Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2019 My Turn • 109 deaths to fires and California Congressmen still take money from PG&E

Publisher’s note: This My Turn by Brian Walters originally appeared in the Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2019 edition of the Lassen County Times

California in the last few years has seem some of the worst wild fires on record and its largest utility company, Pacific Gas and Electric, has been to blame for many of them.

Recently it has come to light that despite the extensive damage these fires and PG&E have caused, our elected representatives have no issue taking money from the utility giant.

ABC10 led an investigation into PG&E’s federal, political spending and found the majority of California’s congressional delegation continued to take money from the company’s PAC, even after the seeming monopoly was convicted in federal court and blamed for sparking wildfires that have taken 109 lives.

The deaths occurred in the districts of five different members of congress, Mike Thompson, Tom McClintock, John Garamendi, Jared Huffman and our very own District 1 representative Doug LaMalfa.

Now I know there is nothing illegal about taking campaign contributions from the utility or its PAC, but there is an ethical dilemma at stake here. When is the money not good enough? When will the lives lost be too high?

Our elected representatives continue to take money from a company they say should be held to account, but at this point it’s just their bank accounts they worry about, it seems.

Here are the fires that PG&E has caused and the number of lives lost
• Butte Fire, Sept. 9, 2015: 2 dead
• Nuns Fire, Oct. 8, 2017: 3 dead
• Atlas Fire, Oct. 8, 2017: 6 dead
• Cascade Fire, Oct. 8, 2017: 4 dead
• Redwood Valley Fire, Oct. 8, 2017: 9 dead
• Camp Fire, Nov. 8, 2018: 85 dead

If accountability is their concern, then accepting money from what I see as a criminal organization is seen as nothing less than a bribe, in my opinion.

None of the five Congress members who represent the 109 people who died in PG&E caused wildfires plan to return or donate the combined $58,000 they received from PG&E’s PAC.

These five congressman are just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. Even our two senators, Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris, have kept the money donated to them by PG&E.

They have some stinging words for the company, but words and actions are two very different things.