Clean Energy Transformation Act bulletin
Energy assistance report workshops scheduled
Commerce has scheduled three public workshops to inform the development of its first biennial report on energy assistance under RCW 19.405.120(6).
Environmental justice organizations, utilities, low-income advocates, climate advocates, and members of the public are encouraged to attend these upcoming workshops and participate in the development of the report.
The statute instructs Commerce to submit a report to the Legislature that includes:
- A statewide summary of energy assistance programs, energy burden, and energy assistance needs;
- An identification and quantification of current expenditures on low-income energy assistance;
- An evaluation of the effectiveness of additional optimal mechanisms for energy assistance, including but not limited to customer rates, a low-income specific discount, system benefits charges, and public and private funds; and
- An assessment of mechanisms to prioritize energy assistance towards low-income households with a higher energy burden.
Input from public workshops will be supported by the work of the Energy Assistance Technical Advisory Team, which consists of technical experts who volunteered to advise Commerce on the implementation of RCW 19.405.120.
Commerce has held one public workshop on additional mechanisms to improve energy assistance and prioritize assistance towards low-income households with higher energy burden. The recording of the meeting and the complete meeting schedule can be found on the CETA Energy Assistance webpage.
 Webinar: Utility data review
Commerce is completing its initial aggregation of utility energy assistance reports and will be hosting a webinar at 11 a.m. on Aug. 1 to present the file. The intended audience of the webinar is utilities that submitted data on their low-income energy assistance programs in February 2022.
Commerce will ask utilities to review the aggregation file after the webinar to ensure it accurately reflects the utility data submissions and to verify the reported low-income programs meet the definition established in WAC 194-40-030.
The agency will provide further instruction on the statutory requirements to identify previous low-income energy assistance funding levels and those needed to meet the 2030 and 2050 targets under RCW 19.405.120(4)(a)(iii).
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Utility Data Review webinar
11 a.m. to noon Monday, Aug. 1
Join on Zoom
Meeting ID: 814 4714 1196
Passcode: Assistance
Call-in: +1 253 215 8782
Phone passcode: 8731586574
Upcoming workshops
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2023 Biennial Energy Assistance Report Outline
1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 16
Join on Zoom
Meeting ID: 827 0589 7806
Passcode: Assistance
Call-in: +1 253 215 8782
Phone passcode: 8704958218
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2023 Energy Assistance Biennial Report Draft
1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 30
Join on Zoom
Meeting ID: 893 0791 6424
Passcode: Assistance
Call-in: +1 253 215 8782
Phone passcode: 0619697374
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2023 Biennial Energy Assistance Second Draft Report
1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 27
Join on Zoom
Meeting ID: 853 6905 5765
Passcode: Assistance
Phone-in: +1 253 215 8782
Call-in passcode: 6965110255
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