A coalition of more than 50 climate, environmental and energy affordability groups is asking Oregon legislators to pass a handful of bills that aim to lower energy costs and continue funding state programs that provide affordable access to energy efficient heating and cooling systems.

The Energy Affordability and Resilience legislative package is a compilation of seven bills that seeks to increase accountability, affordability and transparency from utilities.

The bills seek to create more transparency about how rate payer’s funds are spent, revamp when rate increases take effect and prohibit utilities from using ratepayer funding for certain activities like marketing or political activity. They’ve met with a mix of pushback and support from utility companies

The package also focuses on keeping afloat energy efficiency state programs that have run out of state funding due to their popularity. The goal is twofold — lower energy bills in the short term while increasing energy efficiency in homes in the long term, nonprofit advocacy group Climate Solutions’ Oregon Buildings Policy Manager Claire Prihoda said.

“It’s an opportunity for the state to take seriously the concerns that Oregonians are raising about cost of living, the cost of energy and the real need, as we’re facing climate disasters, climate change impacts in our communities, to help folks in their homes and in their communities be resilient to climate harms,” she said.

NW Natural residential customers could see a nearly 7% rate hike later this year

Over the past five years, most Oregonians have seen their energy bills climb by more than 50%. According to Oregon Citizens’ Utility Board, a utility watchdog group, in 2024 nearly 70,000 households were disconnected by for-profit utilities for nonpayment. This year, NW Natural is asking for a 7% increase. Since 2021, its customers’ rate has increased 40%.

“Folks are struggling under the weight of these rising costs, especially when they’re added to other rising costs across our economy,” Prihoda said. “They’re also struggling to adjust to harsh extremes in weather and disasters that are being driven by climate change.”

The bills in the Energy Affordability and Resilience legislative package are:

• House Bill 3179, the FAIR Energy Act, which moves when rates are increased until after winter, require more disclosure about how ratepayer money is spent, and would require state regulators and utilities to consider how customers are affected when raising rates.
• Senate Bill 688, Performances Based Ratemaking, updates how rates are set, and tells state regulators to create incentives for utilities to focus on energy efficiency and reliability.
• House Bill 3546, the POWER Act, would create a new customer category for large industrial users like data centers, so they can be charged for the amount of power they use.
• Senate Bill 88, Get the Junk Out of Rates, would require utilities to justify their spending, and prohibit them from using ratepayer money for marketing, political and other purposes. Instead, those expenses would have to be paid from the share of rates that companies can otherwise use for profits.
• House Bill 3081, One Stop Shop 2.0, would expand efforts to create a streamlined page or direct assistance program to help Oregonians know what energy efficiency incentives they qualify for.
• House Bill 3792, Oregon Energy Assistance Program, would double the amount ratepayers are charged to help low-income customers avoid losing power for nonpayment, a cost of an additional 60 cents per month.
• House Bill 3170, Community Resilience Hub, would allocate $10 million to the Oregon Department of Human Services to provide grants to create safe spaces for residents during an extreme weather event.

The coalition backing this legislation is also asking for additional funding for two state programs:

• The Community Heat Pump Deployment Program, $15 million.
• The Rental Home Heat Pump program, $30 million.

These programs aim to increase energy efficiency by supporting access to heat pumps for qualified homeowners and renters or creating a hub or safe space that will provide efficient heating and cooling that residents can go to during an extreme weather event, like wildfires or extreme heat.

Prihoda said the state needs to step up and do more to protect and prepare communities from rising costs and climate change.

Late last month, HB 3546 was publicly supported by Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek.

“Oregonians are more and more burdened by increases in the cost of living. The POWER Act gives the Public Utility Commission new tools to protect Oregonians from unfair cost burdens while also supporting the reliability of the electric grid,” she said in an emailed statement after it passed the Oregon House.

“I want to thank the advocates and legislators who came together to develop this bill. I look forward to signing this key piece of legislation when it hits my desk.”

Oregon is getting hotter. This state program is helping thousands of renters stay cool

As utility bills continue to increase year after year, Oregon CUB’s equity analyst and advocate Sarah Wochele said CUB has heard from Oregonians who have had to think of creative ways to lower their energy bills. They’re doing things like setting their thermostat to 60 degrees Fahrenheit in the winter to wearing thick winter coats indoors to stay comfortable.

“What we’re really seeking to do is to better center the realities and needs of Oregon households, and these bills seek to ensure that we’re just using all the tools that we have to really meet the moment,” Wochele said.

High costs have led to tens of thousands of households having their power cut off for nonpayment, she said, all while some utilities report strong profits.

Portland General Electric reported a profit of $313 million in 2024, up 37%. NW Natural saw a profit of $78.9 million, down about 16%. And PacifiCorp — the parent company of Pacific Power — said its profit was $539 million profit last year, after reporting wildfire related net losses in 2023.

“These are all signs to us of structural issues. We see an imbalance in the current rate setting process that has failed in recent years to really consider the material impacts that this is having to customers,” she said.

“So I think we can begin to address these affordability problems by improving the processes and updating them to ensure that we can meet this moment for customers, because it’s growing increasingly urgent that we do so.”

Utilities have been mixed in their responses to some of the proposed legislation. Pacific Power submitted public testimony supporting the POWER Act, while NW Natural and Pacific Power both oppose SB 88.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2025/05/01/oregon-energy-affordability-resilience-law/