While I do not like suburban sprawl like you see in cities like Dallas, Houston and Atlanta, our land use laws are having the unintended consequence of hindering our ability to attract new companies to Oregon, driving housing costs for every economic level to unnecessary high levels and is a factor in Oregon’s continued unemployment levels above the national average.

Oregon has the nation’s most restrictive land-use regulatory system. Every square inch of Oregon has been zoned by government planners, with the result that development of any type is prohibited on most private land. In addition, over 60% of Oregon’s total land mass is owned by the government, so there are relatively few parts of the state where real estate markets can function effectively. The result is a government-enforced cartel of landowners who own buildable land. The consequence of any cartel is to drive up the price of the regulated good to above-market levels.

The high cost of land in Oregon is one reason why the price of housing is relatively high in Oregon’s largest cities.

In 1973, Oregon took a pioneering step in land use planning. Signed into law on May 29, 1973, Oregon Senate Bill 100 created an institutional structure for statewide planning. It required that every Oregon city and county prepare a comprehensive plan in accordance with a set of general state goals.

While it is often lauded by its proponents as a “model” for the nation, after 38 years no other state has chosen to emulate Oregon’s land-use program. Clearly the Oregon system is more of an aberration than a model, and needs to be reformed to incorporate the benefits of property rights, incentives, and markets.

We have a 1970s land system for a 21st century economy. The Stone Age did not end because they ran out of stones. It ended because something better came along. The more the plan fails, the more the planners plan…