Oregon Advisory Opinions October 16, 1975: OAG 75-83 (October 16, 1975)

OAG 75-83.

Rural fire protection districts operate under the provisions of ORS Chapter 478. ORS 478.050 provides:

"A director of a district shall be a voter or an owner within the district." (Emphasis supplied)

"Owner," as used in ORS Chapter 478, is defined in ORS 478.001(1)(e), as amended by Oregon Laws 1975, Chapter 645, sec 3, as meaning

". . . a legal owner of real property or the vendee of a contract of purchase of real property, if any, to the exclusion of the vendor."

No matter where he resides, a person owning land ("real property") within a rural fire protection district is qualified to serve as a director of the district. It is merely required that he be a "voter or an owner" in the district, not both.

The suggestion that such a director may be disqualified by moving out of the district may have arisen from a misreading of ORS 236.010 which provides in part:

"(1) An office shall become vacant before the expiration of the term if:

"(b) The incumbent ceases to be an inhabitant of the district, county or city for which he was elected or appointed, or within which the duties of his office are required to be discharged. . . ."

However, this would not apply to a director of a rural fire protection district because of subsection (2) of the statute which provides:

"(2) The provisions of paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of this section shall not apply where residence within the district, county or city for which he was elected or appointed is not required for such election or appointment."

Residence within a rural fire protection district is not required in order to qualify as a director thereof and thus ORS 236.010 does not apply in this case.

Since ownership of land within the district, by itself, qualifies a person to serve as a district director, the owner

does not cease to be qualified when he chooses to reside elsewhere.