March 2025 Newsletter

The counties participating are: Baker, Benton, Clatsop, Columbia, Grant, Harney, Malheur, Lake, Lane, Tillamook, Union, Wheeler, Cohort: Hood River, Gilliam, Sharman, Wasco, and Cohort: Crook, Deschutes, Jefferson

ODOE Awards 19 County Energy Resilience Grants

The Oregon Department of Energy has awarded $950,000 in grants to 19 Oregon counties to support development of energy resilience plans through the agency’s County Energy Resilience Grant Program.

Energy resilience plans – and the actions to implement them – will strengthen the ability of a community to maintain or quickly recover the energy systems needed to support critical public services during disruptions to the state’s larger energy systems. Strengthening local energy resilience is fast becoming a priority as Oregon has experienced more extreme weather events in recent years like ice storms and extreme heat, as well as public power safety shutoffs during potential wildfire conditions. Local energy resilience will also support communities in the event of a Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake.

ODOE awarded each participating county $50,000 to develop a plan that outlines current energy infrastructure, determines resilience needs, identifies communities more vulnerable to energy disruptions, and maps out a path for implementation. Plans are due to ODOE by August 1, 2025.

The Oregon Legislature created the County Energy Resilience Program in 2023 through House Bill 3630. Each of Oregon’s 36 counties were eligible to receive funds provided they met the eligibility requirements. If passed during the 2025 regular session, House Bill 3171 would extend the timeline for the program to allow for the remaining counties to participate.

Students listen to Director Janine Benner presenting on energy in Oregon. Their hands are raised in response to a question.

Young Oregon Energy Innovators Compete in Oregon Coast Renewable Energy Challenge

On March 4, the Oregon Department of Energy was proud to sponsor the 2025 Oregon Coast Renewable Energy Challenge at the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport. Students from public elementary and middle schools along the coast created their own renewable energy devices to compete for best design.

ODOE Director Janine Benner served as a keynote presenter for the event, sharing energy data and trends with the students, educators, and parents, such as how solar has grown in Oregon over the last several decades. Janine was joined by ODOE Communications Director Jenny Kalez to serve as judges for the student projects, including wave energy devices, solar boats, and wind turbines.

The Challenge is designed to educate students about renewable energy options that could be built in and provide energy for their own coastal communities (and beyond). The students developed presentation boards alongside their devices, which were tested in water tanks or an indoor wind tunnel.

In her keynote presentation, Janine asked students to weigh in on ODOE’s Oregon Energy Strategy effort, which will help identify potential pathways to an equitable clean energy future for Oregon. Several students made suggestions, including focusing on energy efficiency and adding more solar to the state. One young innovator wants to be part of the solution by inventing something that will generate more clean energy. Another student expressed the importance of talking to a lot of Oregonians to get their ideas.

We look forward to someday working with this future group of energy experts! Learn more and see the list of winners on ODOE's blog.

A map of the United States shows Oregon with the Number 9 ranking for most energy efficient states.

ODOE Celebrates No. 9 Ranking for Most Energy Efficient States

The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy ranked Oregon at No. 9 in its nationwide State Energy Efficiency Scorecard, which measures policy and program standards that support energy efficiency.

This is Oregon’s 15th time in the top 10 since the State Scorecard’s inception in 2006. Fellow west coast state California earned the top ranking and Washington ranked No. 6. Oregon’s No. 9 ranking marks the state’s return to the top 10; ACEEE ranked Oregon No. 11 in the previous edition in 2022.

The ACEEE scorecard highlighted Oregon’s Building Performance Standards for existing buildings, which was established by the Oregon Legislature in 2023 through House Bill 3409. The policy requires many large commercial buildings to enhance energy management practices and implement efficiency measures to meet energy use targets. The scorecard also highlighted Oregon's energy equity and affordability efforts, its commitment to supporting zero-emission vehicles, and more.

We were pleased to see Oregon once again rank among the top 10 most energy efficient states. ACEEE recognized the Oregon Department of Energy and our partners as energy leaders, strengthening our policies and programs to improve efficiency and strengthen equity for vulnerable and underrepresented communities.

Learn more on ODOE's blog.

EFSC members and ODOE staff walk through a field where a future solar facility may be built.

ODOE at 50: Energy Facility Siting

2025 marks the Oregon Department of Energy's 50th year serving Oregon. As we continue leading Oregon to a safe, equitable, clean, and sustainable future for the next 50 years (and beyond!), we’re taking time to look back and reflect on what got us here.

In 1975, following the oil crisis of the early 1970s, the Oregon Legislature created the Oregon Department of Energy. As ODOE commemorates 50 years of service, so does Oregon’s Energy Facility Siting Council.

The statute creating the agency and Council noted that continued growth and demand for non-renewable energy poses a serious and immediate – and future – problem. “It is essential that future generations not be left a legacy of vanished or depleted resources, resulting in massive environmental, social, and financial impact," reads the statute.

Oregon’s energy facility siting law originated with formation of the Nuclear and Thermal Energy Council in 1971. Its role was to regulate the siting of nuclear and coal-fired generating plans that had an electric generating capacity of at least 200 megawatts.

As the legislature considered a new Oregon Department of Energy, it also decided to revise its energy facility siting laws and replace the Nuclear and Thermal Energy Council with the Energy Facility Siting Council, focusing the Council beyond just nuclear and coal facilities. With that new legislation, the Oregon Department of Energy was to provide staff support for the governor-appointed Council – a role that continues today.

Read more about EFSC's history – and present – on our blog.

A graphic for Women's History Month, showing three women at work.

Women's History Month: Women in Energy

March is Women's History Month — the perfect time to celebrate the important contributions women have made in the science and energy landscape. Our own Oregon Department of Energy Director, Janine Benner, certainly matches that description. This month, she reflects on fellow trailblazers in energy:

"In addition to being a 1940s movie star, Austrian-born Hedy Lamarr was also an inventor. She pioneered technology used in today’s Bluetooth, GPS, and WiFi systems. Dr. Maria Telkes was nicknamed the 'Sun Queen' for advancing solar energy at the University of Delaware in the 1970s. In 1918, Katharine Burr Blodgett became the first woman scientist hired by General Electric Research Laboratories, working on molecular glass coatings that were foundational to making glass more efficient, including for solar panels. Annie Easley was a computer scientist and mathematician beginning in the 1950s for the Aircraft Engine Research Laboratory (the NASA Glenn Research Center’s predecessor). She developed code used in energy-conversion systems, including battery technology that was used for early hybrid vehicles. As a history buff, I love learning about the ways women like these overcame barriers to make amazing contributions to science and energy.

"Modern women continue to move the energy landscape forward. Jennifer M. Granholm served as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy from 2021 to early 2025, becoming just the second woman to lead the department since its founding. Dr. Lei Cheng is a Group Leader on Energy Storage and Conversion at the Oakridge National Laboratory, focusing on battery storage technologies. Kelley Ruehl, who completed her M.S. at Oregon State University, is on the Wave Energy and Hydrodynamics team at Sandia National Laboratories, helping to advance the promising technology of marine renewable energy. I’m so proud to count my late mother, Nancy Benner, as one of those recent leaders – she was a trailblazer for building commissioning at a time when it was an industry dominated by men. She would be so pleased to see how the Benner Award, recognizing outstanding achievements in building commissioning, has been awarded to so many leaders and innovators – including a number of women – in the field."

Reports from Around the Agency

Join our team! In addition to the Human Resources Manager position above, check out open recruitments on our website and please share with your networks.
Oregonians can now search for available renewable energy and energy efficiency incentive programs through ODOE’s new Energy Hub for Incentive Programs and Projects in Oregon (Energy HIPPO!). Plug your address into the online calculator along with a few other basic pieces of information, and the tool will show the various programs you may be eligible for. The Energy HIPPO also provides other helpful resources for homeowners, renters, and contractors.
The Oregon Energy Strategy team will host a virtual information session on April 16 to share results of the Energy Wallet, Air Quality, and Geospatial complementary analyses and preview the upcoming jobs study. We are also organizing two public forums on April 24 (at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m.) for ODOE to hear perspectives from Oregonians to inform recommendations for the strategy. Learn more and access log-in information on ODOE's website.
Do you know where your electricity comes from? ODOE updated its interactive Electricity Resource Mix dashboard with data through 2023. Click through to see how the mix has changed over the years, utility-level data, greenhouse gas emissions data, and more. Be sure to view the about the data sections to learn more about how our methodology has evolved.
Speaking of data, ODOE has also published new dashboards to increase transparency and show how agency programs are supporting energy projects across the state. View an interactive dashboard of Community Renewable Energy Grant Program participants, as well as public school districts participating in the SB 1149 Public Purpose Charge Program since 2012.
In case you missed it in last month's newsletter, ODOE is standing up a new federally funded Heat Pump Purchase Program, which will offer $2,000 rebates for the purchase of energy efficient heat pumps in eligible Oregon homes. Learn more on our website and be sure to sign up for email updates to be the first to know when the program goes live.
The Heat Pump Purchase Program will also be holding a contractor training on April 14 from 1 - 2:30 p.m. The training — which will cover program information, contractor registration, and incentive application requirements — is required for any contractor wishing to participate in the program. Learn more and find log-in details on our website.
The Oregon Department of Energy currently has two Requests for Proposals open, seeking technical assistance and analysis for a Natural and Working Lands Net Biological Carbon Sequestration and Storage Inventory as well as a Natural Climate Solutions Workforce Development and Training Programs Needs Study. Follow the links to learn more; responses for both RFPs are due April 23, 2025.
ODOE Facilities Engineer Lisa Gartland and Codes & Standards Manager Blake Shelide presented two building energy code trainings hosted by partners Energy Trust of Oregon and the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance this month. The trainings focused on the adoption of the 2025 Oregon Energy Efficiency Specialty Code and had about 400 attendees in total.
ODOE Codes & Standards Manager Blake Shelide also recently spoke with Better Bricks, a commercial resource of the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance, to share the latest on Oregon’s new Building Performance Standard.
ODOE published its biennial report on the State Energy Efficient Design Program, a longstanding effort to improve energy efficiency across state-owned buildings. The report analyzed more than 300 state facilities and noted challenges such as aging infrastructure or outdated systems, as well as opportunities like developing an enterprise-wide energy management strategy moving forward. Dive into the details in the report online.
Earth Day is coming soon! ODOE will be hosting an information table at the Earth Day at Oregon Garden event on Saturday, April 19 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission to the garden is free, with plenty of earth-friendly activities and community organizations on hand!
On March 11, ODOE's Nuclear Safety and Energy Security team hosted a regional fuel planning meeting with partners in Idaho, Montana, and Utah. ODOE is a responding support function in the event of an emergency that could affect fuel delivery and distribution.
On March 19, ODOE was proud to sponsor an information table with community partner Earth Advantage at the Portland Workforce Alliance's Northwest Youth Careers Expo. ODOE Home Energy Efficiency Workforce and Education Analyst Josie Cardwell enjoyed the opportunity to connect with local high school students about potential energy jobs.
ODOE also joined communty partner Energy Trust of Oregon to host an information table at the 4th Annual Central Oregon Agricultural Show in Redmond. ODOE Energy Analyst Tom Elliott and Research Analyst Bailey Harris were on hand to share information about how ODOE can support the ag community, including ODOE's Rural and Agricultural Energy Assistance Program.
Oregon and nine fellow states met a goal of having at least 3.3 million zero emission vehicles on their roads by 2025! The states signed an agreement in 2013 outlining the goal and other ZEV efforts. Read all about it in the Oregon Capital Chronicle and learn more about ZEVs, charging, and incentives on our Go Electric Oregon website.
Did you know ODOE's Energy Facility Siting Team is currently reviewing more than a dozen proposed or amended energy facilities? From wind to solar facilities – to combined wind, solar, and storage facilities – you can learn more about the state's process and how to get involved on our website. You can also sign up to receive a monthly facility siting update showing the latest and greatest.