A resolution put forward by state Sen. Donovan Dela Cruz says the Public Utilities Commission has failed to effectively investigate the causes of the August 2023 Maui wildfires.
The resolution says that the PUC is bound by law to investigate the causes of any accident related to the operations of Hawaiʻi's utilities "which results in loss of life."
However, at a state Senate hearing last Friday, Commissioner Colin Yost said that determining how the fires started falls outside of the PUC's expertise.
"We are not forensic fire investigators," Yost said. "We do not have the competency or the resources to figure out exactly the cause of the Lahaina fires and to determine who's responsible."
During the hearing, senators also questioned why the PUC had yet to open a formal proceeding or "docket" to organize a detailed investigation.
Yost said that a docket is a "slow, laborious process" that would not result in quick answers. Instead, he said the PUC had opted to launch a less formal investigation that asked questions of Hawaiian Electric Co., as well as experts and regulators in other states.
Yost said the PUC may consider opening a docket once the Maui Fire Department releases its report on the fire. State Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole raised concerns about that response, noting that the County of Maui is implicated in many lawsuits filed by attorneys on behalf of fire victims.
"Don't you see a conflict of interest presented by the fact that Maui County is responsible for the causation investigation?" Keohokalole asked Yost. "And isn't it your role to intercede to ensure that any potential conflict of interest is cured in the interest of the public?"
Yost said that while he understood the Senate's concerns, he couldn't say with authority whether or not a conflict exists. He added that the PUC was not equipped to serve in that role.
"Right now, we're not very powerful. We don't have the resources to really engage in that kind of effective counterpoint," Yost said. "We don't have that expertise."
State senators voted to pass the resolution out of its first two committees.
