California wildfires have become a staple in news media. It seems like every few weeks, there’s a new headlining flame threatening homes and wildlife in the golden state. So far in 2019, over 250,000 acres have burned, costing taxpayers $163 Million in fire suppression alone, not including the damages to infrastructure or personal property.
Even worse, the tragic fires of 2018 burned through nearly 8x as many acres as this year, resulted in over $1.75 Billion of taxpayers’ dollars, with about the same amount attributed to overall damages. And the loss of human life was record-breaking with a grand total of 103.
In light of recent investigations, it has been determined that some of the largest state fires, including the Paradise fire of 2018 that claimed the lives of over 40 residents alone, started at the fault of Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E), the largest utilities provider in California, serving power to nearly half of the state’s population.
What’s even more alarming than these numbers though is both the recent actions and inaction from PG&E. Just a few months ago, the publicly-traded company attempted to pay out over $4 Billion in dividends, but, in a move that taxpayers consider a win, Judge William Alsup of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California ultimately blocked the payout, outlining steps PG&E must take before the block is lifted.
PG&E as yet to meet its probation goals, which includes removing 375,000 dead, dying or hazardous trees from areas that are deemed to be at high risk for wildfires. This number is more than double that which they were ordered to remove last year. In spite of these orders to remove literal fuel for forest fires and failing to meet their quotas, PG&E attempted to pay out the hefty dividends to shareholders.
With constant threats from President Trump to completely cut off federal funding to fight the flames, fire management of the 37th state is uncertain. In January of this year, Trump tweeted “I have ordered FEMA to send no more money,” doubling down this November, reiterating to media that help would come “no more.”
This leaves the multi-billion dollar deficit to the responsibility of the hard-working tax-payers of California. With PG&E facing separate issues of bankruptcy attempting to pay off their own investors while skirting their financial and fire-prevention duties and with Trump blocking aid to the largely-democratic state, the very same residents who face constant power outages and lapse in service are the ones who will likely have to foot the bill.