18622_Authority_August_Web

58 The Authority | August 2025 1000 North Front Street, Suite 401, Wormleysburg, PA 17043 717-737-7655 . 717-737-8431(f) . info@municipalauthorities.org m u n i c i p a l a u t h o r i t i e s . o r g Government Relations Update continued from page 25. TO: Chairman Freeman, Chairman Miller, and members of the House Local Government Committee FROM: Jennie Shade, Senior Director of Government Relations DATE: June 6, 2025 SUBJECT: Support of HB 1308 P.N. 1502 I am writing on behalf of the Pennsylvania Municipal Authorities Association (PMAA), which represents over 700 municipal authorities across the Commonwealth that serve over six million residents. Authorities provide essential public services including drinking water, wastewater treatment, stormwater management, and other community infrastructure projects. These services protect public health, safeguard the environment, support economic development, and promote the overall well-being of Pennsylvania and its citizens. PMAA supports HB 1308 P.N. 1502, which amends Title 27 (Environmental Resources) and Title 53 (Municipalities Generally) to explicitly allow authorities to impose stormwater management fees on Commonwealth-owned properties and tax-exempt entities. This bill provides much-needed clarity and equity in the funding of stormwater management programs across the state. To underscore our support, PMAA has adopted the following resolution as part of our 2025 advocacy platform: Resolution 28-25 RESOLVED, That PMAA support legislation clarifying that all tax-exempt entities be subject to any applicable stormwater fee imposed by a municipal authority, which may include impervious surfaces as a property characteristic. Stormwater runoff is a growing challenge for local governments, contributing to localized flooding, streambank erosion, water pollution, and escalating infrastructure costs. Authorities have played a 2 critical role in addressing these challenges through proactive planning, implementation, and maintenance of stormwater systems across the Commonwealth. However, existing legal uncertainties have hindered our members’ ability to equitably fund these efforts. Ambiguities in current law regarding the clear legal authority to assess stormwater fees on state and tax-exempt properties have led to some interpretations that exclude these entities contributing – leaving residential and small business property owners to bear an unfair share of the costs. HB 1308 provides the necessary tools to address this inequity by: • Confirming authority to assess stormwater fees based on property characteristics, including impervious surfaces, regardless of tax status;