Oct. 01, 2021
CHESTER – As an advocate for Chester Water Authority ratepayers, Rep. Craig Williams (R-Delaware/Chester) spoke at the ‘Amend Act 12’ press conference Friday, Oct. 1, at Chester Water Authority headquarters, where he announced his co-sponsorship of
House Bill 1936.
This bill would amend Section 1329 of the Public Utilities Code to prohibit the sale of municipal or authority-owned water or wastewater systems to private companies using the valuation procedure outlined in the section unless the system is in financial or operational distress.
“The sale of Chester Water Authority will give a one-time cash infusion to the City of Chester without addressing the underlying causes of the city’s longstanding financial hardships,” Williams stated. “Chester Water Authority is well run, delivers a quality product and is in no need of reorganization of its award-winning operations.
Chester Water Authority provides award-winning utility service and affordable water for the entire 160th Legislative District. From Upper Chichester Township to the Borough of Kennett Square, ratepayers have called Williams, voicing their concerns for rate increases that are certain to happen.
Williams noted the Chester Water Authority won the
Excellence in Water Treatment Award from the Partnership of Safe Water for excellent service in water, and the George Warren Fuller Award from the American Water Works Association for excellent water supply. In addition, the Chester Water Octoraro Treatment Plant was awarded the Area Wide Optimization Program Award in 2015, and the consecutive seven years prior, for its outstanding efforts toward optimizing filter plant turbidity performance.
“The underlying cause of the hostile takeover of Chester Water Authority is the bankruptcy of the City of Chester. The Chester Water Authority does not need rescuing; the ratepayers of Chester Water Authority do not need rescuing,” said Williams “The ratepayers of Chester Water Authority ought not be shouldering the financial burdens of the City of Chester.”