Newsletters
PG&E catches a break but its problems persist
PG&E is cleared of one big fire, but stil on the hook for so many others. Wall Street speaks. Another California Republican bails on the the GOP.
PG&E
Capitol
PG&E just escaped blame for one huge disaster—but it’s still the utility California loves to hate
Mention Pacific Gas & Electric to Victor Porter, and the response is nothing like the bland non-opinion most Americans have of the companies that provide their electricity. “They have to pay,” said Porter, a 64-year-old artist who fled for his life with his partner and their dog when the towering Camp Fire swept down on […]
Newsletters
Electricity crisis hits Edison and SDG&E, and the L.A. school strike ends
PG&E crisis spreads to Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric, Newsom makes some key regulatory appointments, Los Angeles' school strike ends and free money for kindergartners.
Newsletters
Will an early primary help Harris? Plus, fighting PG&E bankruptcy
Kamala Harris won't be the only California angle in 2020. And let the PG&E lobbying begin in Sacramento—just don't expect it to be done by PG&E.
Commentary
My turn: The Legislature must make hard choices to avert PG&E bankruptcy
Gov. Gavin Newsom needs legislators to begin the uncomfortable work of making changes to our infrastructure, our policies, and yes, our liability laws, so that we can build a state meets the current challenges of climate change while reducing its impact in the future.
California Wildfires
My turn: What I learned from the last time PG&E went bankrupt
PG&E's bankruptcy in 2001 and the one to come are at once similar and very different. But we did learn lessons the hard way in 2000 and 2001. Having lived through the last bankruptcy, my suggestion to policymakers is to slow down and conduct a thorough analysis to fully understand the nature of the problem.
Economy
Will PG&E customers pay more in bankruptcy? Not if state watchdog can stop it
PG&E customers shouldn't have to foot the bankruptcy bill if the utility is responsible for deadly California wildfires, says a state watchdog.
California Wildfires
My turn: Sell PG&E for parts and build community energy instead
By Catherine Brinkley Catherine Brinkley is an assistant professor of human ecology at University of California, Davis, who has written extensively on community energy infrastructures, ckbrinkley@ucdavis.edu. She wrote this commentary for CALmatters. Pacific Gas & Electric Co. is filing for bankruptcy. Again. When PG&E filed in 2001, it was the third largest bankruptcy filing in […]
Newsletters
California’s grid: PG&E isn’t all that’s changing
The bankrupcy of California's largest utility is just one wrinkle in the new world of electricity delivery Plus: the surplus, housing and a new GOP leader.