Pacific Power's liability request rejected by OR Public Utility Commission

OREGON – The Oregon Public Utility Commission rejected Pacific Power’s proposed liability request. Pacific Power, which provides electric services to more than 600,000 Oregonians, requested the commission to limit its liability for non-economic and punitive damages. This refers to loss of personal items for Pac Power customers, which even in the case of negligence and misconduct, wouldn’t be compensated by the energy company.

We reached out to Pacific Power for comment on the rejection of the filing to limit the liability in wildfire lawsuits. It provided a statement in part,

Pacificorp provides an essential service and is seeking a balance between everyone’s priorities of safety and affordability. Pacificorp will consider the commission’s feedback to continue to look for approaches to address this risk.

Oregon Consumer Justice (OCJ) advocated against this request. OCJ Executive Director, Jagjit Nagra said,

I really applaud the decision that the commission reached. I know that there was a lot of sort of eyes on this and there were some significant stakes here. And it’s really fantastic the commission made the decision that was in the interest of Oregonians, because a lot of Oregonians utilize Pacific Power for their utility needs.

Nagra said though, this is only the commissioner’s decision, and nothing stops Pac Power from going to the state legislature and passing a bill that accomplishes similar outcomes to its request. He said that OCJ will be prepared to push back on any legislative efforts.