McAlester council suspends November utility late fees and halts disconnects for residents

The McAlester City Council voted unanimously to temporarily waive the city's 10% utility late fee, suspend the $45 nonpayment (disconnect) fee and not process physical service disconnections for residential accounts in November 2025.

Councilors discussed a short-term measure aimed at easing household bills during the Thanksgiving and early-holiday period and asked staff about operational consequences and outreach. Utilities staff reported that reminder calls had been placed this cycle and recommended continuing reminders and a public-service announcement encouraging customers to pay what they can.

Utilities billing staff told the council that the department sent 299 reminder calls on Monday in advance of a planned cutoff (normal is about 250'to'75 calls). The staff member explained…