If the future is going to be fueled by more electricity, if electric bills keep climbing, it’s an issue for Oregonians and the push for a greener state.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration says the average retail price of electricity for Oregonians went up by about 26% from January 2020 to January 2024.

Your bills may have gone up more or less.

“A typical residential customer of PGE or PacifiCorp saw their average bill increase 50% to 60%, from roughly $100/month in January 2020 to roughly $150 to $160/month in January 2024,” a new analysis from the Oregon Department of Energy says. “Both PGE and PacifiCorp are seeking to raise rates further in 2025.”

So who are the suspects in the increases? Might it be the state’s clean energy policies?

Remember House Bill 2021 in 2021. That bill said Oregon should wipe out greenhouse gas emissions for retail electricity customers by 2040. Oregon’s Department of Energy says for many Oregonians the answer is don’t blame H.B. 2021.

The department does also say: “For customers of PGE, PacifiCorp, and electricity service suppliers, the answer is a bit more complicated. HB 2021 is not a direct driver of recent rate increases, but it will likely have future cost impacts…. those new investments and potential price impacts specific to HB 2021 are generally not being reflected in rates yet.”

Clearer drivers of causes are from rising power costs, the need for more infrastructure and costs from wildfire and climate change. All three of those things are happening.

Central Electric Cooperative, serving many customers in Central Oregon, said when the Bonneville Power Administration raised rates for 2024-2025, power costs for the cooperative went up by 11.5%. Pacific Power is working on a 180-mile high voltage transmission project to bring more power into Central Oregon and also add redundancy. And we don’t have to tell you that wildfires and extreme weather are making it more and more necessary for utilities to try things to reduce the risk. There is also tremendous uncertainty for utilities about their liability for utility-ignited wildfires.

The electricity future is not going to be a cascade of bad. More energy efficiency would save people money and be good for the environment. More solar and wind energy will create jobs and be good for the environment. But as the state makes changes, it must continue to be on the lookout for what it will mean for a consumer’s electric bill.