Resident-led PUC complaint and ash-tree concerns prompt township review

A township resident told supervisors that he filed a formal complaint with the state public utility regulator over utility vegetation management and urged the board to pursue remedies and potential grant funding for homeowners with hazardous ash trees.

The resident said he had filed a PUC complaint and right-to-know requests for utility plans and maintenance records, and that state legislators’ offices had assisted in delivering documentation to the PUC. The resident told the board he had also reviewed a statewide association website that referenced available COVID-era municipal funding and suggested American Rescue Plan-type money might be usable for tree removal, but noted those funds must be spent by Dec. 31.

Township staff and board members clarified the limits of local authority: the township cannot enter private property to remove trees and utilities regulated by the Public Utility Commission are responsible for vegetation in their right-of-way. Board members advised residents that in most cases the property owner remains responsible for removing dead or diseased trees and that an enforceable ordinance to compel private-property tree removal exists only under narrow health, safety or welfare circumstances in the second-class township code.

Board members asked staff to collect legal options and to research whether grant funding or specific ARPA/CRF allocations could be used to assist homeowners. The board did not adopt a new ordinance at the meeting; members said they would return with legal advice and options at a future session.

Direct quotes in the meeting included the manager’s procedural note that “the grant application is due July 12,” and the resident’s description of filing the PUC complaint. The transcript shows no formal action ordering tree removal; rather, the board agreed to investigate legal authority and possible funding options.