This map shows the percentage of individuals in Northwest communities living at or below 150% of the federal poverty line (annual income $41,625 for a family of four), paired with average energy burden (percentage of annual household income spent on energy costs).

There are essential differences in the Northwest's energy affordability. For instance, Montana's energy burden is over twice that of Washington’s (8.89% and 4.32%, respectively). Meanwhile, Idaho and Oregon’s energy burden falls between the two, at 6.38% and 5.12%.

This means that for a family making the median household income in 2022 in the United States ($74,580), their average annual energy bill in Montana would be $6,630, compared to $4,758 in Idaho, $3,818 in Oregon, and $3,221 in Washington. Notably, the costs associated with energy bills are often made more significant by compounding socioeconomic challenges, such as increased housing burden and fewer economic opportunities.

The map is divided into census tracts, which are color-coded to show the community-level relationship between the proportion of percentage and average energy burden. Black lines indicate counties and red lines indicate Tribal Lands.

The darkest green (top center square in the legend) indicates communities with both high percentages of poverty and high average energy burden.

The blue (right corner square) indicates communities with high energy burden but low percentages of poverty, while the light green (left corner square) shows communities with low percentages of poverty but high energy burden.

Lastly, the light yellow (bottom center square) shows areas that have both low percentages of poverty and low average energy burden.

Note: The white area between Yakima County and Franklin County is Hanford, a decommissioned nuclear production site where no one is permitted to live within 35 miles.

Click on the map to see associated data. Use the + and – buttons in the upper left to zoom in and out of different census tracts and use the search bar in the upper righthand corner to search for an address.