PG&E's Problems

Yah, so there are really nasty weather conditions--desert winds and ultra-dry air--which make fires a lot worse, fast.  There's a long drought which ended a year ago but the effects are still present.

Then there's the utility's wires:  rickety, non-fireproofed, aging, and falling down.  Apply a few thousand volts at high amperage and you'd be amazed how big a fire you can start!!\

Cal Gov Newsom, a Jesuit-educated blithering idiot, wants to "take over" PG&E.  Before he does that, he might want to change a few of the rules he'd have to live under as a utility operator.  Or maybe not.  Maybe his model of "fighting climate change" is the same one employed in North Korea.  They don't have lights on over there.

...The company spent more than half a billion dollars in 2018 on electric discounts for low-income citizens and another $125 million for efficiency upgrades, The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board noted in an Oct. 25 editorial. PG&E has also used $7.5 billion in allowances since 2012 to pay for reduced emissions....

...California lawmakers passed an ordinance in 2015 requiring utilities to pay $100 million annually on solar systems in low-income areas, The WSJ Editorial Board noted. That is in addition to the $2.2 billion in rebates the utilities must offer customers for rooftop solar installations. A ratepayer advocacy division within California’s Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) is complicating matters.

CPUC’s Office of Ratepayer Advocates (ORA) argues against maintenance and safety expenditures to keep rates low for customers, according to an application PG&E made to CPUC in 2012 to increase rates. PG&E noted in the document that ORA’s other priorities are making it difficult to maintain current infrastructure....

California obviously wants to Lead The World in climate-change technology.  Fine and good.  There will be a few broken eggs while they're making their omelet.