Edison Is Slashing Top Executive Bonuses After Deadly LA Fire

Edison International is cutting top executive bonuses by 40% to reflect the impact of the devastating Los Angeles-area wildfire that killed 19 people and damaged or destroyed more than 10,000 structures.

The decision follows a hard season for Edison’s Southern California utility, which may be found responsible for the Eaton Fire that burned for almost four weeks in January 2025, wiping out entire neighborhoods. The company has acknowledged that it’s possible its equipment may have sparked the fire, and is facing lawsuits from hundreds of homeowners and businesses.

Related: Rising Fire Risk Prompts Utilities to Deliberately Cut Power

Edison International Chief Executive Officer Pedro Pizarro and the CEO and chief operating officer for Southern California Edison had their bonuses reduced by 40%, while other senior executives who were on the job during the disaster had their bonuses reduced by about 20%, Pizarro said.

“I fully agreed with the compensation committee action,” Pizarro said during an interview on Wednesday. “While the bonus action was not a reflection on company performance or on the executives’ performance, it felt like the right balance in terms of showing our understanding that this has been a difficult period for a community.”

Edison International shares rose as much as 1.9% in after-hours trading.

In addition to cutting bonus payments, the company is also making changes to its wildfire compensation program, providing stronger support for displaced renters as well as increasing net damages to cover attorney fees. Rental compensation will be the higher of pre-fire rent or fair-market rates, following criticism from survivors that the program wasn’t fair or adequate.

More than three-quarters of renters surveyed last year by the Eaton Fire Collaborative community group reported not being able to afford postblaze rents.

Related: Massive Wildfire Liabilities Push Utilities to Use AI to Stop Blazes

The company also reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings and left the common stock dividend unchanged at 87.75 cents. It also extended its 5% to 7% earnings per share growth guidance through 2030.

Looking ahead, the company and investors will be keeping a close eye on an upcoming report from a state agency on how wildfire mitigation costs should be spread in California. Due on April 1, the study from the state wildfire fund administrator will help legislators determine a framework going forward for who ultimately pays for wildfire costs.

While recently passed wildfire legislation helped stabilize utility finances by injecting an additional $18 billion into the state’s utility wildfire fund, it was not enough, said Pizarro. Edison and California’s other investor-owned utilities have pushed for a long-term wildfire funding structure, replacing litigation with a streamlined compensation model and other measures to spread the risk and reduce their legal burden.

Top photo: Vehicles burn during the Eaton Fire in Altadena, California in January 2025. Bloomberg.

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