Cal. PUC § 451.1 — California Code / Code puc / Division 1 / Part 1 / Chapter 3 / Article 1 / Section 451.1
Section 451.1
Status: in_force

(a) For purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings:

(1) “Covered wildfire” has the same meaning as defined in Section 1701.8.

(2) “Wildfire Fund” means the Wildfire Fund created pursuant to Section 3284.

(b)  When determining an application by an electrical corporation to recover costs and expenses arising from a covered wildfire, the commission shall allow cost recovery if the costs and expenses are just and reasonable. Costs and expenses arising from a covered wildfire are just and reasonable if the conduct of the electrical corporation related to the ignition was consistent with actions that a reasonable utility would have undertaken in good faith under similar circumstances, at the relevant point in time, and based on the information available to the electrical corporation at the relevant point in time. Reasonable conduct is not limited to the optimum practice, method, or act to the exclusion of others, but rather encompasses a spectrum of possible practices, methods, or acts consistent with utility system needs, the interest of the ratepayers, and the requirements of governmental agencies of competent jurisdiction. Costs and expenses in the application may be allocated for cost recovery in full or in part taking into account factors both within and beyond the utility’s control that may have exacerbated the costs and expenses, including humidity, temperature, and winds.

(c)  An electrical corporation bears the burden to demonstrate, based on a preponderance of the evidence, that its conduct was reasonable pursuant to subdivision (b) unless it has a valid safety certification pursuant to Section 8389 for the time period in which the covered wildfire that is the subject of the application ignited. If the electrical corporation has received a valid safety certification for the time period in which the covered wildfire ignited, an electrical corporation’s conduct shall be deemed to have been reasonable pursuant to subdivision (b) unless a party to the proceeding creates a serious doubt as to the reasonableness of the electrical corporation’s conduct. Once serious doubt has been raised, the electrical corporation has the burden of dispelling that doubt and proving the conduct to have been reasonable.

(d)  If an electrical corporation has drawn amounts from the Wildfire Fund for eligible claims for a covered wildfire, then the electrical corporation shall file an application to recover costs and expenses pursuant to Section 1701.8 after it has paid substantially all third-party liability claims arising from the covered wildfire.

(e) Notwithstanding Section 451, this section shall direct the commission’s evaluation of applications for recovery of costs and expenses arising from a covered wildfire. This section shall not apply to any other applications for cost recovery.

(f) This section shall not affect any civil action, appeal, or other action or proceeding.

(g) This section shall become inoperative if Section 3292 becomes inoperative pursuant to subdivision (k) of that section and this section shall be repealed on the first January 1 more than three months after this section becomes inoperative. The commission shall notify the Secretary of State as to whether this section becomes inoperative and is repealed.