$21 billion fund created after 2018 PG&E bankruptcy
Gov. Gavin Newsom is brokering a deal in his final legislative session to further shield California’s utilities from financial trouble when their equipment sparks wildfires.
Investigators ruled this month that one of Southern California Edison’s transmission towers sparked a 2025 fire that killed 19 people outside Los Angeles — the state’s second-most destructive wildfire. Southern California Edison now faces claims tied to that blaze.
That legal exposure echoes Pacific Gas & Electric’s eight years ago. Investigators determined PG&E equipment ignited the most destructive wildfire in California history — a 2018 fire that killed 85 people and destroyed more than 18,000 buildings in Northern California.
That fire started two days after Newsom won the governorship in 2018. Facing tens of billions of dollars in liability, PG&E filed for bankruptcy weeks after Newsom’s inauguration.
Months later, Newsom signed a law creating a $21 billion fund, paid for by utility shareholders and ratepayers, to help utilities pay for wildfire damages if they take certain safety measures. The arrangement aimed to compensate victims while keeping the state’s utilities financially solvent.
The 2018 PG&E bankruptcy came as Newsom took the oath; his current legislative push comes as the final session of his governorship concludes. Newsom is now negotiating with lawmakers over a deal that would further shield utilities from financial trouble when their equipment sparks a wildfire.