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SB 2339

AN ACT to create and enact a new chapter to title 49 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to strict liability and a wildfire mitigation plan of a qualified utility; and to provide for a report.

69th Legislative Assembly (2025-26) Introduced by Brad Bekkedahl and 5 co-sponsors

ND SB 2339 bars strict liability for wildfire damages against qualified electric utilities and requires standardized wildfire mitigation plans with public disclosure.

Filed with Secretary Of State 04/25
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Bill Summary · SB 2339

Summary — North Dakota SB 2339 (2025)

Status: Introduced March 12, 2025; filed with Secretary of State April 25, 2025.
Primary sponsors: Senators Kessel, Bekkedahl, Patten; Representatives Novak, J. Olson, Porter.

Purpose / Intent

SB 2339 creates a new chapter in Title 49 of the North Dakota Century Code to (1) preclude the application of a strict‑liability standard to certain electric utilities for wildfire‑related damages, and (2) authorize and standardize wildfire mitigation plans for those utilities, including public reporting.

Key provisions

  • Definitions

    • "Qualified utility": electric public utilities, rural electric cooperatives, municipal electric utilities, municipal joint action agencies, and electric transmission providers.
    • "Wildfire mitigation plan" and "hazardous vegetation" are defined.

  • Limitation on strict liability

    • Courts may not apply a strict‑liability standard to a qualified utility in any civil action alleging the utility caused wildfire‑related damages. (Claimants would need to proceed under negligence or other standards.)

  • Wildfire mitigation plan (required contents)

    • Identification of heightened‑risk areas within the utility service territory.
    • Procedures, standards, and timeframes for safe operation and inspection of infrastructure exposed to hazardous vegetation.
    • Vegetation‑management procedures compliant with ANSI A300, Part 7.
    • Planned facility modifications/upgrades and preventative programs to reduce ignition risk.
    • Procedures for disabling reclosers and (where applicable) de‑energizing lines, taking into account:
    • ability to access and disable reclosers/de‑energize lines;
    • balancing wildfire risk with continuity of supply;
    • impacts on public safety, first responders, health and communications infrastructure.
    • Restoration procedures following wildfire.
    • Cost estimates for plan implementation (system improvements/upgrades).
    • Community outreach/public‑awareness activities.
    • Potential coordination with state/local wildfire protection or mitigation plans.
    • Required compliance with the 2023 National Electrical Safety Code (as adopted in later engrossed/house‑amended versions) in addition to ANSI A300, Part 7.

  • Submission, publication, and updates

    • Investor‑owned electric utilities and transmission providers may file plans with the Public Service Commission and must publish plans on their websites within 30 days of filing.
    • Rural electric cooperatives, municipal utilities, and municipal joint action agencies submit plans to their boards and must publish approved plans on their websites within 30 days of board approval.
    • Plans must be updated and resubmitted/reapproved every two years (earlier drafts used three years; later amendment reduced to two).

  • Evidence standard and reporting

    • Preparation, publication, and compliance with an approved mitigation plan constitutes a rebuttable presumption (engrossed/house amendment) that the qualified utility exercised a reasonable standard of care.
    • Utilities with approved plans may submit annual compliance reports (public utilities/transmission providers to the commission; others to their board) and must publish such reports on their websites. Public utilities’ reports are due by December 31 each year the plan is effective.

Who is affected

  • Directly: electric public utilities, rural electric cooperatives, municipal electric utilities/joint action agencies, and transmission providers operating in North Dakota.
  • Indirectly: ratepayers and customers (through potential infrastructure investments or service interruptions), landowners, insurers, courts and litigants in wildfire claims, first responders, and state/local wildfire response/mitigation entities.

Practical effect / policy implications

  • Legal: Removes strict‑liability exposure for covered utilities in wildfire cases, shifting plaintiff burdens toward fault‑based proof; provides utilities with a statutory procedural defense where an approved mitigation plan exists.
  • Operational: Encourages utilities to document and periodically update formal mitigation programs, follow national vegetation and safety standards, coordinate with public safety stakeholders, and publicly disclose plans and annual compliance.
  • Regulatory/transparency: Requires public posting of plans and annual reporting, increasing visibility into utility wildfire risk management.

Timeline / next steps

  • Introduced March 12, 2025; filed with Secretary of State April 25, 2025. (Check state legislative records for subsequent enactment, gubernatorial action, or effective date if enacted.)

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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