LEGISLATORS ADVOCATE FOR BETTER OVERSIGHT, GOOD GOVERNANCE OF METROPOLITAN DISTRICT AS BILL RECEIVES PUBLIC HEARING

HARTFORD – This morning, legislators representing the towns and cities who receive water and sewer services from the Metropolitan District stood in support of legislation seeking to ensure good governance with increased transparency and oversight of the District’s activities. State Senator Derek Slap (D-West Hartford), State Representative Tom Delnicki (R-South Windsor), State Representative Jillian Gilchrest (D-West Hartford) and State Representative Mike Demicco (D-Farmington), joined by Connecticut League of Conservation Voters Executive Director Lori Brown and Rivers Alliance of Connecticut Executive Director Alicea Charamut, discussed House Bill 5888, “An Act Concerning The Metropolitan District Commission,” and how its suggestions could lead to better results from the MDC’s operations.

“The Metropolitan District delivers high-quality services to hundreds of thousands of state residents; those residents deserve to know more about how the MDC operates,” said Sen. Slap. “This legislation is designed to help improve transparency and public information about the MDC. Additionally, the MDC’s charter was drafted in the late 1920s, and retains language reflecting a time nearly a century ago; re-examining the charter in a modern light could provide significant value. I’m looking forward to working to pass this bill and improve this important organization.”

“What we are asking for, is greater accountability by the Metropolitan District Commission. South Windsor ratepayers deserve a voice and a seat at the table when the district debate whether to raise water rates,” said Rep. Delnicki.

“The League of Conservation Voters has been working since 2017 to bring reforms to the MDC, and we appreciate that the MDC and its dedicated employees manage our high quality drinking water,” said Brown. “However, this quasi public-private authority has been the center of controversy many times for questionable financial decisions that are not in the best interest of the public it was created to serve or the environment that’s important to the entire state. It’s important that there be a new set of eyes, independent of the MDC, to review its finances and operations and right the ship in the best interests of the public.”

“I want to make sure we have enough water for fish and faucet for future generations,” said Charamut. “For anyone who cares about water in the face of climate change, it requires a lot of cooperation with agencies and stakeholders. The MDC isn’t set up for that level of cooperation right now. Their charter was established in 1929. That was a very long time ago. The legislation examining that structure is long overdue and we need to look at it now to make sure our waters are protected.”

House Bill 5888, “An Act Concerning The Metropolitan District Commission,” raised in public hearing Friday in the Planning and Development Committee, would impose additional oversight on the Commission. It would require annual audits of the MDC, create a task force studying the Commission and its charter, adopt an ethics code for Commission members to follow that town and city boards often adopt, and permit commissioners residing in municipalities that are not members of the MDC to vote on certain rate requests.

Legislators including Sen. Slap have introduced similar legislation in previous years seeking for the MDC to, for example, adopt an ethics code like that used by Connecticut cities and towns. In recent years, the MDC, the largest water and sewer provider in the Greater Hartford region, has received criticism for large water rate hikes for consumers as well as volume price discounts for large corporate water users. Additionally, in 2022, reports arose that the MDC’s Board of Commissioners was examining approximately $80,000 in legal fees billed to the company by an attorney whose contract had expired months earlier, which drew concern from legislators.