On July 1, 2026, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Hanford Field Office released an update on its ongoing plans for where and how to treat, transport, and dispose of millions of gallons of radioactive and chemically hazardous tank waste from the west-area tank farms at Hanford. In its letter, U.S. DOE reports that it has decided to not, at this time, construct the facilities necessary to solidify and grout tank waste at the Hanford site. This decision leaves open the option for U.S. DOE to ship radioactive tank waste in liquid form through Oregon. We reiterate Oregon’s long-held position that it is unacceptable for liquid radioactive Hanford tank waste to be transported through our state.

The Oregon Climate Action Commission will hold a virtual meeting from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on July 17, 2026.

In this episode of Grounded, we’re joined by two electric utility providers in different areas of Oregon – Portland General Electric and Coos-Curry Electric Cooperative – to discuss how they are planning for an increasing number of electric vehicles plugging into their networks.

In this month's newsletter, ODOE shares swift success for a new round of solar + storage rebates, begins accepting applications for Building Performance Standard incentives, seeks comments on draft reports on siting and permitting large-scale electricity infrastructure as well as natural and working lands goal setting, publishes a new Grounded episode, announces a July 15 public budget meeting, and more.

The Oregon Department of Energy will host a virtual public meeting on July 15 to provide energy resource suppliers and other interested parties with a summary of the department’s 2027-2029 Agency Request Budget. The meeting will include a full accounting of the projected revenue needed to fund each department program or activity and the projected allocation of moneys derived from the energy supplier assessment authorized under ORS 469.421(8) to each department program or activity.

The next regularly scheduled meeting of Oregon’s Energy Facility Siting Council will be held on Friday, June 26, 2026.

In May, the Oregon Department of Energy’s announced it would reopen applications on June 15 for $1.1 million in available funding for the Oregon Solar + Storage Rebate Program. Upon reopening, all available funding was reserved by program contractors within minutes and ODOE is no longer accepting applications.

The Oregon Department of Energy is now accepting applications for a second round of Building Energy Reduction Incentive Program funding. This voluntary, early compliance incentive program encourages building owners to meet Oregon Building Performance Standard compliance requirements ahead of schedule.

Following the Oregon Energy Strategy’s publication and Governor Kotek’s Executive Order 25-29, the Oregon Department of Energy is developing a report on Siting and Permitting Large-Scale Electricity Infrastructure, including potential streamlining opportunities for the public energy facility siting process. ODOE now has a draft report available for public comment.

The Oregon Department of Energy and the Oregon Climate Action Commission are seeking public comments related to the draft Natural and Working Lands Goal Setting report.