A referendum is on the November 5 ballot in South Orange, asking residents to vote “yes” or “no” to allow South Orange Village to negotiate the sale of its water utility to New Jersey American Water. Read more here.
Dear Neighbors,
If you haven’t yet voted on the referendum to privatize South Orange’s water system, which is on this year’s election ballot, I recommend you consider voting No for a number of reasons:
- The vote allows the Council to negotiate the sale with NJAW. Should the Village Council finalize negotiations, the sale is final and cannot be reversed.
- While rates will remain low for the first five years of privatization (no change in the first two years and a 3% increase each in years 3-5), there’s no telling how high rates will go though they are subject to review by the NJ Board of Public Utilities.
- The buyer, New Jersey American Water, is part of a larger private company, American Water, which is focused on turning a profit. It has been aggressively acquiring water systems throughout the country, which must be upgraded due to new federal and state regulations that require the replacement of lead and galvanized (zinc coated) pipes. That means you, as a ratepayer in South Orange, will be paying not only for upgrading our local water system but also many other systems. The task force report on privatization notes that post-sale, “water rates will include capital project recovery for projects beyond South Orange.”
- There are alternatives, according to the task force:
- Contract with another company to operate and maintain it
- Have the town provide those services, which would require hiring a dozen people, or
- A combination of third-party contractors and Village personnel
Any alternative would require more study plus funding by the Village. South Orange has a strong AA debt rating from S&P, suggesting bonds could be issued at a reasonable rate.
Keep in mind that the town council vote for privatization wasn’t unanimous but 4:2.
Shouldn’t South Orange residents know a lot more about the potential impact of privatizing our water system before voting to sell it?
Bernice Napach
South Orange, NJ
Letters to the Editors guidelines: Village Green publishes Letters to the Editors regarding local election issues. Publishing these letters is at the discretion of the editors. We do not publish letters attacking candidates or any person. The deadline for submitting a Letter to the Editors for the Fall 2024 election was Tuesday, October 29, at 5 p.m. Contact the editors with any questions at villagegreennj@gmail.com.
