Rep. Scott Peters doesn't have a single electric cooperative in his San Diego County, California, congressional district, but that hasn't stopped him from being a champion for key co-op issues such as wildfire mitigation and permitting reform, the state's co-op leaders say.

“Congressman Peters is a pragmatic problem-solver, and we are so grateful for his support," says Jessica Nelson, general manager of Golden State Power Cooperative. “I really appreciate members of Congress like him who can roll up their sleeves and figure out what's going to work."

Peters, a Democrat who serves on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, joined with House Natural Resources Chairman Bruce Westerman, R-Ark., to lead the successful effort to pass the Fix Our Forests Act in the House last year.

The bipartisan bill, which still must be approved by the Senate, would streamline the process for co-ops to obtain federal permits to harden their systems to make them more resistant to wildfires.

The legislation would greatly expand the ability of co-ops to remove “hazard trees" that are in danger of sparking fires by falling from federal land onto electric lines.

Currently, co-ops can only remove trees and other vegetation within 10 feet of their power lines and rights of way. The Fix Our Forests Act would allow co-ops to remove trees within 150 feet of their lines. Nelson says that makes a lot more sense in a state like California, where trees often stand 100 feet tall or higher and can easily fall onto power lines from outside co-op rights of way.

The bill also would “deter frivolous litigation that delays essential projects," Peters and Westerman said in a joint press release when the bill passed. The legislation prohibits courts from immediately halting a project unless they determine that the person suing to stop it “is likely to succeed on the merits" of the case if the lawsuit gets a full hearing.

“While we can't stop every fire, smart changes to policy will help prevent fires, limit their spread, and make them less destructive," Peters said.

The Fix Our Forests Act is crucial to help mitigate the “increasing risk of catastrophic wildfires we've been experiencing in California, and now across the country," Nelson says.

“Almost half of California is federally managed land. A high percentage of electric co-op infrastructure traverses federal land and it can be challenging to maintain," she says. “This bill would really help accelerate forest management and remove the fuels that have built up in and around our rights of way. It's time for the Senate to act."

Peters recognizes that helping co-ops outside his district mitigate the risk of wildfires is good for everyone, Nelson says.

“Because of his bipartisan, no-nonsense, get-it-done attitude, he recognizes that it would benefit all of California and all of the nation, not just his constituents."

Peters has also been an advocate for bipartisan permitting reform, emphasizing the need to streamline the process to increase electricity generation to meet rising demand. He is a leader of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus Permitting, Energy & Environment Working Group. He also is chairman of the bipartisan Climate Solutions Caucus and the New Democrat Coalition's Environment, Climate, & Clean Energy Working Group.

“Congressman Peters understands the complexity of federal permitting and forestry management, and how urgently reforms are needed," says Hannah Scott, an NRECA legislative affairs director. “We've seen his willingness to work across the aisle to move practical solutions forward for our co-ops."

Peters says that “for too long, procedural delays have gotten in the way of the progress we need to make to protect our communities and the environment."

“The wildfire crisis we're seeing in California and all across the West is not just a product of inaction, but decades of wrongheaded land management that let our forests, wildlands, and hills turn into tinderboxes," he says. “I'm working to get my Fix Our Forests Act and other common-sense reforms to our outdated permitting processes passed into law so we can ensure generations of Americans can enjoy a healthy, livable planet."

At NRECA's 2025 Legislative Conference, the 67-year-old congressman said he came to Washington, D.C., to help the communities he serves, and he believes most of his colleagues of both political parties feel the same way.

Peters said members of Congress should be willing “to talk back to your own people" and “take a little grumbling" from colleagues in their own party when a compromise is needed.

“You came here for a reason," Peters said. “People want you to be solving problems."