Washington County Urges Legislature to Protect Courthouse Planning Funds

Washington County leaders and state officials this week called on the Oregon Legislature to protect $1.25 million in planning funds already appropriated to replace the county’s 100-year-old Courthouse.

The funding is critical to begin planning for a modern facility that meets current seismic, safety, accessibility and operational standards. Pressure to address a state budget deficit has put these matching funds at risk, threatening progress on a project essential to public safety and judicial operations. Washington County trails Multnomah and Clackamas, which both saw their courthouses renovated and replaced in 2020 and 2025, respectively.

“Everyone in the state of Oregon, no matter where they are, whether they're in Multnomah, Washington and Harney County, they deserve to have their hearings in a timely fashion and they deserve to have their proper day in court with the amount of time that they truly need to be properly heard,” said Presiding Judge Rebecca Guptill at a news conference highlighting the need for the state planning dollars. “Justice shouldn't be different in one county versus another.”

The existing Courthouse, built more than a century ago, does not meet modern seismic or accessibility standards. Space limitations and outdated infrastructure strain court operations, impacting case processing and public access.

"We simply do not have enough courtrooms and the space to keep up with the number of cases that a county of this size has,” said Commissioner Pam Treece. “When we can’t keep up with the growing caseloads, the consequence is a bottleneck that prevents us from holding individuals accountable and ensuring justice for the victims of crimes.”

Washington County is one of Oregon’s fastest-growing and most diverse counties in Oregon. The courthouse serves as the nexus for public safety, and delays in planning will increase costs and prolong risks to justice and accessibility.

“The realities of this building are that they just don’t meet the functional requirements of a modern judicial system,” said Bryan Robb, who works as a senior planner for the Washington County Department of Facilities, Fleet and Parks. Reiterating the importance of planning funds, he added, “They will help us do a long-term operational needs assessment, look at sites around the area to find an alternative area to build a new courthouse and they’ll enable us to do cost validation for a firmer grasp of what a replacement will look like.”

County and state officials stressed that planning today avoids emergency spending tomorrow. Similar to the renovated Clackamas County Courthouse, which was completed in 2025, a modern courthouse at Washington County would improve security, efficiency and sustainability, while supporting constitutional rights and timely justice for the community.

Background

The Oregon Judicial Department and Association of Oregon Counties ranked the Washington County Courthouse Replacement Project as a top planning priority. Planning funds would support site selection, design and cost analysis. Delaying planning creates cascading impacts on construction timelines and cost escalation.

Next Steps

Washington County urges legislators to honor their commitment from last year’s session and maintain the state’s partnership in this critical investment. County officials said that with the necessary funding to support the project’s planning phase, the earliest construction start date could be around 2033, with a likely completion around 2035-2036. The project is anticipated to generate local jobs and boost the local economy, but faces increased costs if planning is further delayed.