Tree service in Hillsboro, Oregon

Tree removal permits in Hillsboro

Hillsboro regulates by location. No citywide diameter rule turned up on the city’s pages, so a tree in an ordinary backyard appears to need no permit. The exception is the Significant Natural Resource overlay under Community Development Code Subchapter 12.27, amended in 2023 by Ordinance 6473; it has its own review and exemption process, and the city’s forms page lists a Significant Natural Resource Exemption form. The overlay’s rule text could not be read for this page, and its fee is unpublished.

So the first step is a map question: ask Planning and Development Services (503-681-6153) whether your lot touches the SNR overlay, and get the answer in writing. Street trees are simpler. Under HMC 9.18.020, a free Tree Care Permit from Public Works is needed before planting, removing or replacing a street tree, or before major pruning, meaning branches or roots 2 inches and up or more than 20 percent of the crown; removed street trees are replaced. See the Oregon permit guide for comparison.

Every city compared: tree removal permits in Oregon.

Source: Public Works (Tree Care Permit); Planning / Development Services (503-681-6153) for SNR review, HMC 9.18.020 (Tree Care Permit); CDC Subchapter 12.27 Overlay Zones (SNR); Ord. 6473 / CDCA-003-23 (2023). Checked 2026-10-02.

Storm records for Washington County (covers Hillsboro)

Washington County sits in the middle of Oregon’s storm table, 23rd of 36 counties with 104 NOAA reports since 2016, and its record is led by wind. High wind (30) tops heavy snow (24), and strong wind adds 21, so the two wind categories make up about half of all reports. Those reports cover the Tualatin Valley and the West Hills along with the Coast Range.

Ice is the quieter risk. FEMA’s National Risk Index (December 2025) rates the county’s ice storm risk Relatively High at 91.4, ahead of strong wind at 80.1. Reports cluster in January, February and December, 69 percent of them from November to February, and the count is steady: 25 in the latest three years, 29 in the three before.

NWS forecast zones covering the county: North Oregon Coast Range; North Oregon Coast Range Lowlands; Tualatin Valley; West Hills and Chehalem Mountains.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 2016 to June 2026 · NWS zone-county correlation files (2019 to 2026 versions). Checked 2026-10-02. NOAA Storm Events 2016-2026; zone-based events assigned to every county the NWS zone covers using the zone-county correlation file in force on the event date (2019-04-02 file used for 2016-2018).

Power lines and utilities in Hillsboro

Portland General Electric serves Hillsboro. PGE trims its transmission, primary and secondary distribution lines and asks for at least 10 feet around primary lines, a figure that varies by voltage under Oregon rules. It trims the service wire to a house only if branches are straining or rubbing it, and it asks customers not to plant under or around wires. Outages go to 503-464-7777 or 800-544-1795, staffed 24 hours.

If your bill names a different provider, check it in the utility directory before any work near a line.

Source: utility vegetation-management pages linked above; OAR 437-002-0306 (OR-OSHA). Checked 2026-10-02.

Pests and quarantines

Emerald ash borer (EAB) · quarantineMediterranean oak borer (MOB)

Washington County is inside Oregon’s emerald ash borer quarantine. Ash wood leaves the quarantine only as chips 1 inch or smaller or as kiln-dried, debarked lumber, and loads should be covered from April 1 to September 30; report suspected trees through the Oregon Invasive Species Online Hotline. Mediterranean oak borer is confirmed here too, without a quarantine: infested oaks, stump included, are cut and then chipped or burned on site, and oak firewood stays within 10 miles. See EAB in Oregon.

• Emerald ash borer (EAB): OR (ODF/ODA): keep raw ash wood inside the quarantine; move only as <=1-in chips or kiln-dried debarked lumber, or heat 160F core for 60 min with ODA permission; cover loads during flight period Apr 1
• Mediterranean oak borer (MOB): Don't move cut oak firewood >10 miles from source; cut then burn or chip (<=1 in) infested trees including the stump on site; report with photos/location to Oregon Invasives Hotline

Source: Emerald ash borer (EAB) · Mediterranean oak borer (MOB). Checked 2026-10-02.

Rain, snow and the growing season in Hillsboro

Hillsboro is in USDA hardiness zone 8b, and NOAA’s normals at the Portland-Hillsboro airport show 35.93 inches of precipitation a year, with December the wettest month. When you replace a street tree, as the Tree Care Permit requires, choose a species that tolerates both wind and ice, and keep it below the 10-foot distribution-line clearance at maturity.

Portland-Hillsboro Ap, Or Us: 35.9 in of precipitation a year, wettest in December. USDA hardiness zone 8b.

Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991 to 2020 · USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023 (OSU PRISM ZIP data). Checked 2026-10-02.

Labor index for Hillsboro

BLS puts tree trimmers and pruners in the Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro metro at a $35.04 mean and $36.33 median hourly wage, among about 1,160 workers. Booking a planned removal in the dry months is easier than finding a crew the week after a January windstorm. The figure is a wage, not a price; the modeled ranges on the service pages include equipment, disposal and insurance.

Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA: $35.04 per hour mean wage for tree trimmers and pruners (BLS, May 2025). This is a labor index, not a price; the modeled crew-hour cost used on this site is $225 (method).

276 landscaping-services establishments were counted in Washington County in 2023 (Census County Business Patterns, NAICS 561730).

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, SOC 37-3013 · U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023, NAICS 561730. Checked 2026-10-02.

ZIP codes and nearby cities

Hillsboro addresses fall in ZIP codes 97003, 97006, 97078, 97123, 97124 and 97229. Beaverton is 7 miles away, Forest Grove 8, Tigard 10, Sherwood 12, Tualatin 13 and Lake Oswego 14. The county record is on the Washington County page.

ZIP codes with the most land inside Hillsboro: 971249712397006972299700397078

• Beaverton7 miles
• Forest Grove8 miles
• Tigard10 miles
• Sherwood12 miles
• Tualatin13 miles
• Lake Oswego14 miles

County page: Washington County.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 ZCTA to place and county relationship files. Checked 2026-10-02.

Tree services in Hillsboro

The service pages apply Hillsboro’s rules to each job. Removal centers on the SNR overlay and street tree permit; trimming covers the 2-inch and 20-percent pruning trigger; stump grinding covers 811 and the ash and oak quarantine rules; and the emergency page covers windstorms and ice like February 2025.

• Tree removal in Hillsboro
• Tree trimming in Hillsboro
• Stump grinding in Hillsboro
• Emergency tree service in Hillsboro
• Arborists and tree health
• Check a license in Oregon

What to do next

Ask Planning at 503-681-6153 whether your lot is in the SNR overlay before any removal, and get a Tree Care Permit from Public Works for anything in the right-of-way. For a wind-thrown or ice-cracked tree, order a risk assessment, and verify the contractor in the Oregon license lookup.