OAR 918-008-0120: State Building Code Appeal Process

(1) A person aggrieved by the building official’s decision on the application of the state building code adopted under ORS 447.020, 455.020, 455.610, 460.085, 460.360, 479.730 or 480.545 may appeal to either the local jurisdiction’s appeals board or the state specialty code chief. The appeals process selected may not change once initiated. (2) A filing fee of $20 is required for appeals to the state specialty code chief. (3) An appeal must be filed within 30 calendar days of the building official’s decision. (4) An appeal must include the following information and other information requested by the chief: (a) The person filing the appeal, the jurisdiction where the act occurred, and any parties involved, including contact information; (b) The specific code or codes involved, with proper citation; (c) A written description of appeal, which may include diagrams or drawings with distances shown to scale; (d) A copy of any written interpretation or decision, if issued by the jurisdiction; (e) An explanation why the ruling should be reversed; (f) The status and date of stop work order if issued; and (g) Other information as requested by the chief. (h) Notwithstanding subsection (a) through (g) of this rule, the division may elect to accept a substantially complete request for an appeal when it appears that doing so furthers the interests of the state. (5) The building official and person appealing must respond within 7 calendar days to a request from the chief for additional information. The chief has 14 days to render a decision and inform both the jurisdiction and the person appealing a decision of a local jurisdiction. The maximum time for rendering a decision may not exceed 30 calendar days. The Building Codes Division Administrator may suspend these procedural time frames when the complexity of the issue merits additional decision time. (6) A decision by a local jurisdiction’s appeals board or chief may be appealed to the appropriate advisory board within 30 calendar days of the decision. A filing fee of $20 is charged for an appeal of a local jurisdiction’s appeals board decision.