The California Public Utilities Commission on Dec. 1 determined that its enhanced oversight and enforcement of Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s 2020 vegetation management practices has resulted in the utility completing required corrective actions.
In April 2021, the CPUC ordered PG&E to take corrective actions and prioritize the clearing of vegetation along its highest-risk power lines as part of its wildfire mitigation work in 2020. This order placed PG&E into the first step of an enhanced oversight and enforcement process to implement the corrective actions and ensure improved safety performance.
Since identifying this safety issue and placing PG&E into Step 1 of the enhanced oversight and enforcement process, the CPUC has closely monitored PG&E’s actions to correct the issue, which included adopting risk-driven prioritization and making sure this prioritization was carried out by its vegetation management crews on the ground. The CPUC today determined that PG&E has implemented these corrective actions, enabling the utility to exit Step 1. While the issue related to 2020 activities has been resolved, the CPUC, together with the state Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety, continues to oversee and monitor PG&E’s safety efforts.
The enhanced oversight and enforcement process is one of many tools the CPUC uses to oversee and monitor PG&E’s safety measures. Current CPUC actions include:
- Establishing an Independent Safety Monitor that provides information on the safety of PG&E’s operations to the CPUC. The Independent Safety Monitor produces a public report every six months.
- Working closely with the Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety on wildfire-related safety matters.
- Establishing specific metrics to systemically evaluate PG&E’s operational safety performance and to further implement the enhanced oversight and enforcement process.
- Continuing to monitor PG&E’s safety enhancement actions ordered in a CPUC 2012-2017 natural gas system locate and mark investigation.
- Continuing to monitor PG&E’s safety enhancement actions ordered in a settlement of the CPUC 2017-2018 wildfires investigation.
- Continuing investigations and issuing financial penalties to deter unsafe practices.
The CPUC’s enhanced oversight and enforcement process for PG&E has six steps that are triggered by specific findings or events. The process was imposed by the CPUC as a condition of approving PG&E’s plan for exiting bankruptcy in May 2020, and provides a clear roadmap for how the CPUC closely monitors PG&E’s performance in delivering safe, reliable, affordable, clean energy. The process does not supplant existing CPUC regulatory or enforcement jurisdiction and does not limit the CPUC’s authority to pursue other enforcement actions.
The proposal voted on is available at docs.cpuc.ca.gov/PublishedDocs/Published/G000/M498/K998/498998920.PDF.
The CPUC regulates services and utilities, protects consumers, safeguards the environment, and assures Californians’ access to safe and reliable utility infrastructure and services. For more information on the CPUC, please visit www.cpuc.ca.gov.
