A new report by an Oregon free market organization says there is a substantial economic impact of Oregon’s renewable energy mandates. Today, the Cascade Policy Institute is holding its April Policy Picnic to highlight a report that shows big increases in power rates may be driven in part by the State's mandates.  In 2007, the State passed a mandate forcing big power companies to get 25% of their energy portfolio from renewable sources like wind and solar by the year 2025. Cascade Policy Institute Vice President Todd Wynn: “So what we did at Cascade Policy Institute was to see how much this would cost Oregonians and the Oregon Economy as a whole and what we found is that the mandates are going to cost Oregonians an addition $6.8 billion over conventional power between the years of 2015 and 2025.” He says that translates to job losses and high power costs. Those critical of this report say it wasn't done scientifically and that most people in the U.S. support moving to more renewable energy sources.