House State Affairs committee sends wildfire 'standard of care' bill to House floor with due-pass recommendation

The House State Affairs Committee voted 11–3 to send Senate Bill 11-83 — described by sponsors as a wildfire "standard of care" measure — to the House floor with a due-pass recommendation.

The bill would require electric utilities that choose to participate to submit wildfire mitigation plans to the Idaho Public Utilities Commission (PUC). The PUC, with input from the State Forester and local stakeholders, would review and approve plans; the measure creates a rebuttable presumption that a utility that follows an approved plan met the applicable standard of care. Testimony at the hearing focused on public review of plans, clarity over who can recover damages after a wildfire, and the effect of liability limits on utility rates.

Representative Judy Boyle, the bill sponsor, said the measure is designed to reduce wildfire ignition caused by power lines: "As we all know, our forests are a mess. . . . When you have electricity and dead trees and brush and grass, you have a recipe for disaster." Boyle told the committee the bill would require utilities to submit plans that the PUC and the Department of Lands would review and that local fire districts…