Colorado Governor To Sign Wildfire Compensation Bills

Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper is preparing to add his signature to two bills that will provide victims of the state-caused Lower North Fork fire ways to seek more compensation.

The bills signed Monday will retroactively add state-set wildfires to the list of state immunity exemptions. The changes will give victims of the recent Lower North Fork Fire the chance to seek state compensation beyond a $600,000 liability cap.

The March wildfire in the foothills southwest of Denver killed three people and damaged two dozen houses, causing at least $11 million in property damage. It started when a prescribed burn on state forest land flared up a few days after it appeared to be extinguished.