Oregon Revised Statutes Revenue and Taxation § 308A.303

The legislature hereby declares that it is in the best interest of the state to maintain, preserve, conserve and otherwise continue in existence adequate open space lands and the vegetation thereon to assure continued public health by counteracting pollutants and to assure the use and enjoyment of natural resources and scenic beauty for the economic and social well-being of the state and its citizens. The legislature further declares that it is in the public interest to prevent the forced conversion of open space land to more intensive uses as the result of economic pressures caused by the assessment thereof for purposes of property taxation at values incompatible with their preservation as such open space land, and that assessment practices must be so designed as to permit the continued availability of open space lands for these purposes, and it is the intent of ORS 308A.300 to 308A.330 to so provide.