Pacific Power numbers, not PGE numbers
Energy Trust of Oregon serves both Portland General Electric and Pacific Power customers, but it does not pay them the same. For Pacific Power the residential solar incentive is $2,500 per home, against $3,500 for PGE, on systems of at least 2 kW DC.
The battery incentive differs by more in proportional terms. Pacific Power customers receive $288 per kWh up to a maximum of $3,600 per home, against $400 per kWh up to $5,000 for PGE customers. Both require at least 3 kWh and a battery connected to qualifying solar.
The trade ally requirement applies equally: the system must be installed by an approved Energy Trust solar trade ally contractor or the incentive is forfeited entirely, regardless of the quality of the installer.
So the first thing to establish about a Bend quote is which utility figures it used. Check the utility name on a recent bill, then check that the incentive lines in the quote match Pacific Power amounts rather than the more commonly published PGE ones.
The production advantage, and how to check it
Central Oregon sits east of the Cascades and receives considerably more sunshine than the Willamette Valley. For a solar system that is a genuine advantage and it is the main reason Bend economics can work despite Oregon low electricity prices.
It also means a production estimate built on a statewide or Portland-based assumption will understate a Bend roof, which is an unusual direction for a quote to be wrong in and one worth catching, because it makes the project look worse than it is.
Ask what data source the annual production estimate used and whether it applies location-specific irradiance for your address. Ask for the estimate in kilowatt hours per year rather than only as a dollar figure.
Ask also how the model treats winter. Bend is cold and gets snow, and snow cover on panels is a real if temporary production loss that a well-built estimate accounts for and a generic one does not.
More sun makes the March rule more relevant
Oregon credits exports at the retail rate and carries credits forward, but at the end of the March billing cycle any unused kilowatt hour credit is granted to the utility for its low-income assistance customers rather than paid to you.
A sunnier location makes it easier to build a system that generates an annual surplus, which means the donation rule bites harder in Bend than in a cloudier part of the state. The better your roof, the more carefully you should size.
So resist the temptation to build to the roof simply because the roof is good. Ask what percentage of your annual usage the design covers, and require a specific justification for anything meaningfully above it.
A concrete planned load increase, such as an electric vehicle or a heat pump, is a good reason to size ahead, and in a cold climate a heat pump is a particularly plausible one. A vague expectation is not.
What is left, and when it is funded
The 30 percent federal Residential Clean Energy Credit under Section 25D expired for property placed in service after December 31, 2025, so a cash or loan purchase in Bend receives no federal tax credit. Section 48E survives at 30 percent for third-party owners under leases and power purchase agreements.
Treat the state ODOE Solar + Storage rebate as unavailable unless confirmed with ODOE, since its June 15, 2026 reopening was fully reserved.
Rebuild from the Pacific Power figures: the Energy Trust solar incentive of $2,500 through an approved trade ally, and $288 per kWh up to $3,600 for a battery of at least 3 kWh connected to qualifying solar. Add Solar Within Reach if your household qualifies under the Deschutes County income limit.
Then add retail-rate net metering with the March reconciliation, and the electricity you stop buying. Pacific Power raised Oregon residential rates about 2.9 percent effective April 1, 2026, against an Oregon residential average of about 12.2 cents per kWh.