By Frieda Powers
As wildfires raged in California last year, a group of lawmakers from the state were apparently off on a trip to Hawaii with utility companies.
The nonprofit Independent Voter Project hosted the annual event in Maui in November as a dozen lawmakers - mostly Democrats - met with representatives from utility companies who lobbied for a bailout as they seek to raise electricity rates in an effort to offset financial costs due to the wildfires, according to The New York Times.
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Representatives from companies such as Facebook, Comcast, Amazon, PhRMA, Microsoft and Verizon as well as the National Education Association were among about 109 lobbyists and corporate executives named in a note welcoming attendees to the resort.