HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania lawmakers are weighing legislation that would make it easier for private water companies to target municipal authorities for acquisition, purchases that new research shows can lead to higher bills for consumers.

It would require public water systems with more than 750 customers to develop and give to the state an asset management plan that includes a schedule for identifying and replacing infrastructure like old pipes and meters, as well as the estimated cost of such projects and the projected rate increases needed to afford them.

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A controversial proposal for a multimillion-dollar, four-decade sewer deal between the city and a private equity firm has come to an end — although the possibility of a larger legal dispute over the matter looms.

City Council voted this week to rescind its authorization for a concession of the Pleasantville sewer system to Bernhard Capital Partners.

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Local officials raised concern and had a negative reaction to Aqua Pennsylvania’s proposed $1.1 billion purchase of the Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority’s sanitary sewer system that serves 75,000 customers.

Based on Aqua Pennsylvania’s track record of raising rates and the fact their rates already start higher than the Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority’s rates, there is widespread concern the utility with dramatically increase rates within years of a sale closing. 

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The Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority (BCWSA) has scheduled “open house” meetings on Tuesday in Perkasie and in Newtown to hear public sentiment on its proposed $1.1 billion sale of the county’s sewer system to Aqua Pennsylvania.

BCWSA’s board voted 3-1 on July 13 to grant Aqua Pennsylvania the exclusive right to negotiate a sales agreement for the county’s public sewer system, which serves about 75,000 households in the Philadelphia suburbs. After debt and expenses are paid down, the sale would net the county about $1 billion, though it could mean substantially higher sewer rates for customers in the future.

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As part of the sale, Aqua could continue to increase rates by as much as 51 percent, with the utility commission’s approval, according to the agreement between Aqua and New Garden Township. Now, Aqua has set its sights on buying out the Chester Water Authority, the utility that serves Woodacre’s neighborhood with drinking water, which would raise her bills even more.

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A half-million Aqua Pennsylvania water and wastewater customers are about to experience the impact of rising infrastructure costs.

Rates for 440,000 Aqua water customers are set to go up about 10% this week, according to an order posted Monday by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission. Rates for Aqua’s 40,000 wastewater customers will go up 51% or more.

The precise impact on Aqua customers is not known because the Bryn Mawr utility, a subsidiary of Essential Utilities Inc., has not yet filed its formal tariff that spells out new charges for various rate zones across Pennsylvania. The new rates could go into effect as early as Thursday.

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For-profit water companies have placed bids on Towamencin Township’s sewer system and this month, residents will have a chance to voice their concerns to township supervisors. Towamencin’s sewer system is one of many municipal public utilities in Montgomery County and across the Philadelphia suburbs that have either been at risk of takeover or have been sold to for-profit companies.

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Despite their strong public support over the past two centuries, water
systems in the U.S. are now at a moment of critical need. Many
systems have century old lead and cast iron pipes that need to be
replaced to ensure that Americans have access to safe public drinking
water in our homes, schools, and businesses. Demand for water
is only increasing alongside population growth.

Overall, the Environmental Protection Agency estimates that updating
and maintaining the country’s water infrastructure needs will take
about $655 billion over the next 20 years

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The signs show the local opposition to a hostile takeover effort by Aqua Water, one of the country’s biggest private water companies, against the public utility Chester Water Authority (CWA), which owns the reservoir and bordering woodland.

The CWA relies on the watershed to provide drinking water to about 200,000 people in Delaware and Chester counties. It’s an award-winning public utility that is financially robust and delivers safe, clean and affordable water. It does not need a bailout.

Campaigners say the battle here, which started in 2017, should be a wake-up call for residents around the US, as privatization often means higher bills.

“This takeover is about putting money over people’s needs – it’s corporate greed,” said Delaware county resident Santo Mazzeo.

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“Starting in the third year and continuing through the 15th year, city residents will see their charges go up 5% each year. We figure that through the ordinary financial magic of compound interest, residents will wind up paying $980 a year for their wastewater service — about double what they pay now. And they’ll keep paying that rate, or higher thanks to other aspects of the contract, for the next 24 years.”

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