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municipalauthorities.org | 25 PMAA Submits Comments to EPA’s Proposed Water System Restructuring Assessment Rule EPA published its proposed Water System Restructuring Assessment Rule in the Federal Register on May 30, 2024 with comments due by July 29. This rule would provide a regulatory framework for states, public water systems, and communities they serve to identify and assess restructuring options for systems that struggle to provide safe drinking water. The EPA defines “restructuring” as a change in the management, ownership, operations, or physical infrastructure of a water system that is intended to improve the water system's capacity to provide safe drinking water. Under the proposed rule, a wide range of restructuring options are possible, including sharing of operators or equipment, debt restructuring, new treatment technology, interconnection with another water system, changes in ownership or the merger of two or more separate water systems into a new, combined water system. PMAA submitted comments which are available by contacting PMAA. Below are highlights of the comments: • The need for public participation, and a requirement that prior to a public meeting, all documents that are germane to the consolidation or transfer of ownership be provided to the public before the meeting. • The need for more federal financial assistance to help water systems that are in chronic noncompliance. • While PMAA has no issue with the regionalization of municipal authorities, it does object to any preference for the transfer of ownership from municipal entities to private utilities. DEP also provided comments to EPA of which a few points are noted: • DEP's current regulation of public water systems primarily focuses on ensuring that systems are providing safe drinking water, not on the structure or ownership of public water systems in Pennsylvania. • DEP recommends that EPA consider including language that allows states to refer systems to EPA for forced receivership, consolidation, and/or regionalization. This option would be used infrequently but may be necessary when dealing with water systems that do not comply with the mandatory restructuring assessment rule requirements. There should be language in Together, we create the infrastructure people need most GPI is a nationally recognized engineering firm that has been working to better our communities by providing high-quality engineering and construction services for over 50 years. Learn more at www.gpinet.com . 3 Penn Center West, Suite 320, Pittsburgh, PA 15276 5340 Fryling Road Suite 206, Erie, PA 16510 814.725.8659 the rule that enables EPA to establish milestones for forced receivership, consolidation, and/ or regionalization upon written notification/referral of a specific water system from the state. If infrastructure improvements are needed to implement forced receivership, consolidation, and/or regionalization, a dedicated pot of federal grant funds would be critical. DEP’s comments are available at dep. pa.gov, select Testimony and Letters, July 29, 2024. S
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