PWSA Blue Ribbon Panel releases final recommendations

PITTSBURGH — Just before year's end, the Blue Ribbon panel looking into the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority has put out its final review and recommendations.

The 18-page report proposes some drastic changes for the future of the PWSA, recommendations that now sit at the desk of Mayor Bill Peduto.

The panel consisted of city politicians and community leaders to find the best way to restructure the PWSA, which continues to deal with concerns over water quality due to aging pipes, billing problems and hundreds of millions of dollars in debt.

The panel recommends the PWSA be completely independent from the city.

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As it's currently set up, all PWSA board members are chosen by the mayor, including one council member.

The panel also wants an end to annual subsidy payments to Penn American Water, which serves a small number of city residents and the city itself, which gets $7 million per year from the PWSA.

The portion that may be most significant is the recommendation to keep the PWSA public as a municipal authority, a decision councilwoman, and PWSA board member Deborah Gross, agrees with.

"I'm glad that they concur, as do many of our constituents that the system should not be privatized," Gross said. "It was entirely built and funded by the people's money, it's the people's water authority and it's an asset to the city."

The report recommends having a new contract between the city and the PWSA in place by the end of March.

But any final decision on how the PWSA will be restructured now rests with Mayor Bill Peduto.

No word at this point on what he plans to do.

Cox Media Group