Law / United States / Oregon / Portland

Prohibit the Use of Face Recognition Technologies by Private Entities in Places of Public Accommodation

Portland City Code ch. 34.10 (secs. 34.10.010 to 34.10.060)

A citation is an address, not a summary. The first part names the law; what follows narrows it to the exact section, article or paragraph.

In force since 1 January 2021.

A biometric privacy rule binding private bodies.

As of 3 September 2026.

What it requires

  • Inside Portland, a product built for or offered to a place of public accommodation must not use face recognition technology to identify, verify, detect, or characterize an individual's facial features, unless the use falls within the ordinance's exceptions for legal compliance, an individual unlocking their own device, or automatic face detection inside a social media application.

If you get it wrong

Private right of actionYes

What it reaches

What it reaches

capability

What this law does

Drafted with AI from the cited sources under the direction of UnGovr staff. UnGovr holds editorial responsibility for this page.

A private entity may not use face recognition technology in a place of public accommodation within Portland, subject to exceptions for legal compliance, an individual's own device unlock, and automatic face detection in social media applications. A person injured by a material violation may recover actual damages or a statutory $1,000 per day of violation, whichever is greater, plus attorney fees and costs.

When LexLint raises it

  • processes_biometrics

Read the law

Portland City Code, official codified text of Chapter 34.10

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