Philly Gas Commission passes rules that limit public participation in PGW budget process

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The Philadelphia Gas Commission voted Thursday to approve new regulations that restrict the ability of third parties, such as advocacy organizations, to participate in the city-owned Philadelphia Gas Works’ budgeting process.

Commissioners characterized the approval as the first step in a process where the final rules could still be refined. However, climate activists, PGW customers, and a consumer advocate opposed the move. 

“I have been talking about this situation with my neighbors, and they are not happy,” Kate Krauss, a Port Richmond resident, said during Thursday’s special meeting. “We need more transparency and participation in this process, not less … As a PGW ratepayer and a citizen of Philadelphia, I oppose this regulation.”

The measure, drafted by the city Law Department in response to a 2022 request from PGW, outlines the process of public participation in proceedings before the Gas Commission, which includes approval of PGW’s operating and capital budgets and the purchase or sale of PGW property.

It prevents third parties except the “Public Advocate,” which represents the interests of ratepayers, and the PGW workers’ union from gathering information early in the budget process and participating at a deeper level than offering comments during a public hearing.

The new rules do preserve public comment, but advocates say participation before public hearings —  performing legal discovery, providing expert witnesses and cross-examining PGW’s witnesses — is more effective.

The Gas Commission’s move to define and restrict the process comes after the climate action and racial justice advocacy organization POWER Interfaith began playing a bigger role in budget proceedings in recent years, pushing PGW to transition away from a business model centered on natural gas, which contributes to climate change.

POWER opposes the new rules, as does Community Legal Services in its role as Public Advocate, as well as 10 City Council members, who wrote a letter to the Commission early this month calling on them to reject it.

“This effort to restrict robust public participation raises serious concerns, and we firmly stand against it,” the letter read.

Three of the four Gas Commissioners present on Thursday — Royal Brown, City Councilmember Mike Driscoll and Evan Urbania — voted to approve the regulation. Only City Controller Christy Brady voted against it.

Driscoll, who was appointed to the Gas Commission by City Council last year, called the regulation a “long overdue step” as he urged his fellow commissioners to move forward with it.

“Clearly defined operating procedures [are] necessary to allow the commission to conduct its business in an orderly and efficient manner,” Driscoll said. “[These regulations] attempt to preserve the right to the public to interact with the government, while … standardizing the process by which the Commission conducts proceedings.”

The Commission has said that too many parties participating in budget proceedings can slow down the process and make it hard to approve the budget on time.

The version the Commission passed Thursday added the Gas Works Employees’ Union Local 686 as a party that can participate in discovery, file formal briefs and submit expert testimony during budget proceedings.

Rob Ballenger, a lawyer with Community Legal Services acting as the Public Advocate, called Thursday’s vote “disappointing.”

“We don’t think it’s appropriate to preclude others from participating on the same terms and conditions in which we participate in these processes,” Ballenger said.

Several PGW customers and climate activists commented during Thursday’s meeting, urging the Commission to vote against the regulations.

Mitch Chanin, a resident of Northeast Philadelphia and member of POWER, characterized the effort to pass the regulations as a waste of time, when PGW, the Gas Commission and stakeholders like POWER should be working together to make energy affordable for Philadelphians and help the utility meet the city’s climate goals.

“We now are going to have to spend more time arguing over whether or not we can be at the table, instead of working together to plan for the future of our city and our utility,” Chanin said. “We’ll have to keep organizing.”

At-Large Councilmember Nicolas O’Rourke denounced Thursday’s vote.

“The Philadelphia Gas Commission voted to diminish democratic access to PGW’s budgetary process, sharply narrowing venues for Philadelphia residents to impact a company which they own,” he said in a written statement. “It’s a disappointment and a shame, a vote which runs counter to narratives about protecting democracy that abound in today’s political discourse.”

PGW spokesperson Dan Gross praised the Commissioners’ action in a written statement after the vote.

“We appreciate the care, time, and effort the Philadelphia Gas Commission has put into evaluating how to improve the efficiency and fairness of its review and approval process,” he wrote. “These changes will allow PGW’s [Philadelphia Gas Commission] budget process to be more consistent with those of other City departments and related entities.”

The regulation will become effective 30 days after it’s filed with the Department of Records unless an affected person requests a public hearing on it. The Commission could decide to revise the regulation in response to such a hearing.