19473_Authority_Oct-opt

6 0 dŚĞ ƵƚŚŽƌŝƚLJ │ October 'ŽǀĞƌŶŵĞŶƚ ZĞůĂƟŽŶƐ hƉĚĂƚĞ ĐŽŶƟŶƵĞĚ ĨƌŽŵ ƉĂŐĞ Ϯϰ͘ 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 TO: Chairman Burgos, Chairman Metzgar, and members of the House Consumer Protection, Technology, and Utilities Committee FROM: Jennie Shade, Senior Director of Government Relations DATE: June 17, 2026 SUBJECT: Opposition to HB 1213 P.N. 1361 I am writing on behalf of the Pennsylvania Municipal Authorities Association (PMAA), a statewide organization that represents nearly 700 municipal authorities across Pennsylvania. Together, these authorities serve more than six million people, with the vast majority providing essential drinking water and wastewater treatment services to communities across the state. PMAA respectfully opposes HB 1213 P.N. 1361, which amends Title 53, Chapter 56 (Municipal Authorities) to require municipal authorities to notify customers when a property's water usage exceeds 200% of its average monthly consumption and to make efforts to contact customers by telephone or email. The bill would also require authorities to assist customers in “identifying potential leaks or other wasteful inefficiencies on the property” that may be contributing to the increased water usage. Municipal authorities across Pennsylvania already provide customer education, investigate unusual consumption patterns, assist customers experiencing high water bills, and invest in technologies that improve access to water-use information. While the goal of HB 1213 is laudable, the bill would fundamentally alter the traditional role of municipal authorities by imposing new responsibilities related to private property that they are neither structured nor equipped to perform. At its core, HB 1213 would require municipal authorities not only to notify customers of atypical water usage, but also to assist customers in identifying potential leaks and other "wasteful inefficiencies" occurring on private property. This represents a significant departure from the long-established division of responsibility between water utilities and property owners. Municipal authorities are responsible for operating and maintaining public water infrastructure. In most systems throughout Pennsylvania, the authority's responsibility ends at the utility-owned portion of the water system, while plumbing systems located on private property are owned and maintained by the property owner. Diagnosing leaks, evaluating plumbing systems, and identifying inefficiencies within homes, businesses, and industrial facilities are functions traditionally performed by property owners and plumbing professionals, not water utilities. HB 1213 would blur this important distinction and create uncertainty regarding the extent of an authority's obligations. The bill effectively creates a new expectation that water providers evaluate conditions occurring on