Free Press – March 6, 2008

Springfield Township & PPL, States Rights vs Federalism

Dear Friends,

Good morning. A few months ago, I wrote about a Richland Township family who was fighting the Pennsylvania Power and Light Company’s (PPL) plan to install a new power line through Richland and Springfield Townships. Today, the objections from residents in Springfield occupy the local news.

I first learned about this story when Attorney John Heley showed me a map of the proposed power line. The Quakertown attorney represents a Richland family who objects to the route. Many of Springfield’s residents do as well.

Like railroads, state highways, schools, and municipal projects, utilities hold the awesome power of eminent domain…the right to take personal property to promote the public good. These public institutions are monopolies. The Public Utility Commission (PUC) regulates them in order to prevent the abuse of power.

The first line of defense against a monopoly (like PPL) is the PUC. The only other recourse is to ask the court to intervene.

At the heart of the matter is PPL’s desire to bring more power capacity to Richland and Springfield…and to do it as cheaply a possible. PPL claims that there are three possible routes. The shortest, 7.09 miles, cuts through both townships and would cost $13 million to construct. Using the Septa right of way or the 309 corridors would take nine miles and cost $25 million or $31 million, respectively.

The figures I’m reciting are PPL estimates. Who among us can challenge those numbers? In my view, only the PUC has [the means] and we should demand that they conduct their own independent research.

Both of these townships play into the hands of PPL when they make it easy for developers. PPL knows that townships lack the resources to prevent development. The plethora of municipalities in Pennsylvania…more than 2,600 of them…makes protection from development all but impossible.

Thomas Hylton is a Pulitzer Prize winner who lives in Montgomery County. As a reporter for the Pottstown Mercury, he won the Pulitzer in 1990 for a series of articles about suburban sprawl. Hylton’s book, “Save Our Land, Save Our Towns,” is a fast-read, perfect primer about the danger of horizontal growth.

He argues that elected officials should implement plans, which grow their municipalities vertically instead of horizontally. Hylton believes that the population should be able to walk to work, shop, go to school and church…instead of driving. A different approach to zoning would protect farms and open space, he says.

He’s right.

If you look at the map of Upper Bucks, it’s obvious to me that using the existing transportation right of ways makes more sense. The corridors of Route 309, 313, the northeast extension of the turnpike, and the railroad is where power lines should go.

But that would prevent PPL from servicing future development in Richland and Springfield…which is exactly my point.

Item.

I just finished a fascinating book about the U. S. Supreme Court. “The Nine” by Jeffrey Toobin is quite a read. In it, you’ll understand why judicial appointment is one of the two most important presidential powers…the other is to declare war. “The Nine” spends a great deal of time on federalism versus states rights.

Our founding fathers knew the argument between states rights and federalism. They feared the power of a strong central government because it reminded them of the British King and Parliament. The United States Constitution tries to balance states rights with a central government. It wouldn’t have been ratified without it.

Here are three examples concerning the problems of states rights today.

First, Bucks County residents worry about spring floods approaching. They want reservoirs in New York to reduce their levels now to prevent flooding later. New York disagrees…states rights stands in the way.

Second, the dredging of the Delaware River in lower Bucks is stalemated because Governors Rendell and Corzine can’t agree about which state should pay how much?

And third. “The governors of Alabama, Florida and Georgia will miss today’s federal deadline for settling their 20-year fight over sharing water in the region’s rivers,” USA Today reported (Feb. 15). Friends, that’s not a typo. The allocation of water has been a 20-year struggle…and it’s still not resolved. The states rights argument stands in the way.

“The Nine” also concludes that the Supreme Court is what the American people deserve. That is, we, the people elect presidents who leave their legacy through judicial appointments. This year, we’ll elect a president who may have three Supreme Court appointments to fill…and more than 150 federal judgeships. Do you want Hillary Clinton, John McCain, or Barack Obama to choose them?

Stay tuned.

Sincerely,

Charles Meredith