Newsom Backs Off Plan to Limit Utility Wildfire Lawsuits Play

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Saturday backed off his proposal to limit lawsuits against profit-making power companies when they cause wildfires by negligence.

Homeowners, insurers and fire survivors argued the governor's original plan would have shifted fire damage costs onto them.

The lame-duck governor instead agreed to a narrower deal with the legislature.

Highly paid executives at Southern California Edison will see their pay reduced if their company causes another negligent fire. And fire victims may no longer sell their anticipated payouts from utility companies to third-party equity firms.

But the legislature beat back the governor's proposed major limits to fire-victim lawsuits. The deal is a victory for lawmakers who refused to reduce damages to victims and shift costs away from utilities.

Under the agreement announced Saturday, the state would create a "fast-pay" program for survivors' property loss, pain and suffering in the wake of a utility-caused fire. It would include deadlines for determining which claims are valid within 60 days of receipt, and settlement offers within 30 days after that.

But survivors could still pursue the long process of suing utilities if they so choose.

Fire victim advocates say they won, the governor lost, last week.