Leechburg Borough v. Leechburg Water Works Co.
Leechburg Borough v. Leechburg Water Works Co.
Opinion of the Court
Opinion by
This is a controversy between the burgess and town council of the borough of Leechburg and the Leechburg Water Works Company. The latter has been for years furnishing the borough of Leechburg with wmter for purposes of fire protection, under contract, for the consideration of $500 per annum. This contract having expired in August, 1906, the company demanded for the future an annual compensation of $3,000, and threatened that unless this rate was accepted by the borough, the service to the borough for this particular purpose would be discontinued. The borough then offered to pay the company $22.00 for each of the thirty-four hydrants then in use and $25.00 for each additional hydrant. This offer having been declined by the company, the borough thereupon filed its bill for an injunction to restrain the company from discontinuing its supply of water, and asking the court to fix a reasonable rate for the service. The amount of testimony taken in the case may be judged from the fact that we have before us a record of 500 pages. It is only the smallest part of the evidence that is relevant, for the reason that the effort seems to have been to apply to the determination of the issue the rule indicated in Brymer v. Butler Water Company, 179 Pa. 231, which, while unquestioned as an authoritative rule, is inapplicable here. The court found that a proper and reasonable charge for supplying water through as many hydrants as the borough would see fit to construct, not exceeding fifty, would be $1,100 per annum, and enjoined the water company from discontinuing the service. From this decree the water company has appealed. By far the greater part of the testimony taken relates to the cost of construction and the value of the appellant’s plant, the expense and charges incident to the oper
The assignments of error are overruled, the appeal is dismissed at cost of appellant, and the decree is affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Leechburg Borough v. Leechburg Water Works Company
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- Syllabus
- Water companies — Water rates — Boroughs—Water for fire protection. In a proceeding between a borough and a water company to determine what is a proper compensation for the latter for water furnished to the borough for purposes of fire protection, where it is assumed that the water company derives adequate compensation for its whole outfit on the basis it has established, the only question to determine is, does the charge which the company proposes to exact for furnishing the borough with water for fire purposes, measured by the number of hydrants employed, or by the rule by which the company has fixed its general schedule of rates, bear reasonable proportion to the rates established for other demands? It is wholly impracticable to determine by mathematical calculation based on cost or value of a water plant, and the expense of operating the same, whether a single rate charged by the company for a specific service, such as a supply of water to a borough for fire protection, distinct from the other hundred or more charges for as many different services, is in itself compensatory to the company. To attempt it would be carrying what has come to be known as the segregating process in questions of this kind beyond all reasonable limit. It is to be assumed that in framing its general schedule of rates, the water company has been guided by some rule or principle which would enable it to be just to itself, and at the same time enable it with reasonable approximation to make its charges for its varying services conform to some standard which would secure to the consumers reasonable uniformity in cost. A water company demanded from a borough an annual compensation of $3,000 for water furnished for fire protection. It appeared that the total income of the company was $6,693.22, and that this was derived from a population of 6,000. The court below reached the conclusion, by comparison with other rates charged by the company, and from considering the number of hydrants employed, that an annual rate of $1,100 for as many hydrants not exceeding fifty as the borough chose to employ, with an additional charge of $25.00'for each extra hydrant, was fair and reasonable alike to the company and the borough. Held, that the decree of the court below should be sustained.