We serve Columbia and Boone County from 1403 W Ash St. Each town gets its own page for one reason: heating fuel and rebate eligibility vary so much across this county that generic advice is wrong in half of it.
Heating Fuel Changes Enormously Across This County
Inside Columbia, 53.9% of households heat with natural gas and 43.4% with electricity, and propane is a rounding error at 1.6%. Outside the city, across roughly 24,000 occupied units, about 17.8% heat with propane — roughly eleven times the rate inside Columbia.
| Community | Natural gas | Electric | Propane |
|---|---|---|---|
| Centralia | 70.2% | 27.1% | 1.0% |
| Rocheport | 68.6% | 28.1% | — |
| Hallsville | 63.9% | 35.6% | 0% |
| Sturgeon | 59.0% | 37.0% | 0% |
| Ashland | 55.9% | 41.0% | 3.1% |
| Columbia | 53.9% | 43.4% | 1.6% |
| Harrisburg | 4.3% | 46.2% | 46.2% |
Harrisburg proves the point: with natural gas in just five occupied units, the village is effectively off the gas grid. The conversation there is propane service, dual fuel or propane-to-heat-pump conversion — not the gas furnace replacement that is obvious in Centralia.
And the Rebate You Qualify For Depends on Your Utility
This is the part that costs people money. Boone Electric Cooperative serves all of Rocheport and all of Harrisburg, while Sturgeon, Hallsville, Centralia and Ashland are served by other utilities — and by the co-op's own description, Boone Electric serves portions of Columbia too.
So don't assume a city limit decides your rebate program. Check the utility name printed on your electric bill — it is the only reliable answer.
- City of Columbia Utilities electric customer? The Columbia Water & Light rebates apply: $800 or $1,200 on a qualifying replacement A/C or heat pump depending on SEER2, $1,200 for geothermal under 5 tons, and $1,200 for qualifying fuel-switching. Replacement only, application due within six months.
- Boone Electric member? The Boone Electric rebate programs apply instead: $750 per ton on ground-source geothermal and $300 per dual-fuel system, both currently scheduled to expire 12/31/2026.
- Not sure? Call with the utility name off your bill and we'll tell you which program you're in.
Countywide: the federal 25C and 25D tax credits ended for property placed in service after December 31, 2025. Utility rebates are what remain.