With System Worth More Than $1 Billion, Bucks County Water & Sewer Authority Evaluating Offer

A recent meeting of the Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority Board of Directors led to confirmation that a sale is possible but not definite.

Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority Chairman John Cordisco confirmed LevittownNow.com‘s past reporting that the authority received an offer to buy the system that was recently valued at $1.1 billion for the sewer system and $300 million for the water system.

The board and officials didn’t speak specifics on the offer, or offers.

This news organization has confirmed for-profit Aqua Pennsylvania, which is owned by Essential Utilities, has submitted an offer to purchase the public authority for at least $600 million.

It is not known if an offer was made, but sources in the industry said for-profit Pennsylvania American Water has also expressed interest in the Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority.

If the Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority is sold, it would mark one of the largest public utility sales to a private company in the nation.

Cordisco confirmed the current offer is tied to a late 2020 “unsolicited” offer from Aqua.

“This is not just about price. This is about employees, impacts to the ratepayers,” he said.

Cordisco, an attorney and outgoing chairperson of the county Democratic party, said the authority has an obligation to review offers it receives.

“We’re not there,” Cordisco said of even considering the offer.

Benjamin Jones, the CEO of the Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority, said the authority paid about $50,000 to engineering firm Gannett Fleming for a valuation of their system as part of the examination of the offer.

Cordisco told reporters the authority would have public hearings and make people aware if they move forward with considering a sale of their system.

Experts in the field and advocates against privatization point to numerous examples of private firms purchasing public authorities and raising rates.

Tom Tosti, a former Middletown Township supervisor and regional director of union American Federation of State and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), demanded the authority board be more transparency over any possible sale.

Cordisco said the authority has been transparent and will be.

Tosti has raised the issue of privatization with numerous local municipalities in Bucks County and Montgomery County that are served by the authority.

News of the offer only became public due to reporting from LevittownNow.com and the Bucks County Courier Times. The authority denied a Right to Know request from a reporter seeking documents on the matter.

In response to Tosti’s comments, Cordisco said he directed representatives for firms that may make offers not directly reach out to board members but go through the authority’s administration.

It was also revealed firm Bernhard Capital Partners had made a lease offer to the authority, but Jones and Cordisco said they never received it. The 30-year deal would have the firm run the system, while offering the authority payments and allow them to continue own the system.

For months, rumors have swirled among some in local government about a possible sale of the system that serves 100,000 households and several bulk customers.

The Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority was chartered by the county in the 1960s and services many municipalities in Bucks County and a handful in Montgomery and Chester counties.

After debts are paid off, profits from any potential sale would be turned over to Bucks County government.

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