Energy Trust of Oregon is an independent

nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

organization based in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

, that helps utility customers in Oregon benefit from

efficient energy use Efficient energy use, sometimes simply called energy efficiency, is the process of reducing the amount of energy required to provide products and services. For example, insulating a building allows it to use less heating and cooling energy to ...

and generating

renewable energy Renewable energy is energy that is collected from renewable resources that are naturally replenished on a human timescale. It includes sources such as sunlight, wind, the movement of water, and geothermal heat. Although most renewable energy ...

. Energy Trust offers services, cash incentives, and other energy solutions to customers of Portland General Electric, Pacific Power,

NW Natural NW Natural, formerly Northwest Natural Gas Company, is an American publicly traded utility headquartered in Portland, Oregon, United States. Primarily a natural gas distributor, the company services residential, commercial, and industrial customers ...

Cascade Natural Gas MDU Resources Group, Inc. is a U.S.-based corporation supplying products and services to regulated energy delivery and utilities related construction materials and services businesses. It is headquartered in Bismarck, North Dakota, and operates i ...

, and Avista in

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

and customers of NW Natural in

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

History

In 1999, the

Oregon Legislature The Oregon Legislative Assembly is the state legislature for the U.S. state of Oregon. The Legislative Assembly is bicameral, consisting of an upper and lower house: the Senate, whose 30 members are elected to serve four-year terms; and the Ho ...

passed an electric industry restructuring law, SB 1149, with the intent of establishing a stable, consistent funding source for residential, commercial and industrial electric efficiency, renewable energy and market transformation programs. The legislation requires the state’s largest investor-owned electric utilities to collect a 3% public purpose charge and authorized the

Oregon Public Utility Commission The Oregon Public Utility Commission (PUC) is the chief electric, gas and telephone utility regulatory agency of the government of the U.S. state of Oregon. It sets rates and establishes rules of operation for the state's investor-owned utility c ...

, OPUC, to direct a portion of those funds to an independent, non-government entity. In 2000 and 2001, the OPUC and interested parties helped form the nonprofit Energy Trust of Oregon. The nonprofit has an independent board of directors and operates consistent with a grant agreement with the OPUC. In 2001, Energy Trust articles of incorporation and

bylaws A by-law (bye-law, by(e)law, by(e) law), or as it is most commonly known in the United States bylaws, is a set of rules or law established by an organization or community so as to regulate itself, as allowed or provided for by some higher authorit ...

were adopted and the first executive director hired. Energy Trust also has three advisory councils—the Conservation Advisory Council, Renewable Energy Advisory Council and Diversity Advisory Council—to provide stakeholder perspectives on its programs, budgets and action plans. Energy Trust began operation in March 2002, charged with investing in cost-effective electric energy efficiency, helping to pay the above-market costs of renewable energy resources, implementing market transformation programs, delivering services with low administrative and program support costs and maintaining high levels of customer satisfaction.

Funding

Energy Trust is funded by customers of Portland General Electric, Pacific Power, NW Natural, Cascade Natural Gas and Avista. Customers of these five utilities pay a dedicated percentage of their utility bills to support a variety of energy efficiency and renewable energy services and programs. As a result of SB 1149, which applies to electric energy, PGE and Pacific Power collect a 3% public purpose charge from their customers to support: # Energy conservation in K-12 schools delivered through school districts # Low-income housing energy assistance delivered through Oregon Housing and Community Services # Energy efficiency, renewable energy and market transformation programs for residential and business customers delivered through Energy Trust, an independent, third-party Funding for

natural gas Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...

efficiency comes from public purpose charges paid by Oregon customers of NW Natural, Cascade Natural Gas and Avista. This funding is provided pursuant to settlement agreements in OPUC proceedings. Energy Trust administers the funds through contracts established with NW Natural in 2003, Cascade Natural Gas in 2006 and Avista in 2017. In 2009, through an agreement with NW Natural and the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission, Energy Trust also began serving NW Natural's customers in Washington. In 2007, the Oregon Legislature passed the Oregon Renewable Energy Act, SB 838. Through the legislation, the collection of the 3% public purpose charge was extended from 2012 to 2026, and PGE and Pacific Power were allowed to seek additional electric efficiency funding above the 3% public purpose charge with the goal of avoiding the need to purchase more expensive electricity. Energy Trust receives supplemental funds authorized by the legislation.

Goals

As part of its oversight of Energy Trust, the OPUC adopted performance measures against which to benchmark Energy Trust's performance
OPUC performance measures
are typically updated annually. Energy Trust provides the OPUC with quarterly and annual reports measuring actual performance against the target metrics. Energy Trust also maintains operational goals to maximize investments in it
2020-2024 Strategic Plan

Programs

In general, Energy Trust operates its programs through contracts with service providers. A volunteer, non-stakeholde
board of directors
oversees Energy Trust management, provides strategic and policy direction and approves the organization’s budget and major expenditures. The board carries out its oversight with guidance from three advisory councils: Conservation Advisory Council, Diversity Advisory Council and Renewable Energy Advisory Council. Energy Trust offers cash incentives for a variety of energy-efficiency improvements and renewable energy systems for homes, businesses, industrial facilities, agricultural operations and public and nonprofit buildings. Other assistance provided includes information, services and technical assistance to help ratepayers identify and prioritize projects that fit their budget and goals. Incentives and assistance are offered through the following program categories:

Residential

* Existing homes and mobile homes * New homes and manufactured homes * ENERGY STAR® products: clothes washers and LEDs *

Solar electric A solar cell, or photovoltaic cell, is an electronic device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect, which is a physical and chemical phenomenon.

systems

Commercial and Industrial

* Existing buildings, including multifamily * New buildings, including multifamily * Industrial buildings and processes * Agricultural operations * Energy from renewable sources such as solar, organic waste and hydropower

Renewable Energy

* Biopower from wood waste, landfill and wastewater gas, manure and other organic sources * Other sources, including

hydropower Hydropower (from el, ὕδωρ, "water"), also known as water power, is the use of falling or fast-running water to Electricity generation, produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by energy transformation, converting the Pot ...

and geothermal, and some instances of small-scale community wind

References

{{reflist 2001 establishments in Oregon Organizations based in Portland, Oregon