Committee advances bill narrowing public-hearing rules for some water companies

A legislative committee on Friday afternoon voted to advance a substitute for House Bill 5145, which would change which water companies must obtain approval and public hearings before ceasing operations.

The measure, described to the committee as "an act concerning the public hearing requirement for certain water companies requesting to cease operations or discontinue the provision of water services," would narrow the set of companies for which both the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) and the Department of Public Health (DPH) must provide consent and hold hearings. The bill was moved out of committee by Representative Biggins and seconded by Senator Ammar.

Supporters said the change aims to reduce process delays that are preventing some businesses that rely on well water from opening or staying in the state. "There are some businesses in Connecticut which use water from the wells," Senator Ammar said, and current regulations are "creating process delays, which are impacting some of those businesses to not be able to start the business, and then they're making a choice to leave, that area or the state." She asked the committee to move the bill so affected parties can continue conversations about appropriate carve-outs and modifications.

Opponents warned the substitute could roll back earlier policy. Representative D'Amico said his recollection was that requiring both PURA and DPH involvement resulted from testimony heard in the Energy and Technology Committee and that the department lacked the resources to perform the required functions. "My fear is that this bill is going to undo what we did in energy and technology," D'Amico said, noting resource concerns at DPH.

Representative Claire DeSteitra told the committee she would support advancing the substitute out of committee to allow further discussion, but cautioned she might not support the measure on the floor unless outstanding concerns were resolved. "I, for one, will support the bill today out of committee. However, absent those conversations happening and working through some of the concerns, I don't know that I would support this bill, when it would come to the floor," she said.

The clerk conducted an extended roll call and recorded members' votes. As recorded in the committee proceeding, the roll-call tally was 16 yes, 10 no; Representative Gilchrist later asked to change his vote from yes to no, and the chair acknowledged the request. The chair announced votes would be held open until 4:30 p.m.; she said subsequent proceedings or materials would be available in the Public Health area or on Zoom, and then recessed the meeting.

The bill comes to the committee via the Commerce Committee; committee members said they expect additional conversations among stakeholders and committee chairs before any final floor consideration.

What happens next: The substitute will be reported out of committee to the floor for further consideration; supporters and opponents said they plan follow-up discussions to address concerns, particularly around DPH capacity and the scope of companies covered by the bill.