A lesson in ‘making sense’ out of a bad deal
know what they’re talking about due to their practical experience in dealing with different aspects of water policy and water operations. To date, there’s been no evidence of hidden agendas or political bamboozling. Neither Haschak nor McGourty have been a problem, not that I ever expected them to be. In fact, they have supported and endorsed damn near all of the advice and recommendations from committee participants.
Most importantly, they also listen a hell of a lot more than they talk at our meetings.
And that squares with my belief that there was a reason why the Creator gave us two ears but just one mouth. issued a joint statement that is reality-bending. They said it made more sense to make a civil settlement “to maximize the return to the fire victims rather than to seek criminal penalties.” The utility only paid $4 million in fines after pleading guilty to 85 felony charges in the 2018 Camp Fire, the deadliest wildfire ever in California. The judge lamented that the $4 million was the maximum penalty under the law. Unless the federal government decides to prosecute on the Dixie Fire, the deal enables PG&E to avoid the stigma of more criminal convictions on its record as it struggles to polish its tattered reputation while spending billions every year to make improvements in wildfire safety.
According to the Sacramento Bee, “PG&E Corp. cut a dramatic deal with prosecutors in six California counties Monday that enables it to sidestep criminal prosecution from two notorious wildfires. Pacific Gas and Electric Co. instead will pay tens of millions of dollars in fines, charitable contributions and other expenditures. The state’s largest utility agreed to pay more than $55 million in order to avoid prosecution on last year’s Dixie Fire — the second largest wildfire in California’s recorded history — and the 2019 Kincade Fire in Sonoma County. The company had already been indicted in connection with the Kincade Fire and was being investigated by district attorneys in five counties following the Dixie Fire.”
Anyway, under the deal, the DA in Sonoma County dropped the criminal case and the other coalition DAs announced they will forego filing charges. However, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Sacramento has also been investigating PG&E’s role in the Dixie Fire, and wasn’t a party to the settlement. Since the 2019 Kincade Fire occurred in Sonoma County, it is not in the jurisdiction of the Sacramento U.S. Attorney’s Office, but it is in the jurisdiction of the San Francisco Office, that so far has not been involved in the issue, at least publicly. CALFIRE investigations found that both fires were caused by PG&E power lines.
The deal has clearly angered many fire victims and others, given PG&E’s abysmal history on statutorily-required tree and vegetative maintenance, wildfire safety and the amount of damage done by the two fires. But the district attorney in Plumas County — where the worst of the damage from the Dixie Fire occurred — said the “agreement made sense.”
Of course, this backroom deal probably makes the most sense to those who suffered no losses in life or property, i.e. coalition DAs, because of PG&E’s criminal actions in starting the most destructive and expensive wildfires in California History.
Jim Shields is the Mendocino County Observer’s editor and publisher, observer@pacific.net, the long-time district manager of the Laytonville County Water District, and is also chairman of the Laytonville Area Municipal Advisory Council. Listen to his radio program “This and That” every Saturday at noon on KPFN 105.1 FM, also streamed live: http://www.kpfn.org