YORK, Pa. (WHTM) — After all the talk, a chance for action. We’ve been telling you about how the sale of a sewage plant could mean far higher sewer bills for some Midstaters.

The plant belongs to the City of York. But it could have the biggest impact in five surrounding municipalities. If you don’t like it, you have just a few days to sign up to complain to some of the only folks who can do anything about it.

West Manchester, Manchester, Spring Garden Township, York Township, and North York Borough are the five “connected municipalities.” “Connected” meaning to the City of York, which wants to sell its wastewater treatment plant for $235 million to Pennsylvania American Water, which in turn revealed its plans last month to raise sewer rates in the surrounding municipalities by a potential average of 47%.

“I would imagine I’m speaking for a lot of people when I say that for us to open our sewer bill and see a huge jump in the cost, we would wonder why,” Bill Stockwell said. He lives in West Manchester Township and shared those thoughts last summer.

Now, his chance, your chance, anyone’s chance to voice concerns like those to the Public Utility Commission, which is considering whether to approve the sale. Next Wednesday, Jan. 5, at 6 p.m., there will be a telephone meeting. Anyone can speak, but you can’t wait until then to decide. You have to sign up to speak by Monday, Jan. 3 at 5 p.m.

City of York leaders say they’re doing their jobs by selling the sewer plant for the most money it can for city taxpayers, who won’t see their sewer bills surge for at least three years. PA American says the preliminary rate filings are just that, preliminary. The PUC could also approve the overall hike, but distribute it differently among different kinds of customers, so that some bills would rise by less than the average.

To learn more and sign up, you can visit the link here.