Rep. Cate: Hold PacificCorp accountable

Representatives Call on Legislature to Hold PacificCorp Accountable After Federal Government Files Negligence Lawsuit
By Oregon State Representative Jami Cate,

SALEM, Ore – The U.S. government has filed a lawsuit against PacifiCorp, accusing the utility company of negligence related to the 2020 Archie Creek Wildfire in Douglas County. According to the lawsuit, the company had a history of safety violations, including more than 250 vegetation clearance violations, and had “knowingly and intentionally operated insufficiently maintained power lines.”

PacifiCorp’s failure to properly maintain its equipment, including power lines, is believed to have contributed to the Labor Day fires across the state, including sparking the Archie Creek Fire, which burned more than 130,000 acres—approximately half of which was federal land—during the devastating 2020 Labor Day wildfires. There are still countless outstanding liability lawsuits from victims of these fires around the state, including in the Santiam Canyon.

The federal government had asked PacifiCorp to pay for the costs associated with the Archie Creek Wildfire on March 15, 2023. However, as of Thursday, the company had not made any payments toward those costs. This inaction has prompted the federal lawsuit, as the government seeks full accountability for the damages caused by PacifiCorp’s negligence.

This lawsuit comes just days after the Oregon Public Utilities Commission approved a 9.8% rate increase for residential customers of Pacific Power. When this goes into effect on January 1^st, they will have raised rates nearly 50% since 2021—further exasperating the financial burden on wildfire victims and passing the buck to Oregonians—all while Pacific Power has yet to pay anything towards its wildfire liabilities.

Three Representatives in the Oregon Legislative Assembly are bringing forward a bill in January, and asking the Legislature to ban a public utility from raising rates if they have unresolved wildfire lawsuits for three or more years. This concept will be introduced by Representative Jami Cate (R-Lebanon) and co-chief sponsored by Representatives Virgle Osborne (R-Roseburg) and Ed Diehl (R-Stayton).

Rep. Jami Cate (R-Lebanon) issued the following statement:

“Pacific Power continues to shirk their responsibility in the devastating 2020 fires that ravaged our state. I applaud the federal government for taking action to force financial restitution for the damages they incurred. It is now Oregon’s turn to put pressure on Pacific Power to finally own up to their liabilities, and stop the practice of rubber stamping historic rate hikes, finally ceasing the continued financial hardship of our wildfire victims. Inaction should not be our status quo when holding utility providers accountable.”

Rep. Virgle Osborne (R-Roseburg) added:

“PacifiCorp has had more than enough time to pay the costs they owe for the Archie Creek Fire, yet they’ve refused to do so. This is a slap in the face to the families who lost everything. The federal government is doing the right thing by filing this lawsuit, and we stand firmly behind it. PacifiCorp needs to pay up and take responsibility for the destruction they’ve caused, and putting a stop to rate hikes is the best way to achieve it.”

Rep. Ed Diehl (R-Stayton) said:

“After years of inaction, it is beyond time for PacifiCorp to take responsibility for the damage they’ve caused around our state. The federal government is absolutely right to step in, and we support their decision to file this lawsuit, and hope 2025’s Legislative Session will lead to more accountability for wildfire victims.”