SALEM — For fast-growing school districts, the effort to accommodate more students has become a major issue as property owners grow more resistant to bond measures for construction.

Legislators have introduced several bills to address the need to fund additional classrooms and ongoing maintenance, ranging from impact fees for new homes and apartment units to an excise tax on all new construction.

The House Education Committee held its first hearing on Bill 2019, which would allow districts to impose a residential impact fee. Senate Bill 1036, which would allow an excise tax, is pending in the Senate Revenue Committee and has the support of the Oregon Home Builders Association.

"I believe that's the one that will move," Home Builders Executive Director Jon Chandler predicted.

HB 2019 has generated opposition because the fee, capped at $8,000 per home or apartment unit, must be shared equally with local park districts.

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Dana Hepper of Stand for Children, a statewide education advocacy group, said her organization supports the impact fee for schools, but opposes the bill because parks are included.

Daniel Eisenbeis of 1000 Friends of Oregon objected to the cap on parks and also opposed another bill that was heard by the committee allowing new schools to be constructed up to three miles outside an urban growth boundary, where land prices are cheaper.

The nearest city would then be allowed to provide the necessary urban services without having to go through the Land Conservation and Development Commission exceptions process.

He said the proposal creates a host of problems, including limiting pesticide use on nearby croplands. Even if property is more expensive within the UGB, "Siting schools in a community makes neighborhoods strong," Eisenbeis said.

Rep. Dave Hunt, D-Gladstone, the House majority leader, said the Legislature has ignored the issue of finding new sources of revenue to help districts deal with rapid growth.

He supported a package of bills including one to dedicate lottery revenue that exceeds estimates made in the governor's budget to school construction and maintenance.

State Treasurer Randall Edwards told the panel there has been a lot of talk about construction needs, "yet we've done absolutely nothing." He estimated the backlog for school districts both for new facilities and deferred maintenance at more than $2 billion.

Should the excise tax proposal fail, Chandler said the Home Builders would gladly support the House bill for an impact fee split between schools and parks.

"We don't like impact fees at all," he said. "But if we are to have them, we want parks to have a share.

"It's a fairness issue," he added.

The committee took no action.

Don Jepsen is a freelance writer living in Salem. Reach him at jepsen34@open.org.