PUC suspends PA American Water rate increases pending investigation

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https://www.wfmz.com/news/area/lehighvalley/public-utility-commission-suspends-pa-american-water-rate-increases-pending-investigation/article_582e9fae-3d7c-4a85-a1a7-d7f7e9e354b1.html

The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) voted Thursday to suspend and investigate proposed rate increases by Pennsylvania American Water Company (PAWC) for both its water and wastewater service.

...

The Commission voted 5-0 to investigate PAWC’s proposed overall increase of $168.7 million (approximately 14.6%) in total annual operating revenues for water and wastewater service.

As proposed, PAWC customers would have seen the following rate changes:

* For a typical residential water customer using 3,263 gallons a month, an increase ranging from $2.73 per month to $27.77 per month, an increase between 9.8% and 41.14%, depending on their service area.
* For a typical wastewater customer using 3,164 gallons a month, an increase ranging from $0 per month to $26.29 per month, an increase between 0% and 54.14%, depending on their service area.
* For customers with combined stormwater and wastewater systems, an increase of approximately $20 per month.

The rate increase request is now suspended for up to seven months from the proposed effective date of Jan. 13, 2026 based on Thursday's vote by the Commission, and will be assigned to the PUC’s Office of Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) for investigation and recommended decisions, according to the release.

[John1956PA]

1. As an aside, I will mention that PA-AM was recently acquired by a company with greater geographical reach.