Wildfire plans and tree clearing in Idaho: the Wildfire Standard of Care Act and the utility plans

This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. It restates four documents as read on October 9, 2026: Idaho Code Title 61 chapter 18 on the Idaho Legislature site, the Wildfire Safety Resources page of the Idaho Public Utilities Commission, Idaho Power's Idaho and Montana Wildfire Mitigation Plan 2026 (updated October 10, 2025), and Rocky Mountain Power's 2024 Idaho Wildfire Mitigation Plan filed on June 7, 2024 in case PAC-E-24-09. The side by side with other regions is on the guide to utility wildfire plans and tree clearing.

What the Idaho statute requires

Chapter 18 is called the Wildfire Standard of Care Act and was added in 2025 by chapter 249 of the session laws. Section 61-1803 says each electric corporation that is a public utility must adopt a wildfire mitigation plan and file it with the Commission for review and approval, on dates the Commission may set and may stagger. A cooperative or municipal electric system that is not a public utility may file a plan, and the Commission may charge it a review fee that cannot exceed the Commission's actual reasonable cost.

The plan must be sized to the utility's operations and the nature of its fire risk and, at a minimum, must identify areas of heightened wildfire risk, preventative actions, public outreach, coordination with federal, state, tribal and local agencies, line design methods, weather monitoring, and standards, procedures and schedules for three actions: inspection of assets in the heightened risk areas, de-energization of lines where the utility considers it appropriate, and vegetation management within the heightened risk areas on rights-of-way or adjacent lands. If live marketable timber is identified for removal from timber company land next to a right-of-way, the section says fair market value compensation must be paid to the landowner. Approved plans are reviewed and updated annually, and the utility reports to the Commission on compliance each year or on another basis the Commission sets.

Under section 61-1804 the Commission has six months from a filing to approve or reject a plan. Within five business days of filing, the utility must give notice to the state forester, cities, counties, fire protection districts and associations, and timber protection associations in its Idaho service area. For vegetation management and fuel reduction, the section presumes the state forester's recommendations are reasonable and appropriate unless the Commission finds they are not just, reasonable and in the public interest.

Section 61-1806 sets a rebuttable presumption that a utility acted without negligence if it reasonably implemented a Commission-approved plan. Section 61-1807 says that if a utility requests access to private land, or to state, federal or tribal land, and access is denied or gets no response for thirty days, the utility is authorized to enter for vegetation management or fire mitigation work under an approved plan, and is not liable for claims except where its conduct willfully or recklessly caused substantial damage to the property.

What the Commission lists

The Commission's Wildfire Safety Resources page says its role is to help ensure utility service is safe, reliable and efficient. It lists public safety power shutoff pages and wildfire plan links for three electric companies: Idaho Power Company, Avista Utilities and Rocky Mountain Power. It describes a power shutoff as a preventative measure a utility may use in strong winds, dry conditions and high temperatures.

Idaho Power's 2026 plan

Idaho Power says it filed its Idaho and Montana 2026 plan with the Commission for approval as to the Idaho portion, under the Act, and that the Commission set filing requirements in order 36774 in case GNR-E-25-02. Its vegetation chapter says the program runs year-round and complies with the National Electrical Safety Code and federal and state requirements. Transmission lines are worked on a three year cycle in valley areas and a six year cycle in mountain areas, and distribution lines on a three year cycle. In Tier 2 and Tier 3 risk zones the plan adds annual patrols, mid-cycle pruning in the second year, and an audit of all pruning work. The plan sets a pre-season inspection no later than June 15 each year.

For distribution lines the plan states target clearances between vegetation and conductors: five feet for conductors energized at 600 through 50,000 volts, reducible to three feet where the lowest branch is more than eight feet above ground. It lets new growth no larger than half an inch in diameter intrude into that area if it stays six inches from the conductor. Where acceptable and permissible, it clears vegetation in a 20 foot radius around certain wood poles and applies a weed-control herbicide. It names the International Society of Arboriculture and the ANSI A300 standards as the pruning references.

Rocky Mountain Power's 2024 Idaho plan

Rocky Mountain Power's June 7, 2024 filing asked the Commission to approve its 2024 to 2026 Idaho plan. The plan says distribution vegetation is worked on a three year cycle in Idaho and that minimum post-work clearances depend on tree growth rate.

Clearance	Slow (under 1 foot a year)	Moderate (1 to 3 feet)	Fast (over 3 feet)
Side	8 feet	10 feet	12 feet
Under	10 feet	12 feet	14 feet
Overhang	12 feet	12 feet	12 feet

For transmission the plan lists the minimum vegetation clearance distance from the NERC standard FAC-003-4, an action threshold and a minimum clearance after work. At 230 kV those are 5.0 feet, 15.0 feet and 30 feet; at 115 kV they are 2.4 feet, 12.5 feet and 30 feet. It says high-risk trees are found using the ANSI A300 Part 9 best management practices, and that main grid transmission lines are inspected annually.