.
• Andy Smith outlined four major dynamics driving the 2027 Oregon legislative session: an unpopular federal administration; federal cost shifts from HR1 affecting the state general fund, especially Medicaid and SNAP; Democratic supermajorities in both chambers with internal moderate-progressive divides; and voter frustration over cost of living, housing, and schools.
• He noted Governor Kotek won the 2022 race by 3.4 percentage points, current polls are within the margin of error, and Kotek's favorability is 38% statewide and 54% in the tri-county area, down about seven points from 2022. Oregon Democrats currently hold 18 Senate seats and 37 House seats.
• Tracy Rainey highlighted key state issues: HR1 implementation, data center legislation, the Oregon Prosperity Council report, education funding, and transportation funding. The next revenue forecast is scheduled for November 18, 2026; the 2027 session starts January 19 and may run no later than June 27, 2027.
• Ariel Nelson presented draft 2027 state priorities: housing production and homelessness response; state transportation funding; economic and workforce development; sustainability and environmental health, including possible state data center standards and the transition to unleaded avgas at Hillsboro Airport; and federal immigration enforcement response.
• Council feedback included requests to track public meeting law clarity, water/ratepayer assistance, e-bike legislation, property tax reform, state immigration champions, ALPR/flock camera definitions, kratom regulation, and federal immigration reform. Staff said they would return with updated priorities and federal items in January 2027.

Consent Calendar

• Council approved the consent agenda on a motion by Councilor Case, seconded by Councilor Harris, by roll-call vote. No items were pulled for separate discussion.

Public Comments & Testimony

• The mayor stated that the public hearing for the data and energy storage ordinance, CDCA-004-26, was not being held at this meeting; comments on the item would be part of the meeting record but not the closed planning commission hearing record.
• Data center comments: Many residents opposed expanded data center development and urged stronger limits or a continued moratorium. Britt Holloway, a mechanical engineer, said Hillsboro has significant leverage and asked for phase-two standards on power, water, noise, emissions, and impacts on farms and neighborhoods. Simone Campbell supported the code as a floor, not a ceiling, citing 1,197 survey respondents of whom only 12% said not to limit data centers; she noted over 500 acres of standalone data centers are already permitted and asked that the 1,000-foot school buffer and type III reviews be kept. Dirk Knutsen argued the transfer-of-rights provision was a loophole without limits and said industry meetings helped shape the proposal. Several other speakers, including Mike McTernan, Andres Perez Lete, Gabriela, Carolyn Cahoot, and Nate Smith, expressed distrust of the process and concerns about utility costs, health, water, and environmental impacts. Nate Smith cited Phoenix-area research finding ratepayers fronted over $587 million over five years in costs that data centers were supposed to pay. Reverend Jessica Putland relayed youth concerns about data centers near Evergreen Middle School and Liberty High School and asked council not to give in to false urgency.
• Airport comments: Many residents supported a moratorium on new development at Hillsboro Airport and criticized the approval process for Sky Harbor hangars before that application was withdrawn. Lynn Coffin asked for a temporary moratorium while code is reviewed. Mickey Barnes presented 244 signatures supporting a moratorium, said there has been no environmental impact study of the airport's effects over 60 years, and called for a community emergency due to lead. David Barnes of Oregon Aviation Watch said the approval process is broken and planning commissioners should be empowered to reject inadequate port submissions. Suzanne Kaye urged expediting the leaded avgas transition and supported a moratorium; she also asked to delay the data center vote because 19 property owners were omitted from notice. Others, including Karna Sheath and Teresa Baird, cited lead exposure, noise, and lack of community input.
• Other testimony: Jim Week shared a Baha'i community message called "A Common Endeavor" about unity and moral principles. Pam Code and Mark Bradley urged safety improvements on TV Highway, with Code calling for greater transparency and town-hall style engagement. Luis Garcia reported neighborhood priorities including e-bike safety and data center heat reuse concepts. Jenna Nelson asked why flock/ALPR cameras had not been placed on a council agenda, saying the county sheriff's office has hundreds of cameras ready to deploy. Several speakers also raised concerns about election processes, council transparency, and immigration enforcement; one speaker was removed after repeated warnings.

Discussion Items

• Item 6.1 withdrawn: The Sky Harbor Hangars application, DR 004-25, had been withdrawn; no council action was taken.
• Data and energy storage ordinance, CDCA-004-26, Ordinance 6521: Rachel Marble, Code and Policy Project Manager, presented the first reading. The phase-one amendment would define data storage/processing and energy storage/generation uses, limit where they are allowed, and create acreage caps. Under the proposal, primary data centers would be allowed only in IP and IS zones, with caps of 215 and 310 gross acres respectively. Existing commitments account for 203.17 acres in IP and 292.29 acres in IS, leaving around 30 acres for new primary data centers. Accessory data centers would be allowed in all industrial zones and two urban center zones, limited to 25% of gross acreage or 30% of gross floor area, whichever is less. The planning commission had added a 1,000-foot school buffer and type III public-hearing review for data centers and energy storage uses.
• Council discussion focused on legal risk, the transfer-of-rights provision, and the school buffer. The city attorney said the moratorium extension requires demonstrated progress, and state law limits initial moratoriums to 120 days. Staff said environmental and economic studies were being procured and would take about three to four months. Councilor Sinclair made a motion to remove the transfer-of-rights provision from Ordinance 6521; it passed by roll-call vote. Council then discussed the 1,000-foot buffer; staff and the city attorney warned that a buffer larger than 1,000 feet lacked factual support and could jeopardize the ordinance. The motion on the ordinance included a 1,000-foot buffer expiring in 12 months and a severability clause.
• Transportation resolution: The council considered Resolution 2937, recommended by the Transportation Committee, to change the city's MSTIP large capital match priority project from the MAX overcrossing at 185th Avenue to the TV Highway Transit and Safety Project. The mayor noted the 185th Avenue project had been very difficult to fund despite making a difference. Councilor Case moved adoption, Councilor Anvary seconded, and the resolution passed by roll-call vote.

Key Outcomes

• The legislative work session ended with no formal decisions; staff will incorporate council feedback and bring federal priorities and updated state priorities back in January 2027.
• Ordinance 6521 passed first reading unanimously by a 6-0 roll-call vote with amendments: the transfer-of-rights provisions were removed; the 1,000-foot school buffer was retained but will expire in 12 months; and a severability clause was added. Second reading and final adoption are scheduled for October 20, 2026.
• The city will continue preparing to extend the data center moratorium before its November 24 expiration, with environmental and economic study contracts being finalized and studies expected to take roughly three to four months.
• Resolution 2937 was adopted, shifting the city's priority transportation project to TV Highway Transit and Safety.
• Council comments included requests for the city manager to explore a moratorium on new development at Hillsboro Airport and an HIO community advisory committee; public support was requested by emailing the city manager. Councilor Salgado asked for educational materials on the dog-waste ordinance, and Councilor Sinclair suggested studying taxation of AI infrastructure or per-unit labor to protect the local tax base.