SACRAMENTO – The Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety (Energy Safety) today issued “certificates,” (formerly known as safety certifications), to Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), Southern California Edison (SCE), San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E), and Bear Valley Electric Service (BVES). The certificates, valid for one year, are designed to encourage electrical corporations to invest in safety and improve safety culture to reduce wildfire risks and costs.
An electrical corporation must demonstrate completion of seven statutory requirements to be eligible for a certificate. An electrical corporation with a certificate is presumed to have acted reasonably in proceedings before the CPUC to recover costs from a utility-caused wildfire unless demonstrated otherwise.
A certificate does not protect or shield an electrical corporation from liability, nor does it constitute an affirmation by Energy Safety that an electrical corporation has taken all possible steps to prevent its equipment from causing wildfire or is in full compliance with its wildfire mitigation plan or other laws and requirements.