Dan Atchison
Deputy City Manager/City Attorney

Dan Atchison is a dedicated attorney and public servant with extensive experience in municipal law, currently serving as the City Attorney for Salem. He graduated from the University of Oregon with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and earned his Juris Doctor from Willamette University College of Law.

A long-time resident of Salem and the Willamette Valley, Dan began his career with the City of Salem in 2007 as an Assistant City Attorney. He was appointed City Attorney in 2013, where he has specialized in land use, development, public infrastructure, and affordable housing. He has represented the City before circuit court, the Oregon Court of Appeals, Oregon Supreme Court, the Land Use Board of Appeals, and federal district court.

Dan serves as general counsel for the City Council and several City boards, commissions and committees, providing advice and guidance on a wide-array of legal issues.

In addition to his role as City Attorney, Dan has served on the Oregon City Attorney Association's legal advocacy committee, where he has worked to help jurisdictions across Oregon preserve local control and enhance the flexibility and vitality of local government.

Since February 2025, Dan has also served as interim Director of the Enterprise Services Department, overseeing key internal functions including human resources, risk management, information services, fleet, and facilities, and supporting continuity of operations.

In this new role, Dan has played a key leadership role in advancing major organizational initiatives and projects, including the City’s Levy, FY 2026 Budget, and the Safe, Clean, and Healthy Salem initiative. During this period of transition, he has overseen internal operations, managed a significant portion of constituent complaints, and supported enterprise-wide coordination.

Divisions

The Enterprise Services Department combines services in support of business continuity and Citywide strategy. 

This department includes functional divisions of:

• Application Development
• Customer Service Center
• Human Resources
• Information Technology
• Risk Services
• Service Technologies