Scott Wiener must be a glutton for punishment. Just last week, the Democratic state senator from San Francisco failed, after repeated attempts and many revisions, to win Senate approval of his ambitious bill to force local communities to accept more multi-family housing. Four days later, Wiener took on another, equally...
PG&E Clears Another Bankruptcy Hurdle With Debt Refinancing
SAN FRANCISCO — A federal judge on Tuesday approved a settlement that moves Pacific Gas & Electric closer to getting out of bankruptcy, but the troubled utility still must navigate nettlesome obstacles being put up by the state of California. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Dennis Montali signed off on a deal...
Bill Seeks State Takeover of PG&E
SAN FRANCISCO — Pacific Gas & Electric company, the nation's largest utility, would be transformed into a publicly owned company under a bill unveiled in Sacramento Monday. State Sen. Scott Wiener said the bill would involve a takeover the utility and its sprawling network of power lines that have been...
Walters: Who Is Too Big to Fail?
Those to the left of the political centerline often complain — with good reason — about using taxpayer funds to bail out large corporations that are insolvent, or nearly so, due to mismanagement. The criticism erupted 41 years ago when the federal government saved Chrysler Motors from extinction and was...
California Could Make Utilities Pay for Some Blackout Costs
SACRAMENTO — Californians left in the dark by electric companies that shut off their power to prevent wildfires could get paid for things like lost wages or spoiled food under a bill being considered in the state Legislature. In a state plagued by catastrophic blazes started by strong winds knocking...
Assemblyman Adam Gray Demands Probe of PG&E's Chief Regulator
SAN FRANCISCO — A state lawmaker on Wednesday demanded an extensive review of the California Public Utilities Commission to determine whether regulators’ lax oversight enabled neglect at Pacific Gas & Electric that triggered catastrophic wildfires, a messy bankruptcy and exasperating blackouts. The request by Assemblyman Adam Gray could turn up...
Sonoma County Prepares to Sue PG&E for Damages From Fire
SONOMA — A county in Northern California wine country is exploring plans to sue a utility over a massive wildfire last fall that caused losses of $725 million when combined with rolling power shutoffs. The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to hire two law firms to pursue legal...
AP Exclusive: Early PG&E Blackouts Forewarned Later Problems
SAN FRANCISCO — The state senators grilling the CEO of Pacific Gas & Electric Corp. were upset — like millions of other Californians, some spent days in the dark when the nation’s largest utility shut off power during windstorms this fall. The lawmakers demanded that the executive explain why blackouts...
PG&E Admits It May Have Ignited Sonoma Fire
LOS ANGELES — Pacific Gas & Electric admitted its electrical equipment may have ignited a ruinous wildfire spreading across the California wine country, despite blackouts imposed across the region to prevent blazes. The disclosure came as firefighters simultaneously battled flames in both Northern and Southern California: the fire amid Sonoma...
Fire Erupts as Californians Hit With 2nd Round of Blackouts
GEYSERVILLE — A Northern California wildfire exploded in size early Thursday amid dangerous winds that prompted PG&E to impose electrical blackouts to prevent fires. Authorities ordered the entire community of Geyserville to evacuate after the fire in the Sonoma County wine region north of San Francisco grew to more than...