PRIOR PRINTER'S NOS. 3974, 4227 PRINTER'S NO. 4819
No. 2634 Session of 2006
INTRODUCED BY CLYMER, BOYD, CALTAGIRONE, HENNESSEY, STEIL,
HERSHEY AND E. Z. TAYLOR, APRIL 26, 2006
AS AMENDED ON THIRD CONSIDERATION, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
OCTOBER 17, 2006
AN ACT
1 Amending Title 53 (Municipalities Generally) of the Pennsylvania
2 Consolidated Statutes, providing for procedure for conveyance
3 of established projects.
4 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
5 hereby enacts as follows:
6 Section 1. Title 53 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated
7 Statutes is amended by adding a section to read:
8 § 5624. Procedure for conveyance of established projects.
9 (a) Notice and meetings.--An incorporating municipality that
10 intends to acquire an established project of an authority
11 pursuant to section 5622 (relating to conveyance by authorities
12 to municipalities or school districts of established projects)
13 or to dissolve an authority which, in either case, provides
14 water or sewer service to at least 25% of its customers in
15 municipalities outside the incorporating municipality shall
16 ensure the following occurs before the acquisition or
17 termination of the authority:
1 (1) The incorporating municipality, at a regularly
2 scheduled public meeting, shall discuss the acquisition or
3 dissolution and explain the rationale for such action, the
4 disposition of projects or property, the financial mechanism
5 for dissolution and acquisition, the disposition of assets
6 and debt and the future operation and maintenance of the
7 service previously provided by the authority. At the meeting,
8 the incorporating municipality shall allow comments from
9 interested parties and shall conduct the meeting in such a
10 manner as to provide a forum for issues raised by the public
11 to be addressed.
12 (2) The incorporating municipality shall hold at least
13 one advertised public meeting to explain the rationale for <--
14 the acquisition or dissolution, the disposition of projects
15 or property, the financial mechanism for dissolution and
16 acquisition, the disposition of assets and debt and the
17 future operation and maintenance of the service previously
18 provided by the authority, FORUM ON THE ACQUISITION OR <--
19 DISSOLUTION TO EXPLAIN THE RATIONALE FOR SUCH ACTION AS
20 PRESCRIBED IN PARAGRAPH (1) and to take comments from
21 customers, elected officials from each of the other ALL <--
22 municipalities served by the authority, members of the
23 authority board and other interested parties. The
24 incorporating municipality shall provide written notice of
25 the meeting FORUM to the authority board members and to the <--
26 elected officials from each of the other ALL municipalities <--
27 served by the authority.
28 (3) Each municipality that is served by an authority
29 incorporated by another municipality wishing to dissolve the
30 authority or acquire its established project shall, at a
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1 public meeting, cast a nonbinding vote to recommend approval
2 or denial of the action of dissolution or acquisition by the
3 incorporating municipality and shall explain the rationale
4 for its recommendation. in a report to the incorporating <--
5 municipality. This vote shall THE RESULT OF THE NONBINDING <--
6 VOTE AND RATIONALE FOR ITS RECOMMENDATION SHALL BE
7 TRANSMITTED TO THE INCORPORATING MUNICIPALITY WITHIN 48 HOURS
8 OF THE VOTE. THIS NONBINDING VOTE SHALL occur within 90 days
9 of the introduction of the action of dissolution or
10 acquisition at an official meeting of the municipality.
11 (4) A formal action by an incorporating municipality
12 intending to dissolve an authority or acquire its established
13 project shall not occur until all of the requirements set
14 forth in paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) have occurred.
15 (b) Conveyance.--A municipality that has dissolved such
16 authority or acquired its established project may not offer for
17 sale or conveyance for two years from the date of dissolution or
18 acquisition such authority or its established project to a
19 private entity unless the sale or conveyance was publicly
20 disclosed in the initial official action or at the public
21 meeting in subsection (a)(1).
22 (c) Assets.--If an authority is dissolved by the <--
23 incorporating municipality
24 (C) ASSETS.--FOLLOWING THE TRANSFER TO AN INCORPORATING <--
25 MUNICIPALITY THAT HAS DISSOLVED SUCH AUTHORITY OR ACQUIRED ITS
26 ESTABLISHED PROJECT IN ACCORDANCE WITH THIS SECTION, all fixed
27 assets or moneys derived therefrom and any cash, investments or
28 other nonfixed assets shall be restricted to the project and the
29 incorporating municipality shall not utilize any future revenue, <--
30 EXCEPT IN THE CASE OF A SALE OR CONVEYANCE AS DESCRIBED UNDER
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1 SUBSECTION (B), derived from the project to pay any expense of
2 the incorporating municipality other than expenses directly
3 related to the project or to reimburse the incorporating
4 municipality for the out-of-pocket cost for goods and services
5 provided by the incorporating municipality in the ongoing
6 operation of the project.
7 (d) Approval.--If the incorporating municipality intends to
8 continue providing water or sewer service previously provided by
9 the authority to municipalities outside the incorporating
10 municipality, the incorporating municipality must obtain
11 approval of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission prior to:
12 (1) acquisition or termination of an authority;
13 (2) conveyance of a project of the authority to the
14 incorporating municipality under section 5622; or
15 (3) transfer of reserves, assets or funds from an
16 authority to the incorporating municipality.
17 Section 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
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