Oregon Enacts Law Raising Electricity Rates for Data Centers
WHO:
IJR - Oregon Public Utility Commission (PUC), Portland General Electric (PGE), Gov. Tina Kotek, Commission Chair Letha Tawney, Data Center Coalition (DCC), Aaron Tinjum (DCC's vice president of energy).
WHAT:
Fox Business - The Oregon Public Utility Commission (PUC) stated that the rate changes will officially take effect on Wednesday, following a month-long review.
Fox Business - The PUC's order is described by the Data Center Coalition as "significantly out of step with the approaches and best practices being implemented in many other states."
Fox Business - Oregon's utility regulator is implementing a new rule that will raise electricity bills for data centers by an average of 29%.
Fox Business - Residential customers will see an average decrease of 1.3%, commercial rates will fall by an average of 2.1%, and other industrial customers' rates will decline by an average of 1.4%.
Fox Business - The PUC estimated that the rate changes will affect about 963,000 customers across PGE's service territory.
Fox Business - The changes were delayed from their original implementation date in early June to accommodate a more in-depth review.
WHERE:
IJR - Oregon, specifically within the service territory of Portland General Electric (PGE).
WHEN:
Fox Business - The rate changes officially take effect on Wednesday.
Fox Business - The POWER Act was signed into law last year.
WHY:
Fox Business - Concerns have been raised about the impact of the rapid build-out of data centers powering artificial intelligence (AI) tools on the electric grid and the costs borne by consumers and other businesses.
IJR - The change is designed to prevent households and small businesses from subsidizing the growing electricity demands of data centers.
Fox Business - The POWER Act was intended to ensure fairness and accountability when large energy users, like data centers, take up more load on Oregon's electrical grid.
HOW:
Fox Business - Aaron Tinjum, DCC's vice president of energy, emphasized that the data center industry is "committed to paying its full cost for the energy it uses to ensure that those costs are not shifted to other customers."
Fox Business - The PUC approved updated electricity rates for data centers and other customers under the POWER Act, which requires PGE to change its rate structure.
(UPDATED July 8, 2026 23:20 UTC)
The Oregon Public Utility Commission has announced that new rate changes will officially take effect on Wednesday, following a month-long review. The Data Center Coalition has criticized this decision, stating that it is "significantly out of step with the approaches and best practices being implemented in many other states," amid concerns about the impact of rapidly expanding data centers on the electric grid and consumer costs. Aaron Tinjum, the coalition's vice president of energy, reassured that the data center industry is committed to paying its full cost for the energy it uses to prevent shifting those costs onto other customers.
--
(UPDATED July 8, 2026 22:24 UTC)
Oregon's utility regulator has announced a new rule that will raise electricity bills for data centers by an average of 29%, while residential customers will see a slight decrease of 1.3%, and commercial and industrial rates will also decline. The changes, which affect about 963,000 customers in Portland General Electric's service area, were delayed from their original implementation date to allow for a more thorough review and will officially take effect on Wednesday. This adjustment is part of the POWER Act, aimed at ensuring that households and small businesses are not subsidizing the increasing electricity demands of data centers.