NJ Water Customers May Have 28-Year Wait for Safety Upgrades

For almost 20 years, the Passaic Valley Water Commission, a utility that provides water to roughly 800,000 people, has operated three open-air reservoirs in violation of a federal safety regulation.

Now a proposal pending in a federal court in New Jersey would shield the commission from any liability if customers get sick from tainted water — and give the utility until 2054 to comply with the rule.