California PG&E Takeover Bill Passes Senate, Heads to Governor

California’s Legislature is sending Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) a bill that would allow the state to create Golden State Energy, a nonprofit public-benefit corporation, to acquire PG&E if the utility doesn’t meet certain bankruptcy deadlines or fails to perform required safety work.

• The state’s largest utility filed bankruptcy in January 2019 in the wake of billions in liability costs after transmission equipment ignited the 2018 Camp Fire, the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California history. A bankruptcy judge on June 20 signed an order approving PG&E’s Chapter 11 plan to exit bankruptcy.
• The bill, which passed the Senate 30-8 ...