Town of Lead Hill, Arkansas, Appellants v. Ozark Mountain Regional Public Water Authority of the State Of…

Summary

The court affirmed summary judgment enforcing a forty-year wholesale water-purchase contract and the associated writ of mandamus. It held that the contract did not violate the Arkansas Constitution, federal noncurtailment law, or applicable contract doctrines because payment was limited to water-system revenues, the agreement was not a short-term financing obligation, the water authority had capacity, and Lead Hill showed no material factual dispute supporting its defenses. Justices Danielson and Hart dissented, arguing that factual disputes and the improper use of mandamus should have precluded affirmance.