by Donald Eng CTNewsJunkie
TRUMBULL, CT — A bipartisan coalition of municipal leaders, legislators and state officials are urging the Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Authority to reject the proposed sale of Aquarion Water Co. from Eversource to a new quasi public water authority, citing the loss of property tax revenue and the potential for higher water bills in Aquarion’s service area.
“Many experts have warned us that the sale will weaken state oversight, drive up water rates and reduce local tax revenues,” said Trumbull First Selectman Vicki Tesoro. “Attorney General William Tong … has warned us that the proposed sale could potentially double consumer bills. This deal is widely viewed as a bad outcome for the region and its residents.”
Tesoro cited opposition to the $2.4 billion sale from 26 mayors and first selectpersons from Aquarion’s service area. At a media briefing Monday in Trumbull, the municipal leaders of Stratford, Ridgefield, Shelton, Easton and Monroe joined Tong, state Sen. Sujata Gadkar-Wilcox, D-Trumbull, and the leaders of several regional municipal agencies to lobby against the plan.
Shelton Mayor Mark Lauretti said Aquarion is the second-largest taxpayer in the city, and said the current system of a privately owned but state regulated water supplier had given ratepayers consistency and predictability for many years.
“We have been well served, over decades and decades, by Aquarion’s structure, the oversight from PURA and the State of Connecticut, the (Connecticut Consumer) watchdog, I could go on and on,” Lauretti said. “To take an entity such as the Aquarion Water Company and put it under the auspices of a … much smaller regional water authority, and then take the voting structure on the board and the total control away, to me makes no sense and should be a red flag for everyone.”
State Republicans also weighed in, with senators Tony Hwang of Fairfield, Jason Perillo of Shelton, Ryan Fazio of Greenwich and Stephen Harding of Brookfield issuing a statement urging PURA to reject the deal when it issues its decision Nov. 19.
“Connecticut residents deserve a lower cost of living, affordable utilities, and trustworthy, transparent government. Unfortunately, this bad deal will only deliver higher utility bills and broken trust,” they wrote. “We join with other opponents — including more than two dozen municipalities, the state Office of the Attorney General, the Department of Public Health and environmental group Save the Sound. We can do better as a state for our residents.”
Eversource officials in response cited a Nov. 9 letter from David Borowry, chair of the Aquarion Water Authority that is the proposed buyer for Aquarion.
Sent to the municipal leaders of towns in Aquarion’s service area, he called the potential sale, “an exciting, albeit naturally questioned, opportunity” for municipal stakeholders.
The proposed Aquarion Water Authority overseeing operations will be “profoundly local” and independent, he wrote. Its governing body, the Representative Policy Board, will consist of an appointed member from each of the 59 Aquarion communities, plus a governor’s representative, he wrote.
The policy board will also select five members to join six members of the New Haven-based Regional Water Authority to form an 11-member board of directors.
Borowry noted concerns that such a board would be viewed as skewed against the communities and noted that the newly established water authority “is weighted in favor of representatives from RWA to enable a successful transition of Aquarion to a public authority, and the financial institutions involved, and credit-rating agencies based their indicative ratings on this governance model opinion. Changes to any perceived imbalance can be considered after a transition period demonstrating that AWA is being successfully converted to an authority.
He also noted that Aquarion rates would not be blended with the RWA customers’ rates, but rather would be “based on Aquarion’s actual cost of service, in accordance with the enabling legislation statute, which contains important protections for customers in terms of the way that rates are set and the process for resetting them.”
Borowry’s reassurance did little to sway those at Monday’s event, including Tong.
Attorney General William Tong speaks about the proposed sale of Aquarion Water Co. in Trumbull on Nov. 10, 2025. Credit: Donald Eng / CTNewsJunkie
“The state opposes this deal because ratepayers are going to get crushed,” Tong said. “People in our towns and our cities that are served by Aquarion are getting hurt right now and they’re barely able to put food on the table.”
He said water was “not something that people can do without” and called the proposed deal “a gutpunch.” He said RWA customers pay an average of 30% more than Aquarion customers and that over the past decade RWA rates had risen 45%, compared to Aquarion rates going up 8.5%.
Tong also responded to a common question about the sale of what he would propose as an alternative.
“Go find another buyer. I strongly encourage Eversource to go back to the market,” he said. “Let’s just cut the crap with this deal. It’s terrible. It doesn’t work. Do better for the ratepayers and the people of Connecticut.”