California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) has proposed helping utilities create a fund of up to $21 billion to compensate future victims of wildfires sparked by the companies’ equipment or employees, Reuters reported. The proposal by the Democratic governor follows the bankruptcy filing earlier this year of San Francisco-based utility PG&E Corp, which anticipates $30 billion in liabilities from wildfires that have been blamed on its equipment, including the state’s deadliest blaze which killed more than 80 people last year. The state’s other two large utilities, Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric, have seen their credit ratings downgraded over wildfire concerns. Since 2000, California has endured 15 of the 20 most destructive wildfires in state history. Newsom has blamed climate change for much of the increased risk from fires.
