No. 25-7614October Term 2025Before Arguments
Orpheus Hanley, et ux., Petitioners v. Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission
from the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, Western District.
Case status
- Current stage
- Before Arguments
- Latest event
- Accepted by the Court
- Decision timing
- No window until argument is scheduled.
- What it's about
from the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, Western District.
Question presented
1. Whether the Supremacy Clause and federal preemption principles are violated when a state utility commission mandates the installation of an advanced metering device without an affirmative customer request, in conflict with federal statutes — including the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA), the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct) — and with state statues such as the Pennsylvania Electricity Generation Customer Choice and Competition Act (Act 138 of 1996, amended by Act 129 of 2008) (“ Customer Choice Act ”) that require customer initiation. 2. Whether compelling installation of smart meters without customer consent or request, and replacing statutory “ customer choice ” requirements with “ opt-out ” or “ opt-in ” schemes, violates constitutional protections under the Fourth, Fifth, Ninth, and Fourteenth Amendments by presuming consent, denying refusal rights, authorizing physical intrusions and privacy-invasive data collection, and depriving consumers of meaningful process or judicial review. 3. Whether the lack of uniformity in state regulatory interpretations and enforcement of federal metering statutes undermines national consistency in energy policy and consumer protections, warranting Supreme Court intervention to resolve conflicting decisions and restore uniform federal standards.
- Case path
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, Western District / Accepted by the Court
- Area
Supreme Court case awaiting argument
Timing
Expected by late June 2026, if argued this term
The Court granted review but has not yet scheduled oral argument. Once argued, the median case reaches a decision in 94 days. Nearly all cases are decided by the end of the term in which they are argued.
Related cases




Grounding
- Grounding
- Primary-source trail available.
- Note
- Plain-English explainer. Official filings and opinions remain authoritative.
- Checked
- Sep 1, 2026
- Method
- Methodology