Town of Lead Hill v. Ozark Mountain Regional Public Water Authority

2015 Ark. 360, 472 S.W.3d 118, 2015 Ark. LEXIS 580
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedOctober 8, 2015
DocketCV-14-848
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 2015 Ark. 360 (Town of Lead Hill v. Ozark Mountain Regional Public Water Authority) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Town of Lead Hill v. Ozark Mountain Regional Public Water Authority, 2015 Ark. 360, 472 S.W.3d 118, 2015 Ark. LEXIS 580 (Ark. 2015).

Opinions

KAREN R. BAKER, Associate Justice

’ | |This appeal stems from a Wholesale Water Purchase Contract (“contract”) between appellants, Town of Lead Hill, Arkansas, et al. (“Lead Hill”)' and the ap-pellee, Ozark Mountain Regional Public Water Authority (“Ozark”). On April 27, 2009, the parties entered into a contract with a forty-year term for Ozark to provide potable water to Lead Hill. Lead Hill agreed to purchase water with a “minimum monthly charge” based on- an average daily usage of 56,038 gallons at the rate between $2.75 and $3.25 per thousand gallons at a minimum monthly charge between $4,687 and $5,540. Further, the contract provided that Lead Hill would pay the minimum monthly charge regardless of whether Lead Hill “actually purchased or takes water” from Ozark. Ozark constructed a water-treatment facility and connecting water lines and incurred bond indebtedness secured in part by , the contract. The contract provided that water would be provided commencing in November 2012.

|2On November 12, 2012, Ozark began supplying potable water to Lead Hill, and Lead Hill paid for the water. On August 16, and September 16, 2013, Ozark sent Lead Hill monthly invoices. The invoices totaled $10,555.02, - which included a late fee of $51.99. However, Lead Hill did not pay those invoices. On October 15, 2013, Lead Hill notified Ozark that the Lead Hill City Council had unanimously voted to terminate its contract with Ozark.

On October 25, 2013, Ozark filed suit against Lead Hill seeking a declaratory judgment and a writ of mandamus .to enforce the contract. On November 27, 2013, Lead Hill filed an answer. On January 15, 2014, Ozark filed a motion for summary judgment and brief in support. Lead Hill responded and filed an amended response, and Ozark replied.

On March 13, 2014, the circuit court held a hearing and, at the request of the parties, entered a continuance in the matter and delayed ruling on the motion for summary judgment for sixty days while the' parties attempted to- resolve the matter and Lead Hill was to make payments into the registry of the circuit court. On May 22, 2014, the circuit court conducted a hearing on the summary-judgment motion. On June 11, 2014, the circuit court granted Ozark’s motion for summary judgment and issued a writ of mandamus. On July 9, 2014, Lead Hill timely filed its notice of appeal and now presents four points on appeal: (1) the contract violates article 12, section 4, and amendment 78 of the Arkansas Constitution; (2) the contract violates federal law; (3) Qzark lacked the capacity to enter into the contract; and (4) the contract is unenforceable under several contract principles. Because this case presents an issue involving the interpretation of the Arkansas Constitution, we havels jurisdiction -pursuant to Ark. Sup.Ct. R. l-2(a)(l) (2014).

Standard of Review

This case comes to us from an order granting summary judgment. A trial court may grant summary judgment only when it is apparent that no genuine issues of material fact exist requiring litigation and that the . moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Crockett v. C.A.G. Invs., Inc., 2011 Ark. 208, 381 S.W.3d 793. Summary judgment is not proper, however, where evidence, although in' no material dispute as to actuality,' reveals aspects from which inconsistent hypothesis might reasonably be drawn and reasonable minds might differ. Thomas v. Sessions, 307 Ark. 203, 818 S.W.2d 940 (1991). In Flentje v. First Nat. Bank of Wynne, 340 Ark. 563, 569-70, 11 S.W.3d 531, 536 (2000) (internal citations omitted), we explained, “we only approve the granting of the motion when the state of the evidence as portrayed by the pleadings, affidavits, discovery responses, and admission on file is such that the nonmoving party is not entitled to a day in court, i.e., when there is not any genuine remaining issue of fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. However, when there is no material dispute as to the facts, the court will determine whether reasonable minds could draw reasonable inconsistent hypotheses to render summary judgment inappropriate.”

On appeal, we view the evidence in the light most favorable to the party against whom the motion was filed, resolving all doubts and inferences against the moving party. Harrisburg Sch. Dist. No. 6 v. Neal, 2011 Ark. 233, 381 S.W.3d 811.

Points on Appeal

|4I. Article 12, Section Ip, and Amendment 78 of the Arkansas Constitution

A. Article 12, Section 4

Turning to Lead Hill’s first point on appeal, Lead Hill asserts that the circuit court erred in granting summary judgment regarding two provisions of the Arkansas Constitution, article 12, section 4, and amendment 78. Prior to reaching this issue, we note that when interpreting the constitution, “our task is to read the laws as they are written, and interpret them in accordance with established principles of constitutional construction.... Language of a constitutional provision that is plain and unambiguous must be given its obvious and common meaning.” Smith v. Sidney Moncrief Pontiac, Buick, GMC Co., 353 Ark. 701, 720, 120 S.W.3d 525, 537 (2003) (internal citations omitted).

First, at issue is article 12, section 4, of the Arkansas Constitution, which provides in pertinent part,

The fiscal affairs of counties, cities and incorporated towns shall be conducted on a sound financial basis, and no county court or levying board or agent of any county shall make or authorize any contract or make any allowance for any purpose whatsoever in excess of the revenue from all sources for the fiscal year in which said contract or allowance is made[.]

In other words, a city cannot enter into a contract for an amount that exceeds its annual revenue for a fiscal year. Here, the circuit court held that article 12, section 4 was not a valid legal defense to enforcement of the contract.

Article C, section 19, of the contract provides as follows:

Funding of Purchaser:

The parties hereto agree that all Purchaser revenues associated with the funding of this Agreement shall be derived solely from revenues generated by lathe sale of the Purchaser’s water to its customers and that except for a pledge of said revenues that Purchaser does not otherwise further guarantee the obligations hereunder with its full faith and credit.

On appeal, Lead Hill asserts that the contract violates article 12, section 4, and the contract is void and unenforceable because the contract exceeded Lead Hill’s annual revenue. Lead Hill further contends that although the provision of the contract may purport to limit the payments only from income derived from the sale of water by Lead Hill to its waterworks customers, its customer base has been reduced by fifty percent and therefore its financial obligation under the contract also exceeds its annual revenue for one year because of its loss of customers. Therefore, Lead Hill argues that the terms of the contract are not enforceable under article 12, section 4.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Skala v. Comfort Systems USA, Inc.
2024 Ark. App. 491 (Court of Appeals of Arkansas, 2024)
Arfay Mlk Ss, LLC v. Wash Me Holdings, LLC
2023 Ark. App. 518 (Court of Appeals of Arkansas, 2023)
Collins v. Leutholt
2017 Ark. App. 33 (Court of Appeals of Arkansas, 2017)
Kelley v. Johnson
2016 Ark. 268 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 2016)
Town of Lead Hill v. Ozark Mountain Regional Public Water Authority
2015 Ark. 360 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 2015)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2015 Ark. 360, 472 S.W.3d 118, 2015 Ark. LEXIS 580, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/town-of-lead-hill-v-ozark-mountain-regional-public-water-authority-ark-2015.