Tree removal in Hillsboro, Oregon
Hillsboro has no citywide trunk-size rule for removing a private tree on its published pages; what it has is the Significant Natural Resource overlay (CDC 12.27) with its own review, and a free Tree Care Permit from Public Works for any street tree. Washington County ranks 23 of 36 Oregon counties for NOAA storm reports, with 104 since 2016.
Crew-hours × crew cost; not a quote.
No single size rule
Peak Jan · Feb; rank 23 of 36 in Oregon.
Permit rules for removing a tree in Hillsboro
Hillsboro’s tree rules split by location. For a private tree outside an overlay, no permit was found on the city’s pages and no citywide DBH threshold appears in the code the city publishes. Inside the Significant Natural Resource (SNR) overlay under Community Development Code Subchapter 12.27, removal goes through SNR review or an SNR exemption, and the Significant Natural Resource Exemption form on the city’s forms page is the starting point; Planning / Development Services at 503-681-6153 confirms whether your lot is in the overlay.
Street trees are regulated everywhere in the city. Public Works issues a free Tree Care Permit under HMC 9.18.020 before a street tree is planted, removed or replaced, or pruned hard (branches or roots of 2 in or more, or more than 20% of the crown), and a removed street tree is replaced.
Two cautions. The city’s code pages and the 2023 ordinance that amended the overlay rules (Ord. 6473 / CDCA-003-23) could not be read when this page was checked on October 2, 2026, so the overlay threshold and any SNR fee are unverified; call Planning before the tree is cut rather than after. Whether a replacement is required for a private tree outside the overlay is not stated anywhere the city publishes.
Permit required in some situations
Threshold: No single size rule published; ask the city before removing a large tree
Allowances and tiers: Trees outside overlays: no permit found on city pages; SNR overlay (CDC 12.27) has an SNR review/exemption process (city forms list); street trees: permit
Fee: Street Tree Care Permit free; SNR permit/exemption fee set by the city fee schedule
Street trees: Free Tree Care Permit before planting, removing or replacing a street tree or major pruning (2 in+ branches/roots or over 20% of crown); removed trees replaced
Issued by: 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) · Official page · Checked 2026-10-02
What tree removal costs in Hillsboro
The modeled range below is crew-hours times the Oregon crew cost with surcharges within 10 ft of a structure and where no truck can reach; it is a model, not a quote. Hillsboro’s paperwork is cheap: the street-tree permit is free and no private-tree fee was found, so what moves the price is the tree and the lot, not the city.
The Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro mean wage for tree trimmers and pruners is $35.04 an hour by BLS figures, with a median of $36.33; it is a labor index behind the model rather than a price, and the 1,160 trimmers and pruners counted in the metro are the pool a Hillsboro crew is drawn from. Washington County’s storm season, 69% of reports November through February, is when that pool is busiest.
| Tree height | Crew-hours | Oregon modeled range |
|---|---|---|
| Under 25 ft | 2–4 | $450–$900 |
| 25 to 50 ft | 4–8 | $900–$1,800 |
| 50 to 80 ft | 8–16 | $1,800–$3,600 |
| Over 80 ft | 14–30 | $3,150–$6,750 |
Modeled estimate, not quotes (method): crew-hours × $225 per crew-hour; ×1.25 within 10 ft of a structure, ×1.3 with no truck access; a crane day adds $1,500–$3,500; stump grinding is separate.
Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, SOC 37-3013. Checked 2026-10-02.
Storm records for Washington County
The biggest storm cluster NOAA has logged for Washington County in the last three years was not wind: it was the February 13, 2025 snow and freezing rain, 4 reports in a county whose record is otherwise led by wind. Since 2016 the county has 104 reports, ranking 23 of 36 in Oregon: High Wind 30, Heavy Snow 24, Strong Wind 21, Winter Storm 12, Winter Weather 5, Ice Storm 4, with single tornado, lightning and wildfire entries.
January, February and December are the peak months and 69% of reports fall November through February. The recent three years logged 25 reports against 29 in the prior three, a flat trend, and FEMA’s National Risk Index (December 2025) rates the county Relatively High for ice storm, Relatively Moderate for wind and winter weather, and Very Low for wildfire.
Reports by month, 2016 to 2026
| Event type | Reports |
|---|---|
| High Wind | 30 |
| Heavy Snow | 24 |
| Strong Wind | 21 |
| Winter Storm | 12 |
| Winter Weather | 5 |
| Ice Storm | 4 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 3 |
| Hail | 2 |
| Lightning | 1 |
| Tornado | 1 |
| Wildfire | 1 |
On February 13, 2025, a warm front rode over an unusually cold air mass parked on western Oregon, and the precipitation that spread south to north fell as snow, sleet and freezing rain through February 14. Washington County’s share was 4 reports, 2 heavy snow and 2 winter storm, filed for the Tualatin Valley, the North Oregon Coast Range and its lowlands, and the West Hills and Chehalem Mountains, with no property damage figure recorded.
Ice on a wind-shaped tree is the combination that takes out the big limbs; the removals that follow are the trees that lost their structure, not their roots.
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).
Pests and quarantines
Emerald ash borer (EAB) · quarantineMediterranean oak borer (MOB)
Emerald ash borer is confirmed in Washington County and Hillsboro sits inside the Oregon quarantine. Raw ash wood does not leave the quarantine; it moves only as chips of 1 in or less, as kiln-dried debarked lumber, or after a 160F core heat for 60 minutes with ODA permission, and loads are covered during the April 1 to September 30 flight period. Report a sighting to the Oregon Invasive Species Online Hotline; OregonEAB.com has the current map and rules.
Mediterranean oak borer is also confirmed, without a quarantine: keep cut oak firewood within 10 miles of the tree, cut and then burn or chip an infested oak to 1 in or less on site, stump included, and report with photos and the location to the Oregon Invasives Hotline. Whether burning is open to you is Oregon DEQ’s call, not the city’s.
- 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.
How removals are done here
Washington County’s log is a wind log: High Wind 30 and Strong Wind 21 reports together are about half of the county’s 104, with Heavy Snow 24 and Winter Storm 12 behind. Wind uproots and snaps whole stems where snow breaks tops, so a Hillsboro removal after a storm is often a tree already on the ground or hung up in a neighbor, cut from the butt and winched, while a standing removal on a tight lot is still sectioned from a climb or a crane.
Portland General Electric serves Hillsboro. PGE keeps at least 10 feet around primary lines, a figure that varies by voltage under OAR 860-024-0016, and trims the service wire to the house only when branches strain or rub it; its outage line is 503-464-7777 or 800-544-1795. A tree inside that clearance is removed with a line-clearance crew involved, and it carries the model’s structure factor when the house is within 10 ft.
Ash and oak change the disposal. Emerald ash borer is confirmed in Washington County and the Oregon quarantine applies, so ash wood stays inside the quarantine except as chips of 1 in or less; Mediterranean oak borer is confirmed too, and an infested oak is chipped or burned on site with its stump. The pest section below has the full rule.
What to do next
Find out which rule you are under: Planning / Development Services at 503-681-6153 can say whether the lot is in the SNR overlay, and Public Works issues the free Tree Care Permit if the tree is in the planting strip. For a private tree outside the overlay the city’s pages show no permit, but confirm it, because the code text could not be read when this was checked. Then a risk assessment if the tree is standing and the question is whether it needs to come out, the Oregon license lookup for the company, and the number on this page.
Back to tree service in Hillsboro · Tree removal across WA and OR · Tree removal in Oregon · cost guide.
Sources
- Hillsboro tree code (HMC 9.18.020 (Tree Care Permit); CDC Subchapter 12.27 Overlay Zones (SNR); Ord. 6473 / CDCA-003-23 (2023)), checked 2026-10-02.
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, SOC 37-3013, checked 2026-10-02.
- NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 2016 to June 2026, checked 2026-10-02.
- NWS zone-county correlation files (2019 to 2026 versions), checked 2026-10-02.
- Portland General Electric vegetation management, checked 2026-10-02.
Comparing quotes? Check these eight things first.
Two quotes for the same tree can differ by thousands. The gap is usually in what's included, not the cutting.
We don't vet or license anyone. These are the official lookups; each takes about a minute.
| What | Where | What it shows |
|---|---|---|
| Oregon CCB license | CCB license search | Active status, bond, insurance on file, complaints |
| Oregon LCB license | LCB verify a license | Landscape contracting license, which covers tree work |
| Washington contractor registration | L&I Verify | Registration, bond, workers' comp, lawsuits, violations |
| ISA Certified Arborist | ISA directory | Current certification and credential number |
How to read them: Oregon guide · Washington guide
Westcoast-Tree.org is an independent information site. If you call a number on this site, the call goes to a tree service that covers your area and we may be paid a referral fee by that company. We don't perform tree work and we don't vet, license or insure anyone. Cost figures are modeled estimates, not quotes (method). Not affiliated with the former Westcoast Tree Care Inc of Tumwater, WA.