In an attempt to hold PacifiCorp responsible as the utility deals with a slew of lawsuits resulting from the deadly 2020 wildfires that devastated the state, three Oregon lawmakers say they intend to introduce a bill that would prohibit utilities from raising rates if they have unresolved wildfire lawsuits for three or more years.
Following a federal lawsuit against the electric power business and an approved rate hike for PacifiCorp customers, Republican state representatives Ed Diehl, Virgle Osborne, and Jami Cate made their idea public in a statement on Monday.
PacifiCorp was sued by the federal government last week for the Archie Creek Fire, which started in September 2020 in Douglas County, Oregon, and burnt over 200 square miles, with around half of that area being public land. The corporation is accused of negligence in the case for neglecting to maintain its electricity lines in order to prevent wildfires. The government claims in its brief that it filed the lawsuit in order to recoup significant expenses and damages.
In an emailed statement on Monday, a PacifiCorp representative stated that the organization was collaborating with the U.S. authorities to address the allegations.
Although the U.S. government’s decision to sue in federal district court is regrettable, PacifiCorp will keep collaborating with the government to achieve a fair solution, the statement stated.
On the same day that the Oregon Public Utility Commission authorized a 9.8% rate hike for PacifiCorp’s residential customers for the upcoming year, the federal case was filed. The corporation stated in its rate case filings that increased costs resulting from wildfire danger and activity were a contributing factor in its request to raise rates.
This is how much your PGE and Pacific Power rates are expected to increase on January 1st.
Rate hikes were requested and granted by both companies that provide power to customers in the Portland region.
According to the Oregon Citizens’ Utility Board, which represents utility users, PacifiCorp rates will have risen by about 50% since 2021 when the new rate goes into effect in January.
The bill will be introduced during the next legislative session, which begins in January, according to the three lawmakers.
Osborne, who is expected to serve as the future bill’s co-chief sponsor, said in a statement that the federal government is doing appropriately by bringing this action and that we fully support it. Stopping rate hikes is the greatest way to get PacifiCorp to pay for and accept responsibility for the damage they have created.
In the numerous cases pertaining to the 2020 fires in Oregon, PacifiCorp is expected to be held liable for billions of dollars in damages.
According to its website, the corporation has already negotiated two settlement agreements regarding the Archie Creek Fire: one for $250 million with 10 businesses that have commercial timber interests, and another for $299 million with 463 plaintiffs affected by the fire.
In a separate case, an Oregon jury in June 2023 found it liable for carelessly failing to turn off power to its 600,000 customers in spite of top fire officials’ warnings. The jury’s decision applied to a class of people, including the owners of up to 2,500 properties. Since then, several juries in Oregon have mandated that the business reimburse other wildfire victims with tens of millions of dollars.
Among the deadliest natural disasters in Oregon’s history, the flames that broke out over Labor Day weekend in 2020 destroyed thousands of houses and claimed nine lives.
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