Arkoma mayor says city denied ‘productive discussion’ about sewer rates, unpaid balance

Arkoma Mayor Joshua Johnson is pushing back against claims by City of Fort Smith officials that the town is unable to pay for water and sewer services. He alleges that Fort Smith officials have been hostile and unwilling to negotiate in good faith.

According to a May 8 memo from Fort Smith Utilities Director Lance McAvoy to Acting City Administrator Jeff Dingman, Arkoma owes Fort Smith $120,000 for water and sewer system services. Arkoma has been a Fort Smith customer since 1976, and has been delinquent on payments for three years.

Arkoma officials have proposed paying an additional $2,000 a month until the outstanding balance is paid. Under that plan, the balance would be paid in 61 months. Arkoma and Fort Smith officials met April 7 to discuss the payment and negotiations for future services. There also is a negotiation over future payment amounts and usage rules. Arkoma, a city of around 1,800, wants to no longer be billed as an industrial customer because it needs to operate as a “complete” residential system.

The key sticking point is that Arkoma officials say city residents can’t afford the $8.75 ccf sewer rate set to begin June 1. The existing rate is $2.69 ccf, meaning the new rate imposed by Fort Smith would be a 350% increase. McAvoy noted in his memo that Fort Smith has to collect fees for services from all customers to support its costs.

‘PUBLIC CRITICISM’
The Fort Smith Board of Directors discussed the matter at length during a May 13 study session at which Johnson and Arkoma Vice Mayor Bobby Weatherford attended. During the discussion, the board was not sympathetic to Arkoma’s plight, suggesting that the small Oklahoma town has been negiligent in maintaining its infrastructure and long overdue in paying a rate that covers the cost of services provided by Fort Smith. The board encouraged city staff to find options to more quickly recover the debt and to return with a contract that would allow Fort Smith to cover its costs.

Also, the board declined during the May 13 session to allow Johnson and Weatherford to present Arkoma’s concerns directly. In a letter sent May 17 to Talk Business & Politics, Johnson said the board members were not given all necessary information, and instead Arkoma was the target of unwarranted criticism and misinformation.

“Despite our repeated efforts to seek dialogue and resolution, including written appeals to Fort Smith officials and a formal meeting request, we were met with no meaningful communication and, ultimately, with hostility,” Johnson noted. “At a Fort Smith planning session on May 13, Arkoma’s Mayor, Vice Mayor, and City Attorney were present to propose a compromise. Unfortunately, instead of a productive discussion, the Town was subject to public criticism, misinformation, and denied an opportunity to speak.”

Following are some of the points Johnson noted in his letter. (The letter is included in its entirety at the end of this report.)
• Arkoma residents already pay on average around $84 a month for sewer services, with around $53 of that going straight to Fort Smith.

• The rate increase proposed by Fort Smith would raise the average Arkansas bill for sewer services only to around $185 a month, significantly more than the around $48 for the average Fort Smith resident.

• In response to Fort Smith allegations that Arkoma is not repairing infrastructure issues, Johnson noted that Arkoma has spent more than $2 million on sewer system work in recent years, more per capita than has Fort Smith in the same period.

• Arkoma’s unpaid balance is from charges that happened with the 2019 historic flooding, and the $120,000 “does not represent three years of unpaid bills, as was alleged.”

THE LETTER
Following is the complete, unedited public letter from Arkoma Mayor Josh Johnson.

“TOWN OF ARKOMA RESPONDS TO UNPRECEDENTED SEWER RATE INCREASE FROM CITY OF FORT SMITH

“The Town of Arkoma, through the Arkoma Municipal Authority, has maintained a longstanding relationship with the City of Fort Smith as a wholesale customer for clean water and wastewater services. Recently, that relationship has been challenged by an unexpected and severe rate increase imposed by Fort Smith, which threatens the financial stability of Arkoma’s utility system and its residents.

“On February 21, 2025, the Fort Smith Board of Directors approved a 3.5% annual increase in sewer rates to begin June 1, 2025, and continue each January 1 until 2030. While Arkoma did not receive formal notification of the increase or the vote, we were aware of the ongoing discussions and were preparing to make proportionate adjustments to our customer rates. Based on this increase, Arkoma anticipated its volume rate for wastewater would rise modestly from $2.69 to approximately $2.78 per CCF (1CCF = 748 gallons).

“However, in March, Arkoma received official notice that the new rate would not be $2.78/CCF, but a staggering $8.75/CCF, representing an increase of more than 300%. This rate was presented without prior consultation or discussion, and we were informed that this retail rate would apply to Arkoma as a municipal customer, just as it would to individual Fort Smith residents.

“This comparison is fundamentally flawed. Arkoma is not a single household; we are a community of more than 600 wastewater customers, supported by an extensive infrastructure network that includes hundreds of manholes and a centralized lift station. As a wholesale customer, we provide collection and transmission services for our residents and rely on Fort Smith only for treatment, making a retail rate not only inappropriate, but unsustainable.

“Despite our repeated efforts to seek dialogue and resolution, including written appeals to Fort Smith officials and a formal meeting request, we were met with no meaningful communication and, ultimately, with hostility. At a Fort Smith planning session on May 13, Arkoma’s Mayor, Vice Mayor, and City Attorney were present to propose a compromise. Unfortunately, instead of a productive discussion, the Town was subject to public criticism, misinformation, and denied an opportunity to speak.

“Let us be clear: Under the current rate of $2.69/CCF, Arkoma residents already pay an average of $84.52 per household per month for sewer service. Nearly 70% of that amount, about $53.48, goes directly to Fort Smith. If the new $8.75/CCF rate is imposed, Arkoma residents would see just the sewer portion of their bills rise to nearly $185 per month, compared to the projected $48.41 per month for an average Fort Smith household. That is not equitable.

“Additionally, unlike Fort Smith residential customers, Arkoma is charged based on the total volume discharged back to Fort Smith, not just billed usage. This includes stormwater runoff, groundwater infiltration, and debris-all factors outside of our control, especially during heavy rain events. We maintain a regular cleaning schedule to minimize meter inaccuracy, but storm events can rapidly affect readings.

“Arkoma has taken significant steps to improve its wastewater system, despite limited revenue and no access to property tax funds (as is the case in Oklahoma). In the past four years, nearly $2 million in grant-funded improvements have been made to our system, including manhole repairs, line replacements, and lift station upgrades. This investment, per capita, exceeds that of Fort Smith’s in its own system over the same period.

“We also wish to address misleading claims made during the planning session. Arkoma does have one wastewater account with a past due balance, stemming from the 2019 historic flood that severely impacted both communities. As a result of floodwaters overwhelming our systems, as well as Fort Smith’s, our metered flows spiked, leading to unaffordable charges. Since then, we have reduced the outstanding balance from over $200,000 to roughly $120,000, with nearly half being late fees. This does not represent three years of unpaid bills, as was alleged.

“Although Fort Smith has requested that we provide a formal payment plan, despite repeated outreach by our Administrator and City Attorney to establish a payment plan, we received no response from Fort Smith.

“We understand that Fort Smith estimates its rate increase for approximately 30,000 local customers will generate an additional $45,000 monthly, or less than $2 per customer. By contrast, Fort Smith’s increase to Arkoma would amount to $62,000 per month, shouldered by just over 600 residents.

“The claim that Fort Smith is “losing” $700,000 annually in potential revenue from Arkoma is based on a hypothetical retail pricing model that does not apply to municipal wholesale customers.

“The Town of Arkoma cannot absorb this increase, nor can it reasonably pass it on to our residents without causing serious economic harm. We remain committed to finding a fair, sustainable path forward that reflects our role as a municipal customer, not an individual retail user, and honors the decades-long partnership between our communities.

“We respectfully request transparency, equity, and a meaningful seat at the table in discussions and decisions that affect our citizens.”