Sacramento – The Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety (Energy Safety) today released its 2026 Executive Compensation Structure Guidelines for electrical corporations. Release of the guidelines follows a 30-day public comment period.
Energy Safety does not set or approve the actual salaries of corporation executives. The guidelines assist electrical corporations seeking Certificate (formerly safety certification) in developing their executive compensation structures. 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 to be eligible for the Certificate.
The Certificate process is designed to encourage electrical corporations to invest in safety and improve safety culture to limit wildfire risks and reduce costs. An electrical corporation with a Certificate is presumed to have acted reasonably in the event of a utility-caused wildfire, unless demonstrated otherwise, during proceedings before the CPUC. If an electrical corporation is determined to have not acted reasonably it must repay the Wildfire Fund a percentage of the money withdrawn to compensate wildfire victims.