20260303News Release.pdf

lr �_ Idaho Public Utilities Commission Brad LitUe,Governor
P.O. Box 83720, Boise. ID 83770-0074 Edward Lodge, President
John R.Hammond, Jr.,Commissioner
Dayn Hardie,Commissioner
Case No. C11-E-26-01
Order No. 36952
Contact:Adam Rush
Office: [phone]
E-mail Address: [e-mail]
NEWS RELEASE: Southern Idaho electric co-op submits application seeking approval of
wildfire mitigation plan.
BOISE (March 3,2026)—Raft River Rural Electric Co-op Inc. has submitted an application to
the Idaho Public Utilities Commission seeking approval of its wildfire mitigation plan (WMP).
The plan offers information on the work the utility is doing to reduce the risk of wildfires.
Electric utilities file the plans with the Commission pursuant to the Wildfire Standard of Care
Act(WSCA). The WSCA requires the Commission to annually approve WMPs for investor-
owned electric utilities. Under the WSCA, if a wildfire results in a lawsuit against an electric
utility,there is a presumption the utility acted without negligence if it reasonably implemented a
Commission-approved WMP. Municipal and cooperative electric utilities, which are not
regulated by the Commission, may voluntarily submit plans for the Commission's review.
Each utility's WMP includes identifying areas where the utility has infrastructure or equipment
that it considers may be subject to heightened wildfire risk at the time the WMP is finalized by
the utility, actions and programs the utility will take to reduce wildfire risk, community outreach
and public awareness efforts the utility will use before, during and after wildfire season to inform
the public of relevant wildfire risk as well as efforts to notify the public of wildfire-related
outages, among other items.
Raft River Rural Electric said its WMP assesses and minimizes the probability that its
transmission and distribution system may contribute to or be the origin of a wildfire. The plan
also evaluates efforts to control vegetation near overhead transmission lines and includes
information on mitigating actions that are taken on a day-to-day basis to reduce wildfire risks,
among other items.
Commission staff,Raft River Rural Electric and intervenors to the case will start the process of
creating a record that, once completed, will be submitted to the Commission for its
consideration. Intervenors are allowed to participate in the proceedings for applications filed
with the Commission.
Additional information on the WMP is available at: puc.idaho.gov/case/Details/7701.