
September 1st, 2026
California lawmakers will vote Tuesday on a bill to help wildfire victims.
The vote comes after they said no to a bigger plan by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
His plan would have limited how much utility companies pay when their equipment starts fires.
Newsom said the new deal has some good parts, like faster payments for victims.
But he said it does not make big changes about who pays for fires caused by utility equipment.
His first plan would have made utilities pay some victims less.
It would also have stopped insurance companies from suing utilities to get their money back.
This loss is rare for the governor.
He often gets support from the Democratic-led Legislature.
Fire victims had strongly criticized his plan.
They said it helped the utility companies.
Joy Chen, from Every Fire Survivor's Network, called the deal a win.
She said lawmakers listened to survivors.
The bill will start a program to pay victims faster.
It will also stop hedge funds from making money from wildfire claims.
And it will stop utility leaders from getting bonuses if their equipment damaged more than 500 buildings.
Utility companies, like Pacific Gas & Electric and Edison International, said the bill will not keep rates steady.
They also said it will not give long-term answers.
Assemblymember Rick Zbur called the lack of bigger change a "disaster."
The bill needs two-thirds of the votes to pass.
It will start working right after it is signed.
Lawmakers also passed another bill.
It creates the first rules in the nation for testing and cleaning dangerous chemicals in homes after wildfires.
September 1st, 2026

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