Bill would hike utility bills, risk blackouts

New proposal could hike electricity bills for Oregonians and risk rolling blackouts throughout the state
By Oregon House Republican Caucus

HB 2021 has moved through committees on party lines and will soon be considered on the House floor. The bill raises electricity costs for Oregonians and will likely make the state’s energy grid unreliable.

This session House Republicans have pushed for only focusing on bills that address immediate concerns related to the pandemic, natural disasters, education and restoring jobs. Raising the cost of living for people still struggling to recover is the wrong direction.

“We should not be raising electricity costs for Oregonians while making our energy grid less reliable,” said House Republican Leader Christine Drazan (R-Canby). “HB 2021 will hike electricity costs and expose Oregon families and businesses to rolling blackouts like we see in California. We shouldn’t be pushing this through a closed-door legislative session and ignore serious concerns from the public and key stakeholders. Oregonians cannot afford to pay more for less reliable electricity.”