Miller Development Corp. v. Union Township Municipal Authority

666 A.2d 391, 1995 Pa. Commw. LEXIS 460
CourtCommonwealth Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedOctober 18, 1995
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 666 A.2d 391 (Miller Development Corp. v. Union Township Municipal Authority) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Miller Development Corp. v. Union Township Municipal Authority, 666 A.2d 391, 1995 Pa. Commw. LEXIS 460 (Pa. Ct. App. 1995).

Opinion

NEWMAN, Judge.

Nehemiah Partnership and its partners Miller Development Corporation and Aaron B. Peachey (collectively, Nehemiah) appeal the order of the Court of Common Pleas of Mifflin County (trial court) that sustained a preliminary objection of Municipal Authority of Lewistown (Lewistown) and Union Township Municipal Authority (Union) and dismissed Nehemiah’s complaint. We affirm.

This case originated as a dispute involving the construction of a water main extension. On May 13, 1991, Nehemiah entered into a water main extension agreement (Agreement) with Lewistown. The Agreement provided that: (1) Nehemiah would construct, at its own cost and expense, an extension of an existing water main and would install further mains within the Olde Carriage Crossing subdivision in Brown Township, Mifflin County; (2) all labor performed and all materials used by Nehemiah or on its behalf in installing the water main was to comply with general specifications provided by Lewis-town; (3) Lewistown would have the right to extend the water main, to make branch connections to it, and to renew or enlarge it; and (4) any water mains constructed under this Agreement by Nehemiah would become the property of Lewistown upon completion and dedication.

Nehemiah constructed water main extensions pursuant to the Agreement, incurring labor and material expenses in the amount of $171,267.87. No cost was incurred by Lewis-town. In early 1992, Nehemiah executed a Deed of Transfer transferring possession and control of this water main extension to Lew-istown.

On May 1, 1993, Lewistown and Union entered into an agreement that provided that Union would connect into the water main extension constructed by Nehemiah and proceed with further construction to provide wa[393]*393ter service to the village of Belleville in Union Township.

By Act of December 19, 1990, P.L. 1227 (Act 203), the Pennsylvania Legislature amended section 4(B) of the Municipality Authority Act of 1945, Act of May 2, 1945, P.L. 382, as amended, 53 P.S. § 306(B) (the Act). Act 203 provides for reimbursement to a party who constructs a water main extension in the form of tapping fees and other payments so that the constructing party can recoup some of its expenses when others benefit from the construction. Lewistown and Union have collected tapping fees from property owners who use the water main extension. Nehemiah has not been reimbursed or compensated from the tapping fees.

Nehemiah filed a Complaint in Equity in the trial court on May 23, 1994 to reclaim some of its expenses in constructing the water main extension pursuant to Act 203. Lewistown and Union filed preliminary objections in the nature of a demurrer on June 13, 1994. In response, Nehemiah amended its complaint on July 1, 1994, asserting that Lewistown and Union failed to provide a reimbursement agreement for Nehemiah’s costs incurred in construction of a water main pursuant to Act 203. Lewistown and Union again filed preliminary objections in the nature of a demurrer.

Following the submission of briefs and oral argument, the trial court sustained Lewis-town’s preliminary objections and dismissed Nehemiah’s complaint in an order dated October 17, 1994. The trial court's subsequent opinion filed December 7, 1994 does not list specific reasons for the ruling, but states: (1) that the court’s reasons for its order are set forth in the record within Lewistown’s brief in support of preliminary objections; and (2) the court adopted the arguments and authorities presented in Lewistown’s brief as the basis for the order dismissing the amended complaint. Nehemiah now appeals the trial court’s ruling.

On appeal, we are presented with the following two issues: (1) whether the trial court erred in concluding that Act 203 does not govern the Agreement or the subsequent agreements for extension and tapping fees; and (2) whether the trial court committed error or abused its discretion in granting Lewistown and Union’s preliminary objections, adopting Lewistown and Union’s brief, and dismissing Nehemiah’s complaint.

First, we are faced with the question of whether the trial court properly interpreted Act 203 by holding that it did not govern the Agreement. Act 203 contains the following language:

Section 2. Notwithstanding section 4 of this act, this act shall apply immediately to any connection, customer facilities, tapping or similar fees which are increased or initially imposed subsequent to the date of final enactment.
Section 3. This act shall not affect any existing agreement which relates to the subject matter of this act. The provisions of section 4B(z.l) of the act shall be applicable to any agreement for extension of a sewer or water system of an Authority entered into after the effective date of this Act.
Section 4. This act shall take effect in 180 days.

Act 203 was enacted on December 19, 1990. Its effective date was therefore June 17,1991, five weeks after the Agreement was entered into by Nehemiah and Lewistown on May 13, 1991. The statute’s language indicates that there are two dates at which different provisions of the statute become effective. First, under Section 3, the general provisions of Act 203 will apply only to an agreement to extend a water or sewer main where the agreement is entered into after June 17, 1991. Second, under Section 2, Act 203 applies to any connection fees, customer facilities fees, tapping or similar fees (collectively, tapping fees) increased or initially imposed after December 19, 1990.

Nehemiah argues that because the language of Section 3 provides that any agreement entered into after the effective date of the Act is subject to the reimbursement provisions of Section 4B(z.l) of the Act, reimbursement is due here for tapping fees collected pursuant to the arrangements between the other property owners and Union and Lewistown because those arrangements were [394]*394made after the effective date of the Act. Appellant’s Brief, at 7, 10-11. We disagree.

Nehemiah’s argument betrays several flaws in its reading of Section 3. First, Section 3 does not refer to tapping fees arrangements. In fact, a reading of the Act indicates that tapping fees do not result from agreement or contract, but are merely imposed as a utility charge by the municipal authority. Further, the plain language of Section 3 limits its reference to

any agreement for extension of a sewer or water system of an Authority entered into after the effective date.

We conclude that the term “agreement” as used in the Act does not refer to tapping fees, but to agreements for the extension of sewer and water systems for governmental authorities.

Additionally, the plain language of Section 3 indicates that Act 203 shall not affect any existing agreement, but will apply only to agreements for sewer and water extension construction entered into after the effective date of the Act. Here, Nehemiah and Lewis-town entered into their Agreement five weeks prior to the effective date of the Act. We conclude, then, that Section 3 does not apply to the parties here.

Next, Nehemiah alleges that under Section 2, Act 203 is applicable to any tapping fees imposed (1) by Lewistown on homeowners, (2) by Lewistown on Union, and (3) by Union on homeowners, because those fees were imposed subsequent to the enactment date of the Act. Again, we disagree.

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Bluebook (online)
666 A.2d 391, 1995 Pa. Commw. LEXIS 460, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/miller-development-corp-v-union-township-municipal-authority-pacommwct-1995.