The proposed legislation to modify and extend Oregon’s Business Energy Tax Credit (BETC) is in critical stage (HB 3672). The energy efficiency features of the BETC bill provide hope that the tax credit, once assumed to be destined for elimination, will have life for the next few years. This outcome is by no means certain, however, as Salem legislative observers continue to report that majority support for the bill is not yet guaranteed. If the current bill makes it through the legislature, there will be significant and immediate effects on the BETC and its application to energy efficiency projects. Projects that had not received a pre-certification by April 15th of this year will not qualify for a BETC under the current program rules. Those and any future projects will be eligible to apply for a BETC after July 1st of this year under the new program rules. Chief among those rule changes is a requirement that projects have no less than a simple 3 year payback. Funding in the bill for energy efficiency BETC is pegged at $30M for the ensuing biennium.
 The Northwest Energy Efficiency Council transitioned to the name Building Potential in 2024. The organization’s legal name remains the same and the Board of Directors and Staff have not changed. |