california wildfires

State leaders made it clear Thursday that California is now in peak fire season in the midst of a pandemic. Governor Gavin Newsom and the head of Cal Fire held a joint news conference to talk about what has already been a fierce season made all the more difficult as the coronavirus takes its toll on much needed resources.

State leaders made it clear Thursday that California is now in peak fire season in the midst of a pandemic. Governor Gavin Newsom and the head of Cal Fire held a joint news conference to talk about what has already been a fierce season made all the more difficult as the coronavirus takes its toll on much needed resources. Robert...

Gov. Gavin Newsom announced more than $200 million in proposed spending Wednesday for statewide safety enhancements in preparation of wildfire season.New

A federal judge ordered PG&E on Wednesday to hire its own crew of tree inspectors and keep records of the age of every piece of equipment on its transmission towers and lines to prevent future catastrophic wildfires.

California power regulators are weighing a recommendation to back off plans to fine Pacific Gas and Electric an additional $462 million over a series of deadly Northern California wildfires rather than risk that the harsher punishment might scuttle the utility’s plan to get out of bankruptcy. The state’s Public Utilities Commission is mulling whether to pare the penalties faced...

Pacific Gas & Electric on Monday won court approval to raise $23 billion to help pay its bills over destructive California wildfires after Gov. Gavin Newsom dropped his opposition to a financing package designed to help the nation’s largest utility get out of bankruptcy. The milestone reached during an unusual court hearing held by phone moves PG&E closer to...

Pacific Gas & Electric told a federal bankruptcy judge Tuesday that it has settled a dispute with disaster-relief agencies that threatened to siphon money away from a $13.5 billion fund earmarked for victims of catastrophic wildfires in California caused by the nation’s largest utility. The breakthrough disclosed by a PG&E lawyer during a court hearing in San Francisco could...

California power regulators on Thursday slapped Pacific Gas & Electric with a $2.1 billion fine for igniting a series of deadly wildfires that landed the beleaguered utility in bankruptcy.

PG&E Corp. CEO Bill Johnson blamed negligence by the company’s past management for a cascade of catastrophes that killed nearly 140 people as he tried to persuade California regulators Tuesday that he is steering the utility to make safety its top priority. Johnson, who was brought in to lead the company 10 months ago, delivered his remarks as the...

State Controller Betty Yee has announced that certain homeowners in 26 counties around the state, including several in the Bay Area, are eligible to delay payment of property taxes for their primary residents. Homeowners who are seniors, blind or disabled and meet income and equity requirements are eligible to apply for the state’s Property Tax Postponement program, which applies to…

A federal judge sharply criticized PG&E at a hearing in San Francisco on Wednesday, saying that the utility had fallen “far behind” in complying with its wildfire mitigation plan. U.S. District Judge William Alsup spoke during a hearing on whether he should order PG&E to hire and train its own crew of tree trimmers in addition to using contractors...

Amid mounting cries of California homeowners being denied wildfire insurance in high-risk areas, lawmakers want to require insurance companies to cover all existing homes, as long as they meet new safety standards. The measure, coming after years of deadly fires causing insurers to turn down more customers, would also require insurance companies to give homeowners financial incentives for fire safety…

We’re living in the new California reality of catastrophic wildfires and weeks of forced power outages. So, how did we get here? A panel hosted by Operation Sierra Storm at South Lake Tahoe brought together leaders of Cal Fire’s new Wildfire Resilience Program, PG&E and the National Weather Service to discuss just that and what to expect in 2020....

For two years running , California’s wildfires have sent plumes of smoke across Silicon Valley. So far, that hasn’t spurred much tech innovation aimed at addressing extreme-weather disasters associated with climate change. It’s true that tech companies from enterprise software-maker Salesforce to financial-technology firm Stripe have pushed to dramatically reduce their climate impact. Individual investors and small investment firms have stepped in to...

A state lawmaker on Wednesday demanded an extensive review of the California Public Utilities Commission to determine whether regulators’ lax oversight enabled neglect at Pacific Gas & Electric that triggered catastrophic wildfires, a messy bankruptcy and exasperating blackouts. The request by Assemblyman Adam Gray could turn up the heat on the commission as it prepares to play a key role…

Federal officials are prepared to bill wildfire victims for a portion of the nearly $4 billion the government says it’s owed by Pacific Gas & Electric Co., if the debt isn’t resolved as part of the utility’s bankruptcy case, according to a newspaper report Sunday.

Federal officials are prepared to bill wildfire victims for a portion of the nearly $4 billion the government says it’s owed by Pacific Gas & Electric Co., if the debt isn’t resolved as part of the utility’s bankruptcy case, according to a newspaper report Sunday. Pete Suratos reports.

PG&E has told a regulatory judge that it could save over $500 million in taxes as part of a deal with California state regulators.

PG&E has told a regulatory judge that it could save over $500 million in taxes as part of a deal with California state regulators.