TallyIDAHOLegislative Tracker
S1124CLOSE VOTE2025 Regular Session

Adds to existing law to provide for electric corporations' standard of care for wildfire liability.

PUBLIC UTILITY REGULATION -- Adds to existing law to provide for electric corporations' standard of care for wildfire liability.

PUBLIC UTILITY REGULATION

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

This legislation creates the "Wildfire Standard of Care Act" under Title 61, Chapter 18 to create a standard of care through electric utility wildfire mitigation plans, subject to approval by the Idaho Public Utilities Commission (lPUC) for regulated utilities. In recent years, wildfires have bankrupted utilities and driven their customers' monthly bills to crippling levels. In part, this is due to courts holding utilities liable for wildfire damages, despite a finding of fault or causation. Many of Idaho's utilities, especially small and rural co-ops, could not survive those losses. Higher bills would harm Idaho's economy and place extreme burden on low- and fixed-income customers. The "Wildfire Standard of Care Act" protects customers and member-owners from the impacts of wildfire by empowering the IPUC to setclearandconsistentexpectationsforutilities'wildfiremitigationefforts, holdingutilitiestoarobuststandard of care in operations, maintenance, repair, and upgrades, and outlining liabilities for utilities that fail to meet IPUC requirements. It also motivates federal agencies to promptly authorize wildfire mitigation work.

HOW THEY VOTED

LATEST ACTION

Recommitted to State Affairs

SPONSORS

R
Jim Woodward

Sen · SD-001

Primary
R
Douglas Pickett

Rep · HD-027A

R
Mark Harris

Sen · SD-035

R
John Vander Woude

Rep · HD-022A

R
Todd Lakey

Sen · SD-023

R
Charlie Shepherd

Rep · HD-007B

R
Doug Okuniewicz

Sen · SD-003

R
Britt Raybould

Rep · HD-034B

R
Stephanie Mickelsen

Rep · HD-032A

R
Clay Handy

Rep · HD-027B

R
Barbara Ehardt

Rep · HD-033A

R
Lori McCann

Rep · HD-006A

R
Dan Garner

Rep · HD-028B

R
Mike Pohanka

Rep · HD-026A

R
John Shirts

Rep · HD-009A

R
Shawn Dygert

Rep · HD-023B

R
Dori Healey

Rep · HD-015B

R
Ted Hill

Rep · HD-014A

R
Jack Nelsen

Rep · HD-026B

R
Joe Alfieri

Rep · HD-004A

BILL INFO

Session
2025
Chamber
senate
Status date
Feb 21, 2025

LINKS

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