What to Know
- Electric power and distribution lines, conductors and failure of power poles caused 12 Norcal wildfires in October 2017, Cal Fire said.
- Fires in Sonoma and Napa counties burned 56,556 acres and destroyed 1355 structures
- Holding utility companies liable for wildfires is subject of SB 901 and AB 33 in California's State Capitol
Ingrid Coffin, a Lakeside resident, knows a thing or two about fires.
Over the last 15 years, she has spent thousands of dollars to keep dry brush away from the homes she owns.
“That one and the other one down there, I put fire-free roof slate on,” she told NBC 7 on Tuesday. “You can see that we’ve really thinned down the brush underneath the trees.”
California lawmakers are discussing a handful of fire-related bills to spend millions on similar efforts statewide, but there are disagreements on everything from how much to spend before a fire begins to how much power companies need to pay after fires are out.
After weeks of meetings, a legislative conference committee advanced its final proposal to the full Legislature on Tuesday. It would allow utility ratepayers to be charged even if the utilities were found to be negligent or unreasonable in building, maintaining or operating their equipment.
The provision would apply only to wildfires in 2017, which was the deadliest and most expensive fire season on record. Dozens of people were killed, and thousands of homes destroyed.
Local
California utilities are held entirely liable for fires sparked by their equipment, even if they followed all safety standards.
The legislation also would make it easier, in some circumstances, to do prescribed burns and clear dead trees and other brush that can fuel wildfires. It includes $200 million a year for those purposes.
A Cal Fire spokesman in the Capitol told NBC 7 they’ll take all the fire preventative measure they can get – something Coffin understands all too well.
She lost five homes in 2003.
“We did go through the Cedar Fire and we learned a lot,” she said. “It’s a horrible experience to have to go through and if you can prevent it, it’s a superior approach.”
Coffin even wrote her own fire guide, which she keeps by the front door of all her homes to show where the locations of water and gas shutoffs and breakers.
“We were kind of numb I think,” she mused about the fires.
In legal claims where utilities are blamed for wildfires, the legislation would direct the Public Utilities Commission to charge investors as much as possible without harming ratepayers, such as by forcing utilities into bankruptcy. The commission could then decide whether to allow the utility to pass along the remaining costs to customers through a surcharge on bills that would last for decades.
The legislation angered ratepayer advocates, food processors and other large electricity customers. The Ratepayer Protection Network, a lobbying group representing their interests, said the legislation caps the liability for utility investors but not for their customers.
"We cannot give a blank check to PG&E to bail them out on the backs of ratepayers," spokeswoman Becky Warren said in a statement.
Lawmakers have disputed that the measure is a bailout but say they need to ensure utilities don't go bankrupt.
