SACRAMENTO – The Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety (Energy Safety) today issued a revision notice to Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) Company for its 2026-2028 Wildfire Mitigation Plan (WMP). The revision notice identified 12 critical issues with PG&E’s WMP that must be satisfactorily addressed for the plan to be considered for approval. PG&E has 30 days to correct these issues and submit an updated plan. A public comment period will follow.
The 12 critical issues include:
General
- RN-PG&E-26-01: Targets include caveats for future changes.
Risk Assessment and Mitigation Selection
- RN-PG&E-26-02: Project prioritization is not properly represented.
Grid Design, Operations, and Maintenance
- RN-PG&E-26-03: Decision-making process for system hardening is insufficiently supported.
- RN-PG&E-26-04: Combined targets for covered conductor, remote grids, and line removal.
- RN-PG&E-26-05: Rebuild program miles are combined into undergrounding and overhead hardening targets.
- RN-PG&E-26-06: No target and lack of detail for aerial scan inspections used to supplement detailed distribution inspections.
- RN-PG&E-26-07: No target for transmission switch function tests.
Vegetation Management
- RN-PG&E-26-08: Vegetation management qualitative targets are not specific or measurable.
- RN-PG&E-26-09: No plan for incorporating Tree Removal Inventory (TRI) and Focused Tree Inspections (FTI) into routine patrols.
- RN-PG&E-26-10: Pole clearing targets do not follow WMP Guideline requirements.
- RN-PG&E-26-11: Integrated Vegetation Management rights-of-way reassessment timescales are unclear.
- RN-PG&E-26-12: Vegetation management quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) units are inconsistent.
Energy Safety’s revision includes required remedies that PG&E must satisfactorily address or risk denial of it 2026-2028 WMP. Stakeholders will have an opportunity to submit comments following Energy Safety’s receipt of PG&E’s updated plan.
The revision notice includes a timetable for the process. PG&E’s response is due July 28; public comments are due Aug 12 and reply comments are due Aug. 22. Energy Safety will issue a draft decision in October.