Committee hears amendments to SB 926 on wildfire liability as tax relief and PUC oversight draw scrutiny

The House Committee on Judiciary opened public testimony on Senate Bill 926 A, a measure that would bar electric companies from recovering wildfire liability costs from ratepayers and revise how plaintiffs recover damages from utilities, including creation of a state wildfire recovery fund and new Public Utility Commission oversight.

The amendment described to the committee would "replace the measure and create a state wildfire recovery fund to expeditiously provide designated wildfire victims with up to a hundred thousand dollars," according to a legislative staffer presenting the amendment on OLIS, and would require utilities to seek wildfire safety certification from the Public Utility Commission (PUC) and commission a third‑party catastrophic‑risk report for the legislature.

Why it matters: The bill addresses how wildfire victims are compensated and who ultimately bears liability and related costs. Witnesses said the measure also affects tax liabilities for victims, how investor‑owned utilities may move cash to parent companies, and whether the PUC should be empowered to block dividend or other distributions that would impair payment of judgments.

Public commenters focused on tax treatment for survivors…