Oregon’s Clean Energy Future Makes Moves in 2023 Legislative Session
The 2023 Legislative Session wrapped up on June 25 and was, in some ways, a return to normalcy after the COVID-19 pandemic. Once again, committee meetings were in person at the Capitol, and the building was bustling with lobbyists, staff, and members of the public after relative quiet for the last three sessions. There were also a lot of new faces. Twenty-two new legislators experienced their first session, joining 11 who were new a year ago. It was the first long legislative session for over one-third of the legislators. It wasn’t without its challenges, of course, with the legislature unable to achieve quorum to vote on bills for nearly six weeks.
The 2023 session followed energy-packed 2021 and 2022 sessions. Conventional wisdom at the Capitol says that if there was recent major legislation on an issue, it is quieter on that topic the next time around. But with the urgency of climate change clear, every session seems to be an energy session now. Legislators on both sides of the aisle are interested in the clean energy transition and dealing with the effects of climate change, such as wildfire and drought. Dive into the details about the many energy-related bills in ODOE’s new 2023 legislative report.
Across four bills, the Oregon Department of Energy will add several new programs and obligations – and over time, about two dozen new staff to support that work. Most of this new programming is expected to be paid for by state general fund dollars and federal funds:
A “kick start” to work on federal funding we expect from the Inflation Reduction Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. This includes staffing to support home energy incentive programs, grid resilience, and industry education about new energy efficiency programs.
A state energy strategy that will evaluate trade-offs and consider pathways to meet Oregon's energy and climate objectives. This strategy can then inform policies and investments.
A new building performance standard program that will gather energy usage data about the state’s largest buildings and then work with building owners to reduce emissions.
A major update to the Oregon Global Warming Commission – soon to be called the Oregon Climate Action Commission – with new members, new reporting requirements, and new objectives and funding for climate solutions on natural and working lands.
A grant program to support energy resilience planning for all 36 counties.
A new biennial report on the state’s progress toward newly established heat pump installation targets.
Support for a Community Navigator Program, which will help less-resourced communities access funding for energy projects and capacity.
Staff positions that will support both new and existing work in addition to anticipated work related to federal funding. These positions reflect the agency’s growth and also our commitment – shared with Governor Kotek – to providing quality customer service.
A Climate Package developed in the last week of session combined 20 bills into two, HB 3409 and HB 3630, with some funding in the budget reconciliation bill. The bills included provisions to help communities build their own energy projects and become more resilient in the face of natural disasters and power outages. A healthy May revenue forecast for the state’s budget led to an unexpected $90 million investment in climate programs over the next two years, including additional investments in existing Oregon Department of Energy programs like the Oregon Solar + Storage Rebate Program ($10 million) and the Community Renewable Energy Grant Program ($20 million). ODOE’s Energy Efficient Wildfire Rebuilding Incentive Program timeline was also extended to help more Oregonians rebuild after the devastating 2020 wildfires.
We’re excited to hit the ground running to implement this new work. You can stay tuned on our progress by signing up for email updates for our financial programs, various studies, federal funding progress, and more. We’ll also share regular updates right here on our blog and in our monthly newsletter.