Bend Residents Urged to Oppose Natural Gas Appliance Fee

Mailing campaign by industry group aims to rally opposition to city's planned 'climate pollution fee'

Apr. 7, 2026 at 12:06am

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A fractured, abstract painting in shades of blue, green, and orange depicting an overlapping, repeating pattern of natural gas appliances and electrical outlets, conceptually representing the clash between fossil fuels and electrification in Bend's energy transition.A visual metaphor for the heated debate over Bend's planned natural gas appliance fee, with the city's push for electrification colliding with industry efforts to maintain consumer choice.Bend Today

A brochure now landing in Bend mailboxes strongly urges residents to speak out against the city's plans to impose a 'climate pollution fee' of up to $2,300 on natural gas appliances in new homes, part of an effort to combat climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The mailing is from the Northwest Coalition for Energy Choice, a group supported and apparently funded by the region's natural gas industry.

Why it matters

The proposed fee is part of Bend's broader efforts to reduce community use and reliance on natural gas in homes and buildings as a way to achieve its climate action goals. However, the industry group behind the mailing campaign is pushing back, raising concerns over energy affordability, the impact on housing costs and supply, and the effectiveness of the fee in actually reducing carbon emissions.

The details

The fee would scale based on the size of the new home and the type of natural gas appliance, ranging from $1,415 for a home under 1,600 square feet to $3,265 for a home over 3,000 square feet with multiple gas appliances. The city set the fee at 20% of the 'social cost of carbon,' rather than the full amount which could have been up to $12,000 per home. The mailing claims the fee will worsen Bend's housing affordability crisis and 'will not achieve carbon reductions in Bend; electrification does not equate to zero emissions.'

  • The Bend City Council voted 5-1 in February to move forward with developing the new fee.
  • The city is holding an electrification roundtable on April 22 to discuss potential exemptions and the proposed effective date of January 1, 2028.

The players

Northwest Coalition for Energy Choice

A group supported and apparently funded by the region's natural gas industry that is leading the mailing campaign against Bend's planned natural gas appliance fee.

Bend City Council

The city council voted 5-1 in February to move forward with developing the new natural gas appliance fee as part of its efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Megan Perkins

Bend City Council member who cast the lone no vote against the proposed fee in February.

Steve Platt

Bend City Council member who has led the council's effort to enact the electrification fee, noting it was set at 20% of the 'social cost of carbon' rather than the full amount.

Cascade Natural Gas

The natural gas utility that has raised rates and warned about the potential negative impacts of bans and limits on natural gas use.

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What they’re saying

“Heck, that would be close to a prohibition – so we chose not to do that.”

— Steve Platt, Bend City Council member

“If you decide to do a high-efficiency (electric) HVAC, there goes $1,400 off the top of that fee. ... If you want a (gas-fired) fireplace or gas stovetop, it's a couple hundred bucks.”

— Steve Platt, Bend City Council member

What’s next

The Bend City Council will hold an electrification roundtable on April 22 to discuss potential exemptions and the proposed effective date of the new natural gas appliance fee.

The takeaway

Bend's planned natural gas appliance fee has sparked a heated debate, with the local natural gas industry leading a campaign to rally residents against the measure. While the city aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through the fee, the industry argues it will worsen housing affordability and not effectively cut carbon. The council's approach of setting the fee at 20% of the 'social cost of carbon' rather than the full amount reflects an attempt to balance environmental goals with concerns over cost impacts.