Sen. Lindsey Williams and Rep. Sara Innamorato: Now is not the time to raise PWSA rates

At public input hearings for the ongoing rate case in front of the Pennsylvania Utility Commission (PUC) early in July, members of the community raised concerns about the proposed rate increase at Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority (PWSA). If approved by the PUC, this would mean higher bills for PWSA customers. Across the board, consumers and elected officials — including those of us writing this — spoke out to oppose the multi-year rate hike that will increase water bills over 19% in 2021 and wastewater bills over 6%, which will disproportionately affect low- and fixed-income ratepayers.

With nearly 821,000 Pennsylvanians on unemployment as of June, our legislative offices have been flooded with constituents asking for help getting their unemployment insurance payments. Too many households find themselves with little or no income and without employer-sponsored health insurance. Meanwhile, bills like rent, utilities, and student loan payments still come due every month, and the moratorium on evictions in Pennsylvania has just expired, leaving more than 400,000 families in Pennsylvania uncertain if they will have a roof over their heads.

Many of the people we’re talking to are seeking assistance for the first time in their lives, and others have been hit by crisis after crisis. We know the people we represent cannot afford to pay more for a basic and vital need: water.

To raise rates during this time would place an unnecessary burden on households that are already struggling. Marginalized and low-income families have been hit particularly hard by the economic impacts of the covid-19 pandemic and should not be forced to shoulder this unaffordable increase for an essential service.

We cannot live without access to clean water. With the pandemic still surging in Allegheny County, it’s especially vital that people have access to running water in their homes to wash their hands as a measure to prevent the spread of coronavirus. At the moment, PWSA has enacted a water shut-off moratorium to prevent those who can’t afford to pay for water service from losing access to water. However, it’s unclear how long this moratorium will last (the PUC is scheduled to vote on the moratorium at it Sept. 17 meeting).

The pandemic has highlighted exactly how vital water is to life and public health, which is why raising rates is not the answer.

In Pittsburgh and across the entire country, our communities are suffering from crumbling water infrastructure. While PWSA securing state PENNVEST funding for lead service line replacements was a great start toward fixing these problems, it’s time for the federal government to step up and pass an infrastructure bill that will provide for these necessary upgrades while alleviating the burden on the ratepayers.

While the middle of an ongoing pandemic and economic crisis is not the right time to seek higher rates at PWSA, this proposed increase would be too high at any time. PWSA rates are already unaffordable for many customers, and raising them further without dramatic customer assistance plans to protect our neighbors will have the greatest impact on those who are already struggling to afford their water bills. Instead of raising rates, PWSA should get creative, as we all have to do during this time, to ensure their most vulnerable ratepayers are not spending more than they can afford for the cost of a vital service.

State Sen. Lindsey Williams represents District 38. State Rep. Sara Innamorato represents District 28.