ORS § 90 § 90.578

Conversion to submeter or direct billing for large parks.

In Force
Verified 10/26/2026 · Next check 11/2/2026
effective 10/7/2026OregonSubmetering

Operative Text

ORS § 90 § 90.578
(1) Except as provided in subsections (2) and (3) of this section, a landlord that assesses the tenants of a manufactured dwelling park containing 200 or more spaces in the facility a utility or service charge for water by pro rata billing shall convert the method of assessing the utility or service charge to direct billing or submeter billing. The landlord shall complete the conversion no later than December 31, 2012. A conversion under this section to submeter billing is subject to ORS 90.574.

(2) A landlord that provides water to a manufactured dwelling park solely from a well or from a source other than those listed in ORS 90.562 (6) is not required to comply with subsection (1) of this section.

(3) A landlord is not required to comply with subsection (1) of this section if the landlord:

(a) Bills for water provided to a space using pro rata billing by apportioning the utility provider’s charge to tenants with, notwithstanding ORS 90.568 (2)(c), consideration of only:

(A) The number of tenants or occupants in the manufactured dwelling compared with the number of tenants or occupants in the manufactured dwelling park; and

(B) The size of a tenant’s space as a percentage of the total area of the manufactured dwelling park.

(b) Bases two-thirds of the charge to the tenants on the factor described in paragraph (a)(A) of this subsection and one-third of the charge on the factor described in paragraph (a)(B) of this subsection.

(c) Determines the number of tenants or occupants in each dwelling unit and in the manufactured dwelling park at least annually.

(d) Demonstrates significant other conservation measures, including:

(A) Testing for leaks in common areas of the manufactured dwelling park at least annually, repairing significant leaks within a reasonable time and making test results available to tenants;

(B) Testing each occupied manufactured dwelling and space for leaks without charge to a tenant occupying the dwelling at least annually and making test results available to the tenant;

(C) Posting annually in any manufactured dwelling park office and in any common area evidence demonstrating that per capita consumption of water in the manufactured dwelling park is below the area average for single-family dwellings, as shown by data from the local provider of water; and

(D) Taking one or more other reasonable measures to promote conservation of water and to control costs, including educating tenants about water conservation, prohibiting the washing of motor vehicles in the manufactured dwelling park and requiring drip irrigation systems or schedules for watering landscaping.

(e) Amends the rental agreement of each tenant to describe the provisions of this subsection and subsection (4) of this section and to describe the use of the pro rata billing method with additional conservation measures. The landlord may make the amendment to the rental agreement unilaterally and must provide written notice of the amendment to the tenant at least 60 days before the amendment is effective.

(4) If a landlord subject to this section adopts conservation measures described in subsection (3) of this section to avoid having to comply with subsection (1) of this section:

(a) Notwithstanding ORS 90.580 or 90.725 (2), a tenant must allow a landlord access to the tenant’s space and to the tenant’s manufactured dwelling so the landlord can test for water leaks as provided by subsection (3)(d)(B) of this section.

(b) The landlord must give notice consistent with ORS 90.725 (3)(e) before entering the tenant’s space or dwelling to test for water leaks.

(c) A landlord may require a tenant to repair a significant leak in the dwelling found by the landlord’s test. The tenant shall make the necessary repairs within a reasonable time after written notice from the landlord regarding the leak, given the extent of repair needed and the season. The tenant’s responsibility for repairs is limited to leaks within the tenant’s dwelling and from the connection at the ground under the dwelling into the dwelling. If the tenant fails to make the repair as required, the landlord may terminate the tenancy pursuant to ORS 90.630.

(d) Notwithstanding ORS 90.730 (3)(c), a landlord shall maintain the water lines within a tenant’s space up to the connection with the dwelling, including repairing significant leaks found in a test.

(e) A landlord may use pro rata billing with the allocation factors described in ORS 90.568 (2)(c) for common areas.

(f) Notwithstanding ORS 90.568 (4), a landlord may include in the utility or service charge the cost to read water meters and to bill tenants for water if those tasks are performed by a third party service and the landlord allows the tenants to inspect the third party’s billing records as provided by ORS 90.582.

(5) A tenant may file an action for injunctive relief to compel compliance by a landlord with the requirements of subsections (1), (3) and (4) of this section and for actual damages plus at least two months’ rent as a penalty for noncompliance by the landlord with subsections (1), (3) and (4) of this section. A landlord is not liable for damages for a failure to comply with the requirements of subsections (1), (3) and (4) of this section if the noncompliance is only a good faith mistake by the landlord in counting the number of tenants and occupants in each dwelling unit or the manufactured dwelling park pursuant to subsection (3)(a) of this section.
Source: Legislative text reproduced verbatim
Plain English

ORS § 90.578 requires landlords of manufactured dwelling parks with 200 or more spaces to switch from pro rata water billing to either direct billing or submeter billing, with a conversion deadline of December 31, 2012. Landlords may avoid this requirement if they instead adopt a specific conservation-based pro rata billing formula that accounts for occupancy and space size, conduct regular leak testing, demonstrate below-average per capita water consumption, and amend tenant rental agreements accordingly. Tenants in parks that choose the conservation-based exemption must allow access for leak testing, and may be required to repair leaks found within their own dwelling.

Written by anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.6 · Reviewed on October 7, 2026

Plain English — not legal advice.

For Property Managers

Under ORS § 90.578, operators of manufactured dwelling parks with 200 or more spaces who billed water by pro rata methods were required to convert to direct or submeter billing by December 31, 2012, unless they qualified for the conservation-based exemption. Landlords pursuing the exemption path generally maintain detailed records of occupancy counts, conduct annual leak tests in common areas and individual dwellings, post evidence of below-average per capita water use, and amend each tenant's rental agreement with at least 60 days' written notice before the amendment takes effect. Submeter billing conversions under this section are also subject to the requirements of ORS 90.574, so compliant operators typically review both provisions together when structuring their billing practices.

General guidance for property managers — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult an attorney for advice on your case.

For Tenants

ORS § 90.578 gives tenants in large manufactured dwelling parks the right to have water billed through direct or submeter billing rather than a simple pro rata split, unless the landlord has qualified for the conservation-based exemption by meeting specific occupancy-weighted billing, leak-testing, and conservation requirements. If a landlord subject to this section fails to comply with the conversion or conservation requirements, tenants may file a court action seeking injunctive relief, actual damages, and a penalty of at least two months' rent — though a landlord's good-faith error in counting occupants is specifically excluded from liability. Tenants who believe their landlord is not meeting the obligations of ORS § 90.578 may wish to consult a tenant-rights organization or legal aid provider to understand the options available to them.

General guidance for tenants — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult a tenant-rights organization or attorney for advice on your case.

Generated October 7, 2026 — auto-generated, not yet human-reviewed. See /transparency for methodology.

Effective Timeline

Current
Oct 7, 2026
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References Out

Rules and statutes cited by this regulation

ORS § 90.574
Not yet ingested
ORS § 90.562
Not yet ingested
ORS § 90.568
Not yet ingested
ORS § 90.580
Not yet ingested
ORS § 90.725
Not yet ingested
ORS § 90.630
Not yet ingested
ORS § 90.730
Not yet ingested
ORS § 90.582
Not yet ingested

References In

No inbound references recorded yet for this provision.

Related Rules

§ 22
Definitions; submeter installation; testing; water use charges; public housing development exemption
§ 504B.216
UTILITY SERVICE IN SHARED-METERED RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS.
§ 90.580
Entry to read submeter; requirement for water submeter.

Source Information

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