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| Inside this edition: Compromise elusive on reforming 2016 law that led to higher water bills across Pa., Penn State trustee says he’s banned from attending in-person meetings, and Potter County sustained $1.2B in flood damage. |
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Real quick: With only a handful of days left in the legislative session, Pennsylvania lawmakers appear unlikely to vote on changes to Act 12 — a 2016 law that led to high water bills across the state, Spotlight PA’s Marley Parish reports.
A little more: The Pennsylvania legislature appears unlikely to address a 2016 law that has led to higher utility bills for communities across the state despite customer frustrations and concerns from the commonwealth’s consumer advocate.
Act 12 allows investor-owned utilities to bake the costs of buying public water and wastewater systems into rate increase requests, and it became law with few objections. However, upon implementation, the law has frustrated customers who have seen their bills increase by as much as 166%.
In response to those concerns, lawmakers have proposed repealing the law and assigning a commission to study it, among other ideas. The state’s two biggest for-profit utilities — Pennsylvania American Water and Aqua Pennsylvania — have said they’re open to change, but policymakers have yet to agree on a solution.
A committee in the state House, which Democrats narrowly control, has advanced bills that would put guardrails on private acquisitions of public systems. But lawmakers have only a limited number of session days — during a hectic election season — to vote on the proposed changes before having to start over again next year. Meanwhile, the Republican lawmaker who controls the state Senate committee that would vote on the proposals wants to wait and see how guidelines recently approved by the utility commission play out.
The full story: Read more here. |
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Cows on a Penn State farm in Centre County feasting on corn, via R Thomas Berner
Have a north-central Pennsylvania photo to share? Send it to us by email, use #PAGems on Instagram, or tag us @spotlightpennsylvania. |
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Spotlight PA State College is working to make local government more accessible to all Pennsylvanians.
Pennsylvania has a patchwork system of local government that includes more than 2,500 cities, townships, and boroughs (and one town).
“How Local Government Works” is a series by Local Accountability Reporter Min Xian. This series focuses on issues and trends in Pennsylvania local governments and provides tools for you to hold your local officials accountable.
Our goal is to help you understand how your municipal government functions, the powers it possesses, and what responsibility it has to residents. We also want to provide resources that empower you to obtain information, get involved, and spot when something’s going wrong.
Visit spotlightpa.org/howlocalgovworks to read our coverage, find resources, or ask questions how your local government works. |
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Want us to list your event? Send it to us.
» Sept. 5-8: The Nittany Antique Machinery Association hosts its 50th anniversary Fall Show in Centre County.
» Sept. 7: The Hometown Science Festival in Wellsboro, Tioga County, promotes the importance of science, learning, and discovery.
» Sept. 8: The 15th annual Suicide Prevention Walk takes place at DuBois City Park in Clearfield County.
» Sept. 10-14: Fair season isn’t over yet. The 91st annual Sinking Valley Farm Show in Blair County features children’s activities, live music, a chili cook-off, and more.
» Sept. 11: The Altoona Curve hosts its first 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb at Peoples Natural Gas Field in Blair County. |
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An anagram is a word, phrase, or name formed by rearranging the letters of another. For example, “spotlight” also forms “stoplight.”
Decode the anagram and send your answer to talkofthetown@spotlightpa.org. We’ll shout out winners here, and one each week will get some Spotlight PA State College swag.
P E E R E D
Good luck!
Last week’s answer: Needless
Congrats to Lawrence O., who will receive Spotlight PA State College swag! Others who answered correctly: Don H., Bill E., Carol S., Kevin M., and Rick W.
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Do you have events, community shoutouts, questions about our region, or tips on stories that we should pursue? Email our team.
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