SACRAMENTO – The Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety (Energy Safety) today approved executive compensation structures for Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), Southern California Edison (SCE), San Diego Gas & Electric (SDGE), and Bear Valley Electric Service (BVES). The approvals follow a public comment period that concluded on Sept. 18.
Electrical corporations are statutorily required (Pub. Util. Code § 8389(e)(4))(Pub. Util. Code § 8389(e)(6)) to have an executive compensation structure that meets specific criteria in order to be eligible for the safety certification process. The executive compensation structures for the four electrical corporations meet the statutory criteria, which are intended to promote and incentivize public safety as a priority and to ensure the utility’s financial stability. Energy Safety does not set or approve the actual salaries for electrical corporation executives.
This is the fourth consecutive year that Energy Safety has approved executive compensation structures for electric corporations seeking safety certification.
An electrical corporation with an approved executive compensation structure satisfies two of seven criteria required to be eligible for an annual safety certification. An electrical corporation with a safety certification is presumed to have acted reasonably in proceedings before the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to recover costs of a utility-caused wildfire.