The Pennsylvania Supreme Court last week unanimously reversed a Commonwealth Court decision that blocked the sale of East Whiteland Township’s wastewater system to Aqua Pennsylvania, restoring approval granted by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission.

The PA Chamber, along with the Chester County Chamber of Business & Industry, filed an amicus brief supporting Aqua and the township and urged the Supreme Court to take up the case and reverse the lower court’s ruling.

The dispute centered on a 2016 state law, Act 12, which allows municipalities to sell water and wastewater systems at fair market value. East Whiteland Township and Aqua followed that process, and the PUC approved the sale after concluding it served the public interest.

Pennsylvania’s prior Consumer Advocate challenged the approval, and the Commonwealth Court overturned it;

However the Supreme Court, in its decision, said the lower court went too far by substituting its own judgment for that of the PUC, which is charged with regulating utilities and weighing public benefits.

The Supreme Court explained that Act 12 does not require a utility sale to be strictly necessary or to reduce customer rates. Instead, the PUC must determine whether a transaction is proper and provides overall public benefits, such as improved service, more reliable operations, environmental compliance, and the buyer’s experience managing utility systems.

The justices also rejected the idea that possible rate increases automatically make a deal against the public interest. While rate impacts must be considered, the law allows municipal systems to be sold at fair market value even if rates rise.

The ruling restores the PUC’s approval of the sale and reinforces limits on court review of agency decisions, providing greater certainty for municipalities and utilities considering similar transactions across Pennsylvania.