Proposal seeks to reduce wildfires on utility-owned property

(The Center Square) – A House proposal seeks to reduce the number and intensity of wildfires started on utility provider property or caused by its infrastructure in the hopes of lowering the costs borne by both ratepayers and taxpayers in general.

HB 1032 requires investor-owned and publicly-owned electrical companies to submit wildfire mitigation plans in 2024, to be updated every three years onward. Those plans would include recommendations made by the state Department of Natural Resources, or DNR. However, DNR would not be liable for any investor-owned utility plans.

The legislation heavily emphasizes collaboration and coordination with other local and state entities. Both private and public utilities would have to offer the local fire districts an opportunity to weigh in on their mitigation plans, while DNR would seek input for its recommendations from the state agencies, including the Utility and Transportation Commission, or UTC, and the Energy Resilience and Management Office.

State efforts to reduce wildfires have ramped up since 2015, the state’s worst wildfire season in terms of acreage burned. In 2019, the state set up the Electric Utility Wildland Fire Prevention Task Force, which led to the creation of a permanent Utility Wildland Fire Prevention Advisory Committee in 2021.

A recent report by the State Insurance Commissioner’s Office also found that some public utility districts, or PUDS, have struggled to obtain liability insurance and have resorted to either paying a higher premium or reducing their coverage levels.

The insurance liability problem is driven by the increased risk of wildfires that, if originating from a utility’s property, can result in significant lawsuits. After a 2020 wildfire burned down 80% of the city of Malden in eastern Washington, residents filed a lawsuit against Avista because the fire started when a tree branch located off its right of way fell onto one of its power lines. Avista has expressed support for HB 1032.

Aside from lawsuits, utilities also face infrastructure damage that adds to operation costs. Additionally, wildfires can spread and cause private property damage and require millions in state spending for wildfire suppression.

Just before a Feb. 21 executive vote by the House Appropriations Committee, Rep. Mary Dye, R-Pomeroy, told colleges that “from experience this bill is much needed in the arid parts of eastern Washington, where electrical utility infrastructure poses significant risk of unintentional wildfire as we experienced in Malden and Pine City a few years ago. It’s great that this bill is here, that we can plan for those events, and have a system where we can really start making prevention in our utility infrastructure a priority.”

Representing the Klickitat and Okanogan PUDS, Dave Warren told the Appropriations Committee at a Feb. 7 public hearing that after several bad wildfires in recent years, the two PUDs have sought to coordinate better with DNR regarding wildfire prevention methods.

He said HB 1032 “hits that sweet spot” by “standardizing the format and elements” to be included in risk mitigation plans without employing an overly top-down approach. “Each utility would write its plan based on its own unique circumstances. It is built to share best management practices, but standardize our reporting and make those public.”

Also in favor was Nicholas Garcia, the policy director for the Washington Public Utility Districts Association, whose membership consists of 27 PUDS.

“We believe that the required risk mitigation plans will lower both the number and severity of wildfires and thus provide…lower state costs to fight and recover from wildfires.”