As of June 1, 2026, Energy Trust of Oregon has updated income eligibility guidelines for all income-based programs.
What is the change?
All income-based programs will now use Area Median Income (AMI) instead of State Median Income (SMI) to qualify customers for increased incentives. This will impact the following offerings:
- Savings Within Reach (SWR)
- Community Partner Funding (CPF)—no-cost offerings only
- In-Home Energy Services (IES)
- Manufactured Home Replacement (MHR)
State Median Income (SMI) is the income level in which half of households earn more and half earn less by state, while Area Median Income (AMI) is by county. Energy Trust previously used 120% SMI as the maximum threshold for income-qualified programs and 60% SMI for no-cost offers. With this update, Energy Trust will use 150% AMI as the maximum threshold for income-qualified programs and 80% AMI for no-cost offers through CPF and IES.
| Impacted offerings | ||
|---|---|---|
| Previous | New (current as of 6/1) | |
| No-cost (IES, CPF) | ≤60% SMI | ≤80% AMI |
| Moderate income (IES, MHR, SWR) | ≤120% SMI | ≤150% AMI |
Why is this changing?
Switching to AMI will improve Energy Trust’s ability to more equitably serve customers with our income-based offers. Because AMI is determined on a county-by-county basis, it better incorporates economic variation among regions. Many existing partners of Energy Trust and other programs already use AMI to determine customer eligibility. This transition will make combining various funding streams more seamless for trade ally contractors, community partners and customers.
What does this change mean?
All trade allies and customers will need to use the updated forms for any projects completed on or after June 1, 2026. If you are enrolled as a trade ally for one of the income-based programs, you should have received an email from your account manager with the updated forms and additional information in mid-May. The searchable income tables are also available publicly on our Energy Trust website, and on the forms for income-eligible offers. If you have any questions about this change, please contact your account manager.