The state of Oregon should stick to subsidizing energy efficiency that is a good investment.

The Oregon Public Utility Commission is deciding what to do about the nonprofit Energy Trust of Oregon’s energy efficiency programs. Because of a drop in the price of natural gas, some of the programs that used to be eligible to qualify for rebates — such as insulation and air sealing — no longer should qualify. They don’t pencil out.

The Energy Trust collects a surcharge on customer gas and electric bills and offers rebates on conservation and efficiency measures. For instance, if a consumer buys a qualified washing machine, the consumer can earn $50-$70 cash back from the Energy Trust.

But with the change in natural gas prices, the costs have changed. In many gas-heated homes, the lifetime benefits of adding insulation or other weatherization no longer exceed the lifetime costs. It’s not a good investment.

According to the state’s rules, that means the Energy Trust should no longer pay for those forms of energy efficiency.

Some of the Energy Trust programs have been continuing to operate anyway under exceptions that expire in October. The PUC is set to decide if the exceptions should be continued or not.

There are arguments to continue the exceptions. Many of them:

Contractors that have focused on weatherization may lose business.

Some consumers find weatherization valuable.

It’s been suggested that the cost-benefit analysis be adjusted to include intangibles, such as the sound suppression and potentially higher property values that come with insulation. As The Oregonian reported, some states add more than the 10 percent Oregon does.

Also, it’s realistic to expect that natural gas prices may rise again.

But there are a wide variety of things consumers can do to make their homes more energy efficient. If the state is going to have a policy to subsidize energy efficiency, it should pay for things that make economic sense. It should subsidize only those that pencil out.