Southern California Edison has continued to provide detailed information and context to reporters at the Los Angeles Times. It is unfortunate that the publication’s most recent piece demonstrates their consistently predetermined bias against our company. The reporter avoided including important context, distorted key elements and selectively omitted facts. Most disappointing is the fact that the reporter never called SCE for comment in a story that is focused on us.
To start, the article got the number of the California State Assembly bill — that serves as the basis of the piece — wrong. Instead of the correct number, they list AB 1744 Environmental advertising: sunscreen.
We’re pretty sure that the reporter meant to reference AB 1774 Electrical corporations: wildfire mitigation plans: expenditures. That legislation would require the CPUC to halt approval of critical wildfire mitigation spending while it conducts an audit that overlaps with existing review efforts.
The fact is SCE is committed to transparency, safety and accountability in wildfire mitigation spending. AB 1774 is unnecessary — given the extensive statutory and regulatory controls already in place — and risks delayed mitigation, conflicting oversight and higher costs without improving wildfire safety outcomes.
The article claims that SCE failed to complete wildfire mitigation work, and that its funding cannot be accounted for. This is false, as we noted in this Edison for the Record.
That Los Angeles Times article from December claimed Edison failed to spend funds authorized for transmission line maintenance and upgrades. We have shared with the reporter that the vast majority of the spending-below-authorized was unrelated to inspections, maintenance and repairs in high fire risk areas. In fact, the reallocated capital was based on the need to do the work for safety and reliability.
From 2018 to December 2025, SCE completed the following mitigations in high fire risk areas:
- Installed approximately 7,080 circuit miles of covered conductor, covering about 76% of SCE’s overhead distribution lines in high fire risk areas.
- Carried out more than two million tree trimmings and removals in high fire risk areas.
- Conducted more than one million inspections in high fire risk areas.
- Installed more than 1,980 weather stations and more than 200 HD cameras.
Since 2018, in high fire risk areas where SCE has installed covered conductor, there have been no ignitions from the risks covered conductor is designed to mitigate.
SCE has spent approximately $10.2 billion in wildfire mitigation from 2020 through 2025, and its funding is fully and transparently accounted for in public regulatory submissions, including General Rate Case requests.
We know this has been a challenging time for many. Our top concern has always been the safety of our customers, communities and team members, and our commitment to the Altadena community remains unwavering.
The Los Angeles Times continues to rely on erroneous, misleading and biased reporting at a time when accurate journalism matters most, ultimately leaving readers without the full context needed to understand the issues affecting their community.
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