A wave of Oregon laws took effect June 5, changing rules for rent payments, consumer loans, ticket resales and business tax incentives, with a home-care wage change coming in 2027.
SALEM — A new batch of Oregon laws is now in effect, and several of them could change how Salem-area businesses handle rent, lending, ticket sales and economic development incentives. Another law affecting home-care wages is set to take effect next year.
The laws took effect June 5, 90 days after the 2026 legislative session ended. While the full package covers a wide range of statewide issues, a handful of measures are especially relevant for Marion and Polk County businesses, property managers, event operators, economic development officials and home-care employers.
One of the most direct changes affects landlords.
Under Senate Bill 1523, Oregon landlords can no longer require tenants to pay rent only through an online portal or electronic payment system. Landlords must allow tenants to pay by check or another commercially reasonable method.
That means property managers who rely heavily on digital rent portals may need to make sure tenants still have a non-digital way to pay. The law also says landlords cannot charge a late fee or move to terminate a tenancy if they refuse a payment method that should have been allowed.
The same law also affects rental applications. If a landlord uses an online tenant portal for applications, the landlord must provide a printable copy or another way to apply outside the portal when required.
Another new law targets consumer lending.
House Bill 4116 applies to consumer finance loans of $50,000 or less. The law is aimed at closing a lending loophole lawmakers said allowed some lenders to charge extremely high interest rates. For local borrowers, the change is meant to strengthen Oregon’s control over consumer lending rules. For lenders, brokers and online finance companies doing business with Oregon residents, it means state rules may apply more clearly even when parts of the transaction happen online, by phone or through out-of-state lending models.
Event operators and ticket buyers also have a new protection.
House Bill 4024 restricts speculative ticket sales. In simple terms, resellers cannot offer tickets they do not actually have, unless they have written authorization to obtain them. The law also targets misleading ticket websites that appear to be connected to a venue, performer or event when they are not.
That could matter for Salem-area concerts, performances, fairs, sports events and fundraisers where tickets are sold online and later resold through third-party platforms.
Another measure affects domestic and home-care work.
Beginning Jan. 1, 2027, Senate Bill 1518 will narrow wage exemptions for certain domestic service and companionship work, especially when workers are employed by a third-party business that provides home-care or companionship services.
For home-care agencies, the law makes wage compliance even more important. For households hiring care directly, the details may depend on the employment arrangement.
The business-development angle comes through House Bill 4084.
The law creates a new state-level fast-track permitting program for certain major economic development projects. It also changes parts of Oregon’s enterprise zone program and restricts extended enterprise zone tax breaks for data centers.
That matters locally because Salem participates in Oregon’s Enterprise Zone program, which can provide property tax exemptions to qualified businesses that create jobs and make private investments inside the zone. The new data center restriction does not eliminate Salem’s enterprise zone, but it does change the incentive landscape for one fast-growing industry.
For most Salem businesses, the takeaway is practical: the laws are already in effect, and another wage-related change is on the horizon. Property managers should review rent-payment and application systems. Lenders should review Oregon loan compliance. Ticketed venues and event organizers should watch for misleading resale practices. Home-care employers should prepare for the 2027 wage-rule change. Economic development officials and large project applicants should check how the new enterprise zone and permitting rules apply.
The Legislature changed the rules. Now local businesses have to make sure their paperwork, platforms and policies have caught up.
