Malibu demands Southern California Edison change public safety power shutoff rules

Frustrated Malibu residents aired their grievances about Southern California Edison's public safety power shutoff (PSPS) during a meeting with the utility company on Tuesday. 

City officials and residents claim the power shutoffs stall the community by interrupting work and school. Malibu said in 2024 it had three times more outages than other SCE cities. They also claimed that the community has to wait more than three days to have their power restored, compared to the average of three hours for other cities. 

"It doesn't happen in Africa," one resident said during the meeting. "It doesn't happen in Central America. It doesn't happen in the poorest countries in the world — in Southeast Asia, this doesn't happen — so it shouldn't happen here."

SoCal Edison said the power shutoffs happened during high-fire danger weather to help prevent electrical lines from sparking wildfires. SCE is facing multiple lawsuits for its alleged role in the Eaton Fire, with claims that the company did not take sufficient measures to shut off its lines during the disaster. The company also established a compensation program for Eaton Fire victims.

In May, SoCal Edison also agreed to pay $82.5 million to the federal government for the 2020 Bobcat Fire. 

"We absolutely understand public safety power shutoffs can be a hardship," SCE spokesman David Eisenhower said. "Power can be off for a long period of time when customers really want to have it or need it. We cannot compromise on safety, and this is what PSPS is all about. It's about keeping our community safe."

Rather than protecting communities, residents claimed the shutoffs are about insulating the company from legal risk.

Mayor Marianne Riggins argued that the PSPS system puts residents at greater risk. 

"I am disappointed that there isn't more resiliency and more backup for our critical infrastructure," Riggins said. "Traffic signals, our cell phone coverage, our Wi-Fi, every time we lose power, we lose access to notifications. Even though they're advertising, go to the website to find out information when the power's off, you don't have access, a lot of times, to your internet."

In an effort to reduce the number of shut-offs, SoCal Edison said they've transferred about nine miles of lines underground and plans to do 178 more miles. They're also covering lines with an insulating material, so there will be a smaller chance of arcing or sparking if they come into contact with brush or other debris. 

The utility company has also implemented a microgrid at the high school, allowing classes to continue during power outages.