'Vote no' on water rate mailer 'misleading' officials say

Jun. 7—A mailer circulating in Norman on Wednesday encourages residents to vote against a proposed water rate increase, but some City Councilors said it is missing context and intentionally misleading.

The double-sided postcard, which bears the name "Voter Information Network," is registered to a property owned by political consultant Pat McFerron of Norman.

It formed in May 2020, according to property tax and secretary of state records.

Norman is the only city in the state which adopts utility rate increases by a vote of the electorate.

Voters will be asked Tuesday to increase the monthly base fee from $6 to $10.90 and the monthly usage rate from $3.35 to $3.46 per thousand gallons up to 5,000 gallons.

If approved, the additional $6.7 million in revenue will cover capital projects for water lines replacement, a well-blending chlorination disinfection plant, and fund a federal mandate to document the location of lead water lines in Norman.

The mailer states the increase will mean residents will pay 26% more than Midwest City and the increase will mean an additional "$51.69 a year for every man, woman and child living in Norman."

'Irresponsible and reckless'

Ward 7 Councilor Stephen T. Holman said the mailer was "intentionally misleading" and Ward 8 Councilor Matt Peacock called it "irresponsible and reckless."

Holman noted the city's proposed rate increase still places Norman below nearly every city in the Oklahoma City metro area.

"We will still be lower than Moore, Oklahoma City and Edmond," Holman told The Transcript. "It also shows that even with the increase, we will be the second lowest in the metro, just slightly ahead of Midwest City."

Utilities Director Chris Mattingly told The Transcript that Midwest City increases its rate nearly every year and that their customers will likely be paying more soon.

"At a difference of less than five dollars a month, Midwest City residents would pay less for water service if the proposition passes," Mattingly said. "However, Midwest City raises their rates more often, almost every year, so they will likely be higher than Norman in two years or less. Their sewer rates are about double what Norman's sewer rates are."

Mattingly added that most of the $6.7 million in revenue will come from customers who use large quantities of water, such as irrigation.

"An accurate picture is not painted when dividing the community up by individuals ... every man, woman, and child," Mattingly said. "Over 80 percent of our current customers — households — would see an increase of $5.45 or less each month."

According to staff presentations to the council and recent town halls, the city paid 27% more for electric services from January to March and 18% more per year for chemicals.

Increase unnecessary

Reached Wednesday night, McFerron said he decided to send out the mailers because he believed the rate increase was unnecessary. He pointed to excess operating revenue in the city's budget in recent years, which he said could be used to issue bonds to pay for those projects.

"In the last few years they've had $10-$12 million in net revenue operating excess," McFerron said. "I think that can be used for bonding those things out.

Peacock said that scenario doesn't address the long term projections of the water fund.

"Irresponsible and reckless," Peacock said. "The water fund is projected to be $11 million in the hole in fiscal year ending 2025, and healthy cities don't subsidize utilities with general fund dollars, or waste money on huge interest payments by going into a bunch of debt. Healthy cities just raise the water rate to keep up with inflation."

Holman said bonds won't pay for ongoing operating expenses and utilities are supposed to operate "off the user fees they generate."

McFerron noted staff's ability to find other pots of cash to pay for improvements like they did to fund automatic water meter infrastructure technology. The upgrades, which will increase meter reading accuracy and decrease leaks, had been previously included in the list of projects for the April 2022 water rate increase election, which failed by 54%.

In October, the city obtained a $2 million grant from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and $15 million from the Oklahoma Water Resources Board.

McFerron said they can do it again.

"When that was rejected they found money for it," he said. "I think they can find the money for other things."

Efforts to fund water projects failed after the city applied for American Rescue Plan Act funds in state coffers last year. City spokesperson Tiffany Vrska said the city never received any of that money.

"Almost all of that money went to rural broadband and water projects," Vrska said.

Asked if information missing from the mailer, such as Norman's proposed rate is below other metro cities, misleads the reader, McFerron said no.

"Because my desire is simply to convey the reason why people should vote against this water rate increase," McFerron said.

Increase needed

Holman said there have been few water rate increases in the last 23 years and this one is needed.

"There have only been two water rate increases approved since the year 2000," he said. "Two increases in the last 23 years. The size of the increase is the bare minimum we could be asking for based on the cost of existing operating maintenance costs since the last time the rate was increase almost nine years ago in January 2015."

Peacock warned that "further neglect of the water system will further jeopardize the city's ability to provide Norman with a secure drinking water supply in the coming decades."

"If we can't find common ground on something so integral to life as water, then we have much bigger problems," he said.

McFerron told The Transcript the mailers were sent "city-wide" but could not recall how many he mailed. He did not disclose the names of people or organizations who may have contributed to the mailer.

"The bulk of Voter Information Network does projects like this all over the state," he said. "It just happens that I live in Norman, so it becomes more of a personal issue for me. It's this organization's efforts."

McFerron's 501c4 organization, the Voter Information Network, worked with Unite Norman, a group which formed in June 2020 to boost police funding and recall several council members, including the mayor.

Mindy Wood covers City Hall news and notable lawsuits for The Transcript. Reach her at mwood@normantranscript.com or 405-416-4420.