Customers of a shoddy rural water company need relief — and fast, stakeholders say. A judge is mulling next steps
This story was produced by the State College regional bureau of Spotlight PA, an independent, nonpartisan newsroom dedicated to investigative and public-service journalism for Pennsylvania. Sign up for Talk of the Town, a weekly newsletter of local stories that dig deep, events, and more from north-central PA, at spotlightpa.org/newsletters/talkofthetown.
BELLEFONTE — A distressed rural water company whose customers have endured more than a decade of shoddy service should be put under new management as fast as possible, various local and state stakeholders agree.
But as a nearly three-hour hearing Friday before a public utilities judge showed, the solution could be complicated.
'I'm trying to strike a balance between urgency and getting this right,' Administrative Law Judge John Coogan said during the proceeding.
The Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate, the Department of Environmental Protection, and the company's own lawyers support an immediate emergency takeover of Rock Spring Water Company to protect the health and safety of its roughly 1,000 customers in rural Centre County.
The privately owned water company — which has a history of unreliable service, dozens of regulatory violations, and tens of thousands of dollars in unpaid civil penalties — is under investigation by state regulators. The Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement, an independent division within the Public Utility Commission, launched a review of the company last fall.
The process, which will ultimately decide whether Rock Spring should be forced to sell, is lengthy, with no guaranteed outcome. As part of the review, a two-day hearing is scheduled for late April.
But customers who rely on the 20-mile water system and its deteriorating infrastructure can't wait until spring, the consumer advocate argued in an emergency ask to let another provider take over interim service operations, which prompted Friday's hearing.
'Without water service, the public health and safety of Rock Spring customers will be compromised,' Melanie Joy El Atieh, a deputy consumer advocate, wrote in the filing.
The DEP, which monitors drinking water safety, approves of the effort. The state agency has been in a yearslong legal battle with Rock Spring over excessive water loss.
In a legal filing, the department cited several violations against Rock Spring owner J. Roy Campbell — including for letting a leak go unfixed for six months, failing to protect the system's water source, and shutting off service without proper notice — and noted that Campbell and his daughter Elizabeth are 'incapable' of running the system.
The request to appoint a temporary operator — also known as a receiver — was heard by Coogan, who said he expects to issue a decision on the matter sometime next week. The deadline for his order is Friday, Feb. 21.
The Office of Consumer Advocate identified three possible utilities capable of taking over Rock Spring's system: Pennsylvania American Water Company or Aqua Pennsylvania, which are both privately owned, or the municipal-run State College Borough Water Authority.
The State College Borough Water Authority has emerged as the likely candidate to handle service, both in the interim and as an eventual buyer. The municipal entity has existing water lines close to Rock Spring's system.
Also, in December — after persuasion by his attorneys, according to legal filings — Campbell signed a letter of intent to sell the business to the State College authority for $65,000.
Pennsylvania American's lawyer said appointing State College as the temporary operator is the best way to provide relief to customers.
State College Borough Water Authority Executive Director Brian Heiser said the municipal entity is willing to take over operations for Rock Spring, which would be treated as a standalone system unless formally acquired.
But it has conditions.
In legal filings, the municipal authority said it's unwilling to become the receiver if it's required to operate under the PUC's jurisdiction and regulations. It also doesn't want to be held liable for damages from Rock Spring's current conditions or be required to use its own funds to make system improvements.
The water authority is asking the PUC to recommend it become the receiver, which could create a path for a Centre County judge to approve the request.
James Bryant and Carolyn Larrabee, Rock Spring's lawyers, filed an emergency request in Centre County court recently, asking a judge to hand over interim operations to the State College authority. But the request was denied, with the judge finding he did not have the authority to usurp the PUC's powers — though he did note the lawyer's argument over the commission's authority was broad.
SUPPORT THIS JOURNALISM and help us reinvigorate local news in north-central Pennsylvania at spotlightpa.org/donate/statecollege. Spotlight PA is funded by foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability and public-service journalism that gets results.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Minimum wage would be $15 in big counties, $12 in smaller ones under novel bill passed by Pa. House
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania would raise its minimum wage to $15 an hour in 20 of its counties, and to $12 in the rest under a bill the Democratic-controlled state House passed Wednesday. It's a new approach for the chamber that is designed to win critical Republican support, and it comes after years of unsuccessful attempts to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour across the entire state. Pennsylvania's minimum wage has been $7.25 an hour since the federal minimum went up in 2009, and has stayed stagnant even as every neighboring state has set a higher floor. Under the House bill, Pennsylvania's biggest county, Philadelphia, would see its minimum wage immediately jump to $15 an hour on Jan. 1, 2026. In the next 16 most populous counties, including Allegheny, Erie, and Lancaster, the minimum wage would move to $12 an hour at the start of 2026, increase to $13 an hour the following year, then jump to $15 an hour in 2028. Three smaller counties, Centre, Monroe, and Pike, would also be included in this tier — all three have at least one Democratic representative, and a spokesperson for House Democrats said they had been included in the tier 'at the request of our members.' For the other 47 counties, the minimum wage would increase to $10 an hour in 2026, then grow by $1 each year until hitting $12 an hour in 2028. All counties would also receive an annual cost-of-living adjustment starting in 2029. That COLA would be based on consumer price data from Pennsylvania and neighboring states, as collected by the U.S. Department of Labor and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The minimum wage for tipped workers, such as those in restaurants, would also increase under the measure. These workers are currently paid $2.83 an hour, and the bill would require employers to pay them 60% of their county's minimum wage. The proposal passed the state House 102 to 101, along party lines. It now goes to the Labor and Industry Committee in the GOP-controlled state Senate for consideration. State Rep. Jason Dawkins (D., Philadelphia), the prime sponsor of the state House bill, told Spotlight PA he hopes Senate Republicans see the legislation as a sign of good-faith negotiation. Speaking on the state House floor Wednesday ahead of the bill's passage, he told his fellow members it would impose 'a living wage that transforms all communities throughout Pennsylvania.' Dawkins tried to pass a minimum wage hike last legislative session, too, but that proposal would have simply raised the minimum wage to $15 an hour across the state. The bill passed the state House, but Senate Republicans did not act on it. Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro has also called on the legislature to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour during each of his annual budget proposals since taking office. State Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman (R., Indiana) has said he isn't opposed to a minimum wage increase in principle, but in 2023 as House lawmakers considered Dawkins' last bill, he said that $15 an hour is 'not a practical number.' It could, he said at the time, negatively impact nonprofit organizations that provide essential services, such as in-home medical care. In a new statement to Spotlight PA, Pittman said it is possible the legislature could find 'a middle ground for an increase to the minimum wage,' but that any change would need to be a 'commonsense adjustment' that is sensitive to the impact on small businesses and nonprofits. More of his attention, he said, is on 'maximum wage jobs.' He cited a Senate GOP proposal that would prevent Pennsylvania from participating in a carbon cap-and-trade program as an area of focus, and said his caucus also wants to keep making it easier for builders to get project permits. Dawkins said his new minimum wage tier approach is a response to feedback from people like Pittman. 'The hope,' he said, 'is to create a dialogue.' He said this approach is also designed to address counties' differing needs without repealing Pennsylvania's minimum wage preemption law. First put in place in 2006, the last time Pennsylvania raised its wage on the state level, the law requires that any change to the minimum wage be made by state lawmakers. This prevents larger, more expensive cities like Philadelphia from acting independently to raise their wages. Philadelphia's mayor and city council president sent state lawmakers a letter in April asking for authorization to set a higher minimum wage, saying that as the state's biggest municipality, it has 'unique circumstances' and is 'faced with both increasing housing costs and high poverty levels, issues that an increased minimum wage could alleviate.' City officials aren't the only ones who feel this way. The head of Brandywine Realty Trust, a major employer in Southeastern Pennsylvania, sent a letter last month asking for a higher statewide wage, saying it makes sense 'from a business perspective' because 'better-paid workers are more reliable, more productive, and more likely to stay with their employers.' As part of the trade-off of trying to appeal to state Senate Republicans, Dawkins' bill is a difficult pill to swallow for some of the more progressive members of his caucus. State Rep. Chris Rabb (D., Philadelphia) said he supports the measure but wishes it raised wages higher and didn't allow separate minimum wages to be set for tipped workers, and for workers who are incarcerated or have disabilities. He called it the 'lowest common denominator,' but added, 'at least it moves us in the right direction.' 'For those of us who believe in a living wage for all, it's a hard vote to take,' Rabb told Spotlight PA. Rabb plans to introduce legislation that would eliminate separate minimum wages for tipped or incarcerated workers and workers with disabilities, plus repeal the state's preemption of local wage laws. Still, he acknowledged that Senate Republicans are likely to oppose those provisions. He called Dawkins' bill a 'good-faith effort.' 'We know that the Republican controlled Senate is not likely to move on this bill, and if they do, they're going to ask for their pound of flesh,' Rabb said. Senate Republicans most recently voted to raise the minimum wage in 2019, under former Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf. That proposal would have set a statewide floor of $9.50 an hour. However the state House, which was then controlled by Republicans, declined to take it up. At least one state Senate Republican supports a $15 minimum wage. Sen. Dan Laughlin (R., Erie) introduced a bill last session that would have raised the floor to $15 an hour by 2026. He told Spotlight PA that he plans to re-introduce similar legislation before the end of June. State Sen. Christine Tartaglione (D., Philadelphia), a longtime advocate for raising the minimum wage, said she feels lawmakers are getting 'a little bit closer' to agreement on the issue. Still, key details remain unresolved, she said — particularly a consensus among Senate Republicans on the appropriate wage floor and how to handle cost-of-living increases. 'So far, that's been the block,' Tartaglione said of the COLA. The bill now heads to the Senate Labor and Industry Committee, where Chair Sen. Devlin Robinson (R., Allegheny) called the House measure a good place to 'get the conversation started,' and said he's open to a COLA. But he said he still plans to introduce his own proposal to raise the wage to a still-undetermined 'reasonable' floor. Marc Stier, the executive director of the progressive Pennsylvania Policy Center, said that he's 'hopeful but uncertain' that lawmakers will be able to get the bill over the finish line. Stier thinks that a key factor will be how hard Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro pushes for the change, saying that he has to know 'the governor's bottom line.' He's hoping that after funding public education, raising the minimum wage is Shapiro's second priority. 'We've been talking this to death,' Stier told Spotlight PA. 'There's not much more to say.' If you learned something from this article, pay it forward and contribute to Spotlight PA at Spotlight PA is funded by foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability journalism that gets results. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Yahoo
Township allegedly fleeced by its own employee sues Spotlight PA to block access to bond claim details
This story was produced by the State College regional bureau of Spotlight PA, an independent, nonpartisan newsroom dedicated to investigative and public-service journalism for Pennsylvania. Sign up for Talk of the Town, a weekly newsletter of local stories that dig deep, events, and more from north-central PA, at STATE COLLEGE — A small rural township has sued Spotlight PA to prevent disclosure of financial records as it seeks to recover through its insurer almost $533,000 in public money allegedly stolen by a former employee. This week, Gregg Township and the newsroom agreed to stay the case in Centre County court until the township's insurance company can make a determination. In November, Pennsylvania State Police accused Pamela Hackenburg of stealing more than half a million dollars from Gregg Township over five years and charged her with four felonies. The township then officially terminated Hackenburg, who had been on unpaid leave since last May. In December, Spotlight PA published an investigation into how the alleged theft had escaped detection by elected officials for years. That report was based in part on documents obtained through the state's open records law, including township credit card statements that showed numerous transactions with the sports betting company DraftKings. Hackenburg is awaiting criminal proceedings in the Centre County Court of Common Pleas, but she has not entered a plea, according to the county prothonotary office. While the criminal case proceeds, Gregg Township hopes to recover the township funds she allegedly stole. Gregg Township holds a bond policy issued by Travelers Casualty and Surety Company of America, which covers liability on behalf of the former secretary with a limit of $700,000, according to a copy of the renewal certificate Spotlight PA previously obtained. According to minutes from an Oct. 10 meeting, Township Solicitor David Gaines 'said that he made it clear [to the insurance company] that the township needs the money.' During a public meeting in November, Gaines reported that the insurance company was finalizing its response, and it was unclear how much money the insurer might decide to pay out. Spotlight PA filed an open records request in December seeking communications between Gregg Township and Travelers Insurance Company, as well as any documents the township had submitted to support the claim. Gregg Township denied Spotlight PA's request related to the bond claim in late January, saying the requested materials were exempt from disclosure under the state Right-to-Know Law. The newsroom appealed the following month. In April, the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records, a quasi-judicial agency that adjudicates public records matters, gave a partial ruling. The office ordered the township to provide some financial records related to the bond investigation, but denied Spotlight PA's request to obtain the township's communications with its insurance company. In a filing to the Centre County Court of Common Pleas a week later, Gregg Township said the decision by the OOR 'was erroneous and violated relevant law.' Because the bond claim investigation is ongoing, 'among other concerns, the Township does not want to risk upsetting that process at the peril of the Township's bond claim,' the filing said. 'The Township is more than happy to divulge records once Travelers has finalized its review of the matter.' After being sued, Spotlight PA emailed Gaines and township supervisors to ask about the lawsuit and seek additional clarity on the insurance claim. Gaines asked the news outlet to ask questions during monthly public meetings and not over email. 'Last year, Gregg Township uncovered evidence indicating that one of its employees may have used Township funds as her own. The Township continues to investigate that matter, and the Township has provided routine reports to the community about the status of the investigation, most often through discussion at the supervisors' meetings,' Gaines wrote in an email to Spotlight PA. Josh Bonn, transparency attorney at Cohen Seglias Pallas Greenhall & Furman PC, is representing Spotlight PA pro bono in this case. He said public access to government financial records, especially when there are allegations of misuse of public funds, is critical. 'The 1976 film All the President's Men popularized the catch phrase, 'follow the money,' as an effective means to root out public corruption,' he said in an email. Gregg Township and Spotlight PA entered into an agreement Wednesday to stay the proceedings in court, letting the dispute remain in place while the bond company makes its decision on the claim. The township said in its filing that Travelers is expected to render a decision in the next 30 to 60 days. and help us reinvigorate local news in north-central Pennsylvania at Spotlight PA is funded by foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability and public-service journalism that gets results. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- Yahoo
Millions for public Wi-Fi, digital skills classes in Pa. cut as Trump targets ‘racist' broadband program
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters. Pennsylvania will lose out on more than $35 million in federal funding to expand high-speed internet access after the Trump administration abruptly canceled two grant programs that were part of former President Joe Biden's push to bring broadband to everyone in the U.S. The move came shortly after President Donald Trump declared the underlying law 'racist' and 'wholly unconstitutional' in a social media post in early May. The funding was created by the Digital Equity Act, part of the sweeping infrastructure package that passed Congress with bipartisan support in 2021. The decision affects more than $2.5 billion in grants to states, as well as local governments, nonprofits, and universities. In many cases, grant awards had been recommended — but not finalized — when Biden left office. In Pennsylvania, the canceled funding includes more than $25 million for the state Broadband Development Authority and almost $12 million for the city of Philadelphia to teach digital skills and provide free, or low-cost, internet subscriptions. A grant to the Department of Human Services to help residents of 10 rural counties in northern Pennsylvania use telehealth services was also terminated. The department was informed of the cancellation on May 20, a spokesperson said. For groups that expected to receive grants, the news brought three years of planning to a halt overnight, said Drew Garner, director of policy engagement at the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society. The news came as a 'punch in the stomach,' he said. Information about the grant programs, including news releases with lists of recommended awards, has been removed from the website of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, which oversees the broadband initiatives. NTIA did not respond to a request for comment. A variety of factors combine to keep internet access out of reach for some residents. In rural areas, a lack of infrastructure prevents the internet from being available at speeds that meet the federal government's definition of broadband. Under the largest broadband program created by the infrastructure law, Pennsylvania will receive $1.1 billion to connect every household and business in the state with high-speed internet. State Sen. Kristin Phillips-Hill (R., York), who sits on the state broadband authority's board, said that program — which is separate from the funding that was canceled — is her top priority. 'You can't even begin to have a conversation about equity when a good part of your state doesn't have any access to broadband at all,' she said. Another Republican board member, state Rep. Carl Walker Metzgar of Somerset County, said the digital equity program 'had a lot of faults' and was 'moot' compared to the funding to build out broadband infrastructure. 'What's the point in teaching people how to use the internet if they don't have it to use?' But even where broadband is available, many people cannot afford to pay for it or they lack the necessary skills, knowledge, or devices to use it, concluded a state plan completed last year. The Digital Equity Act aimed to address these barriers. In a series of public meetings held by the broadband authority in 2023, attendees across Pennsylvania said they needed the kinds of services the digital equity funding aimed to provide. In Tioga County: 'a need for digital literacy programs.' In Dauphin County: 'a need for teaching how to use devices.' In Washington County: 'residents spoke about the issue of seniors falling for online scams and, in turn, being scared of hesitant to use the internet.' 'What experience has shown is that this is not a 'if you build it they will come' situation,' said Kate Rivera, executive director of the Technology Learning Collaborative, a Philadelphia nonprofit. 'Putting the infrastructure in place to make sure households have the option to connect to the internet is only the first step.' In its plan, Pennsylvania outlined its goals for spending the $25.5 million the state anticipated receiving: expanding public Wi-Fi, investing in classes to teach residents digital skills, and distributing free or low-cost laptops. Those aims are not controversial, said Angela Siefer, executive director of the National Digital Inclusion Alliance, one of the groups whose anticipated funding was canceled by the Trump administration. But since the infrastructure bill became law in 2021, the word 'equity' has become highly politicized, she said. The day Trump took office, he signed an executive order to end diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts across the federal government, including 'equity-related' grants. In early May, Trump called the Digital Equity Act 'unconstitutional' in a post on his Truth Social media network, adding: 'No more woke handouts based on race!' The law aimed to help groups who face challenges accessing the internet, broadly defined. That includes racial and ethnic minorities, as well as older adults, low-income households, residents of rural areas, and veterans, among others. Almost 80% of Pennsylvanians fall into at least one of these categories, state documents show. Trump's decision to withhold the funding is legally precarious and likely to be challenged in court. The president does not have the legal authority to withhold funding that Congress has approved, said David Super, a law professor at Georgetown University. Lawsuits have been filed in similar cases where grants have been frozen, or revoked, but none has yet reached the point of a final ruling, he said. Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, has criticized the Trump administration for cutting off other federal funding for Pennsylvania and has joined lawsuits to challenge some of those decisions. A spokesperson for the Department of Community and Economic Development said that the state is 'currently evaluating the implications and any next steps' on the termination of the digital equity funding. The Digital Equity Act represented a historic federal investment in an area that had previously been funded in a piecemeal way, advocates said. With that money in jeopardy, there is no clear way for state or local government, or private philanthropy, to make up the shortfall. Even if the grants are ultimately restored, advocates said, the delays will cause major disruption and erode trust in the program among communities the funding was intended to help. The $1.1 billion in broadband funding that Pennsylvania expects under the larger program, meanwhile, is on hold pending a federal review. U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick has said NTIA is 'ripping out' the Biden administration's 'pointless requirements' and 'revamping' the program to take a 'tech-neutral approach.' The current rules prioritize broadband networks built using fiber optic cables. Fiber is generally more expensive than other technologies but offers the fastest internet speeds. Satellite connections, such as those offered by Elon Musk's Starlink, are cheaper to install, but slower and less reliable. In March, a top federal official overseeing the broadband program wrote in a resignation letter that the proposed changes could 'benefit technology that delivers slower speeds at higher costs to the household paying the bill.' Pennsylvania completed one round of grant applications in February and changes could cause the state to have to start over. In a budget hearing in February, DCED Secretary Rick Siger assured lawmakers the money allocated would cover every eligible location. If you learned something from this article, pay it forward and contribute to Spotlight PA at Spotlight PA is funded by foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability journalism that gets results. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
