Oregon Commission Approves Discount to Support Cascade Natural Gas Customers

The Oregon Public Utilities Commission on July 29 approved an ongoing discount program on monthly bills for Cascade Natural Gas Corporation’s residential customers based on their income. The program contains four levels of discounts, varying from 15 percent to 95 percent, evaluated as a percentage of the bill. Qualifying customers must have an income level that is at  60 percent or less of the state’s median income, or SMI, level.

The 2021 Energy Affordability Act authorized the commission to make selections about rates, credit plans, and program rebates after considering the monetary burden of energy costs for electric and natural gas utilities customers. Therefore, the commission can take equity into account when setting rates, which in turn will make energy further economical.

Families who have traditionally had to pay a significant fraction of their earnings to cover the cost of essential utilities will benefit from the program, according to the commission.

On Apr. 20, the commission approved the first income-qualified utility discount for Portland General Electric’s residential customers on their monthly electric bills effective Apr. 18, 2022. To provide this discount program, the utility’s customers will be charged an additional  $0.23 per bill, an increase of 0.22 percent on an average bill of 780 kilowatt hours.

Cascade Natural Gas customers who have previously received energy assistance may be automatically registered. Individuals interested in applying or confirming their automatic enrollment may connect with their local community action agency or the utility starting on Oct. 1, 2022. Customers will pay the expenses of this discount program through a fixed charge of $0.81 per month for residential customers and a usage-based charge for commercial and industrial customers starting Oct. 1, 2022. A short-term assistance program, Oregon low-income bill assistance, is also available to help low-income residents catch up on their utility payments and avoid disconnection, in addition to the income-qualified bill discount program.