Regulators waive $200M fine on PG&E for causing deadly fires

BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) — California regulators on Thursday suspended a $200 million fine that Pacific Gas & Electric was supposed to pay as punishment for the utility's neglect of electrical equipment that ignited a series of deadly wildfires in Northern California.

The waiver approved in a unanimous vote by California's Public Utilities Commission will deprive the state coffers of money that could offset revenue expected to be lost as the coronavirus pandemic depletes funds coming from sales and income taxes.

PG&E had resisted the fine on the grounds that it would threaten its ability to raise the tens of billions of dollars it will need to finance its complex plan to emerge from bankruptcy by a June 30 deadline.

Regulators backed down, despite a warning from its public advocates office that letting PG&E get away without paying the $200 million would set a troubling precedent that could lead to more problems in the future.

“Rather than motivating PG&E to improve its abysmal safety record, a permanently suspended fine would encourage PG&E to devise future stratagems to avoid penalties," the public advocate said.

The move reverses a decision issued in February by an administrative law judge who determined the $200 million fine was justified in light of the devastation caused by PG&E's misconduct. The Public Utilities Commission blamed PG&E's fraying electrical grid for causing 15 wildfires that killed more than 100 people and destroyed more than 25,000 homes and other building in 2017 and 2018.

The staggering losses of life and property drove PG&E into bankruptcy early last year. The San Francisco company is now scrambling to get out of bankruptcy before July so it can qualify for coverage from a wildfire insurance fund that...