Wildfire Recovery Fund Study

Act 258, Session Laws of Hawaii 2025, directed the commission to study whether Hawaiʻi should establish a wildfire recovery fund to provide timely and meaningful compensation to victims of future wildfires allegedly caused or worsened by electric utilities, while also supporting the financial integrity of Hawaii’s regulated utilities, which provide essential public services. The comprehensive study was submitted to the Legislature December 31, 2025 ahead of the 2026 Legislative session.

Download Wildfire Recovery Fund Study Full Report (pdf/ 5.92MB)

Download Wildfire Recovery Fund Study 2-Page Summary (pdf/ 3.2MB)

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

What did the study do?

  • Evaluated whether a wildfire recovery fund could balance:
    • Timely, equitable compensation for victims
    • Financial stability for utilities to keep essential services affordable and reliable
  • Considered how a fund would interact with other tools, such as:
    • A utility liability cap
    • Securitization options for utilities to finance resilience upgrades
  • Engaged a wide range of stakeholders and/or experts in law, finance, energy policy and wildfire risk to ensure diverse perspectives

What are the key findings?

  • A wildfire recovery fund is likely warranted in the future, but it is highly intertwined with decisions related to the establishment of a liability cap, which would determine the extent to which a fund would be necessary to address the needs of the electric utility, ratepayers, other interested parties, as well as future wildfire victims.
  • The existence of a wildfire recovery fund would likely be viewed as credit positive for regulated utilities.
  • A wildfire recovery fund can help expedite compensation for wildfire victims if the fund’s administration and governance are independent and well-designed.

What’s Next?

The two items listed below are important next steps to inform future policy decisions regarding the establishment of a potential wildfire recovery fund:

  • The completion of the PUC’s administrative rulemaking process establishing liability caps for electric utilities, as required by Act 258.
  • The commissioning of an actuarial study to determine an appropriate size and structure for a wildfire recovery fund.

MORE INFORMATION

See related Commission pages:

Updated 12/2025