"While we do not know what the future holds, we know right now, the planned 5% increase can be postponed." Borough Manager Jeffrey Stonehill said that in an August 27, 2026 release. The release announced that an electric rate increase Town Council had already approved for fall 2026 would be pushed to 2027 or later.
That same summer, customers a few miles outside the borough went the other way. West Penn Power's residential price to compare (PTC) went from 10.947 cents to 12.075 cents per kWh on June 1, 2026. That's a 10.3% increase, and it runs through November 30.
If you're comparing a house on a borough street with one in Hamilton, Greene or Guilford Township, the listing won't tell you any of this. In Chambersburg, the address decides who carries the risk of a power market that has become hard to predict. That risk shows up on your bill every month you own the house.
A borough that makes some of its own power
Chambersburg runs its own hometown electric utility, as 35 Pennsylvania boroughs do. The Borough calls itself the largest public power system in the state. It's also the only one with several generating plants of its own. It buys wholesale electricity from the grid and also sells power back to it.
West Penn Power was the Borough's host utility until 2002. Today the Borough says it buys power for roughly 11,150 customers. Its electric page puts it plainly: "We shop for you."
The Borough also has a gas utility with its own gas pool. Under the Borough's gas ordinance, Town Council sets the gas customer charges and the base gas cost by resolution.
These plants are the reason the two sides of the line split apart in 2026. The Borough says data centers built for AI are adding large amounts of demand to the grid. It also says capacity, transmission and grid fees have "recently skyrocketed to ten times prior rates." Against that, it points to what it calls behind-the-meter generation: Fast Start Dual Fuel units, community solar and landfill gas. The Borough says these help offset grid fees, energy costs and load charges.
At an August council session, Director of Electric Jeff Heverley said the same market forces make the Borough's generation more valuable. He also said they make future rates harder to predict.
At that session, Heverley said average monthly rates for West Penn Power customers had risen 27.9% since 2024. Over the same period, Borough customers saw 2.1%. That comparison comes from the Borough's own utility director, so it's the Borough's account. Still, it lines up with the regulated side of the record: a 10.3% supply increase in June 2026 alone.
Why the two bills are hard to compare
A buyer who holds one utility bill up against another is comparing documents that are built differently. The PTC is only the generation part of an investor-owned utility's bill. Distribution and other delivery charges come on top of it. The Borough bill has its own moving part as well.
| Bill component | Borough of Chambersburg electric | West Penn Power territory |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed monthly charge | $11.60 customer charge, residential rate 201 | Part of distribution charges |
| Energy charge | $0.1115/kWh, or $0.1094/kWh on electric-heat rate 218 | Supply at the 12.075¢/kWh PTC through Nov. 30, 2026, unless you shop |
| Adjusting charge | Power supply adjustment (PSA) per kWh, set from a 12-month forecast | PTC resets on a regular schedule |
| Who sets it | Town Council | Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) oversight |
| Can you pick a supplier? | No. The Borough buys power for you | Yes, through PAPowerSwitch |
The Borough's fee schedule says residential electric rates went up 2.3% in September 2025. At 500 kWh, the posted customer and energy charges come to $67.35 a month. That figure leaves out the PSA. Borough code says the PSA is added to or subtracted from each bill per kWh to track the cost of purchased power and generation. The fee schedule doesn't list the current PSA amount. The Borough's release says its bill has "no added fees or charges; just one rate." Its own code still makes the PSA a separate adjustment.
On the other side, the PUC's 2026 rate comparison report lists a standard 500-kWh West Penn residential bill at $95.40. That's based on rates in effect January 31, 2026, before the June supply increase.
Neither number is a full like-for-like comparison. The Borough's own advice works for both sides. To find what a non-Borough customer really pays, look at 12 months of actual bills, because investor-owned utilities' charges change with the seasons.
Gas follows the same line, with one caveat
Gas customers of Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania are on a state-regulated price. Columbia's residential PTC is $0.35340 per therm as of October 1, 2026. In December 2025, the PUC approved a distribution increase for Columbia of about 6.05%, roughly half what the company had asked for. The new rates took effect on or after January 1, 2026.
Inside the Borough, Director of Natural Gas Utility John Leary told council that residents pay the lowest gas rates in Pennsylvania. He put Borough customers' savings at $1,000 to $2,000 a year compared with customers of private utilities.
The Borough's approved 2026 budget makes a similar claim. It says households with both Borough electric and gas "can save as much as $2,000 per year" compared with similar customers outside the Borough. A separate summary of the same budget compares against Pennsylvania-average customers instead. These are the Borough's own estimates, and the baseline changes depending on which document you read.
The caveat is that gas rates won't necessarily stay flat. Leary said that if the Borough moves ahead with advanced metering in the next few years, a gas rate increase is likely. He also said Knouse Foods, which makes up about 8% of the Borough's gas sales, is closing by the end of the year. On the growth side, the Borough offers interest-free loans of up to $10,000 to convert to natural gas. Leary credits that program with part of the utility's customer growth.
Where Borough rate pressure is heading in 2027
Electric and gas aren't the only Borough utilities. Water and sewer are where the next increases are proposed.
For 2027, Borough staff proposed raising water from 30 cents to 33 cents per unit and sewer by 7.7%, from about 39 cents to 42 cents per unit. The reasons given were operating costs, debt for the new public works campus and the move to advanced metering. Staff still described both services as among the lowest-cost in the area.
The budget also explains why the utilities matter beyond the bill. Borough tax revenue doesn't pay for any utility operations, staff or equipment. Money flows the other way. The proposed 2026 budget projects $2.5 million from electric and $975,000 from gas in payments in lieu of gross receipts tax to the General Fund. The Borough calls low-cost utilities its "secret sauce" for keeping living costs down while paying for police, fire and EMS. It also states there's no real estate tax increase in 2026.
So inside the line, your energy rates, your water rates and part of the town budget all come from the same decisions by Town Council.
Checking a specific address before you commit
The line isn't perfectly clean. The Borough says its utilities serve "most of the properties inside the Borough as well as some areas of the surrounding townships." Its August release says it powers "a majority of homes and businesses within Chambersburg." Outside the Borough, FirstEnergy's tariff splits Franklin County between its Penelec and West Penn rate districts.
On any home you're seriously considering, ask for these during due diligence:
- Who provides electric, gas, water and sewer. Get each provider's name from the seller's actual bills.
- Twelve months of bills. Weather swings bills on both sides of the line. In February 2026, the Borough said high winter bills came from colder weather and heavier use, and that rates "did not go up this winter."
- How the house is heated. The Borough has a separate electric-heat rate, and gas service decides which gas tariff applies.
- Street work. The Borough is replacing aging gas piping through 2030. Work on North and South 2nd Street and Garfield Street is set to wrap this winter, with repaving next spring or summer. Starting in 2027, crews move to West and East Queen Street, Ramsey Avenue, Lortz Avenue, Stanley Court and College Avenue.
FAQ
Can a Borough electric customer switch to a different supplier? No. Supplier choice through PAPowerSwitch is for customers of regulated utilities, and the Borough buys wholesale power for its own customers.
Is the 5% Borough electric increase cancelled? It's postponed. As of August 2026, the Borough said it could be pushed to 2027 or later, and it called future rates uncertain.
Are rates going up for West Penn customers? The current 12.075-cent PTC runs through November 30, 2026, so the supply price will reset after that.
If you're deciding between a borough home and a township home and want to see the utility bills next to the sale prices, Lisa Mack and her team can help you collect the seller's records and work out real monthly costs before you write an offer. Already own in Chambersburg? Request a Free Home Valuation, and we'll show you how buyers are pricing homes on your side of the line.
