Montana committee hears hours of testimony on HB 490, a bid to limit strict‑liability for utilities while requiring wildfire mitigation plans

Representative Amy Regier, sponsor of House Bill 490, told the House Judiciary Committee the bill is intended to let electric cooperatives and utilities continue delivering safe, affordable power by requiring wildfire mitigation plans while preventing a strict‑liability standard for wildfire damages in Montana (Representative Amy Regier). She said the bill would require mitigation plans with specifications such as vegetation management, inspections, maintenance, line de‑energization procedures and public outreach, and would subject regulated utilities' plans to review by the Montana Public Service Commission or by co‑op boards.

Proponents from the utility sector and large customers described existing mitigation work and urged the committee to pass the bill. Mark Lambrecht, director of government relations for the Montana Electric Cooperatives Association, said many co‑ops already have plans in place and that removing strict liability would help protect small, member‑owned providers from insolvency that could disrupt service (Mark Lambrecht). Northwestern Energy and Montana Dakota Utilities representatives described operational steps they have taken and offered their mitigation plans for committee review.

Insurers, consumer advocates and landowner groups pushed back. Greg Van Horsen of State Farm and Bruce Spencer of Progressive Insurance warned the bill, as drafted, reduces recoverable damages and could impair insurers' ability to subrogate — the process by which insurers recover payouts from a responsible third party — potentially raising homeowners' insurance premiums across Montana (Greg Van Horsen; Bruce Spencer). Several county and conservation witnesses argued the proposal would shift financial risk to landowners and communities, reduce incentives for utilities to make costly upgrades, and limit legal recourse when wildfires cause catastrophic damage.

The Public Service Commission (PSC) staff testified they lack in‑house technical forestry expertise to vet certain mitigation measures and said review will carry material costs; the PSC estimated that plan review could cost at least $100,000 per plan in technical expert fees (PSC staff testimony). Committee members repeatedly asked whether the statutory 'may' for preparing plans should instead be 'shall' and whether oversight should require the PSC, DNRC or another technical reviewer. Sponsors said they had amendments under consideration to make plans mandatory and to set reporting and update cycles; no final amendment was adopted on the floor of this hearing.

Several lawyers and advocates warned that the bill's language could create a rebuttable presumption in favor of utilities that adhere to their submitted plans, limit recovery of non‑economic damages, and set a statute of limitations of three years for claims; opponents called for additional changes to preserve homeowners' access to justice. Representative Regier closed by reiterating that utilities have an obligation to serve Montanans and asked the committee to give HB 490 a due pass. The hearing ended with no roll‑call action recorded in the transcript for HB 490.

Quotes in context: "We need to prevent strict liability from becoming law in Montana…to make sure [co‑ops] can continue to deliver reliable electricity" — Representative Amy Regier. "Seventeen of our 25 electric cooperatives have already developed wildfire mitigation plans…this bill recognizes utilities have an obligation to serve Montanans" — Mark Lambrecht, Montana Electric Cooperatives Association. "If we take away certain damages, then there's going to be a new argument that homeowners aren't made whole and the insurer cannot go after the utility" — Greg Van Horsen, State Farm.

What happens next: committee members flagged multiple areas for amendment — including whether plans should be mandatory, how plans will be reviewed, and whether non‑economic damages should be preserved for subrogation — but the transcript records no final committee vote on HB 490 on the hearing date.