In 2007, the state of Oregon passed the “1.5% Green Energy Technology Act,” which required 1.5% of the contract price for new public buildings and major renovations to go toward clean energy technology. The problem, however, was that many of the agencies didn’t do a very good job of reporting, or even dedicating.

Increased efforts by the Oregon Department of Energy has increased awareness of the law. That, in turn, meant that the number of such projects increased from an average of less than six per year in 2013, to 10 per year between 2014-2016. ODOE outreach improved both the level of reporting from public agencies, along with a substantial increase when it comes to questions about program requirements, according to a recently released report.

The law originally mandated that green-energy spending go toward solar technology. It was amended in 2012 to also include geothermal technology.

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