Historical record
G.T. Bynum
Announced appointment as Water and Sewer director
January 11, 2023
Appointment event; initially concurrent with outgoing director. Continuing officeholding is recorded separately.
People / Government & civic life
Eric Lee
Director, Tulsa Water and Sewer Department
A career utility manager connecting Tulsa’s infrastructure, rate decisions and water-policy institutions.
Eric Lee leads Tulsa’s Water and Sewer Department, a role he assumed in January 2023 after decades in City service. His work connects treatment plants, infrastructure replacement and customer billing with public-trust oversight. He also served on a state water-quality advisory council that ended in July 2026.
An engineering career inside municipal services
The City’s 2023 appointment biography reports a civil-engineering bachelor’s degree from Oklahoma State University and City employment beginning in 1995 as a water design engineer. Mainline operations and utility systems management preceded his 2008 appointment as solid waste manager; he moved into Water and Sewer leadership in 2013. Contemporaneous 2012 coverage identifies him as the City’s solid waste services manager during the transition to a new refuse and recycling system. That history places his present job within a career implementing municipal services. The City announced his director appointment on January 11, 2023, initially overlapping with outgoing director Clayton Edwards before Edwards’s planned February retirement.
Career & public service
- 1995
Joined City engineering staff
Started as a water design engineer, according to the City’s appointment biography.
- 2008
Solid waste manager
Moved into solid waste management.
- 2012
Refuse-system transition
Public coverage identifies his implementation role during the change in trash and recycling service.
- 2013
Water and Sewer leadership
Moved into departmental leadership; the biography does not supply an exact date.
- January 11, 2023
Director appointment
Mayor G.T. Bynum announced the appointment effective immediately, initially concurrent with the outgoing director.
- November 25, 2025
State council reappointment
Reappointed to the municipal operator seat; nominal term through November 24, 2028.
- July 1, 2026
Advisory council sunset
DEQ reports the council ended and its functions transferred.
- September 23, 2026
Meter-program progress report
Director report recorded 52,441 automated meter units installed and 309 locations with lead connectors.
People, institutions and the relationships between them
Following the connections
Each step below represents a documented relationship. Dates and roles belong to the individual links; a path can span different periods.
personEric Lee
officeTulsa Water and Sewer Director
organizationTulsa Water and Sewer Department
public trustTulsa Metropolitan Utility Authority
The last connection is the authority’s oversight of the department; it is not a Lee trustee seat.
personEric Lee
state advisory councilWater Quality Management Advisory Council
state agencyOklahoma Department of Environmental Quality
Council ended July 1, 2026; the earlier appointment’s nominal 2028 end date does not make the seat current.
personEric Lee
organizationOklahoma Municipal Utility Providers
organizationOklahoma Municipal League
Current steering roster lists Lee as former chair; individual lobbying positions are not inferred.
Documented relationships
11 documented relationships · Historical and current roles remain distinct.
Current source roster
Tulsa Water and Sewer Director
Water and Sewer director
January 11, 2023–present, verified October 3, 2026
Current City department roster corroborates continuing service.
Current source roster
Tulsa Water and Sewer Director
Leads department · Tulsa Water and Sewer Department
Verified October 3, 2026
Department management, distinct from trustee voting powers.
Current source roster
Tulsa Metropolitan Utility Authority
Water and sewer system oversight · Tulsa Water and Sewer Department
Verified October 3, 2026
Trust responsibility and staff operations are distinct; this does not identify Lee as a trustee.
Current source roster
City of Tulsa
City employment
1995–present
Year-only employment start; no exact hiring date supplied.
Historical record
Oklahoma State University
B.S., Civil Engineering
Degree year not established
City biography; no graduation date verified.
Historical record
Lonnie Paxton
Reappointed to water-quality advisory council
November 25, 2025
Signed appointment event; nominal term was scheduled to end November 24, 2028, but council sunset July 1, 2026.
Historical record
Water Quality Management Advisory Council
Municipal waterworks/wastewater operator representative
Reappointed November 25, 2025; council sunset July 1, 2026
Start marks this reappointment, not first service. End marks institutional sunset; no personal resignation inferred.
Historical record
Water Quality Management Advisory Council
Water-quality rulemaking advisory body · Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality
Before July 1, 2026
Recommended rules to Environmental Quality Board; functions subsequently assumed by that Board and DEQ staff.
Current source roster
Oklahoma Municipal Utility Providers
Steering committee listing as former chair
2026–2027 roster
Roster retains obsolete City job title. Chair term dates not established; no current chair claim.
Current source roster
Oklahoma Municipal Utility Providers
Municipal water legislative-policy group · Oklahoma Municipal League
Verified October 3, 2026
OML describes OMUP as reviewing proposed legislation and advising OML on water issues.
A state advisory role that ended with the council
A signed November 25, 2025 instrument from Senate President Pro Tempore Lonnie Paxton reappointed Lee to the Water Quality Management Advisory Council, in the seat for a certified municipal waterworks or wastewater operator. Although the letter specified a term through November 24, 2028, DEQ’s newer notice says the council sunset on July 1, 2026. Its functions passed to the Environmental Quality Board and Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality staff. The council formerly reviewed water-quality rules and made recommendations to the Board. This was participation in regulatory policy, not authority for Lee to decide individual permits or enforcement matters. The appointment belongs in his historical record, not a list of current board seats.
Capital work, rates and what the figures mean
The September 9, 2026 TMUA minutes record approval of a $75,000 fourth amendment to engineering contract 134899, bringing its cumulative authorization to $781,898 for Haikey Creek wastewater-treatment control-system work. These are U.S. dollars in item 4a, page 4 of the minutes posted in the September 23 packet; the total already includes the amendment. They are contract authorizations, not proof of payment or Lee’s personal compensation. Separately, the September 23 director report projected FY27 year-end unencumbered balances of $3,946,000 for Water Design and $6,600,000 for Wastewater Design after anticipated engineering and construction encumbrances. Page 2 describes them as held for contingencies or early FY2028 projects, not unrestricted surplus.
Zink Lake: testing, public concern and divided responsibility
In February 2024, Public Radio Tulsa reported Lee explaining the planned Zink Lake testing regime to councilors amid concerns about pollution in the Arkansas River. He described making results available through a public dashboard. The City’s later project page records the lake’s Labor Day weekend 2024 opening and provides the dashboard, showing that the public-reporting mechanism moved beyond a proposal. The City identifies River Parks Authority as responsible for lake operations, including the dam and wave park. Those operational duties are separate from the testing Lee presented. A dashboard reports sampled conditions; its existence does not establish that every location is safe at every time.
Municipal water policy beyond Tulsa
The Oklahoma Municipal League’s 2026–2027 roster lists Lee on the Oklahoma Municipal Utility Providers steering committee as a former chair. It retains his older operations-administrative-manager job title, so that title should not replace the City’s current director listing. The League describes OMUP as a legislative action group that reviews proposed legislation, advises the League and represents municipal water interests. This connection gives institutional context to Lee’s work beyond Tulsa: local utility managers discuss regulation, infrastructure funding and service territories together. The roster alone does not establish his individual position on a bill or a campaign endorsement.
Meter replacement and lead-connector inspections
Tulsa City Council’s March 2023 recap records Lee presenting the True Reads program. The City says installations began that spring and describes a planned replacement of approximately 145,000 meters, paired with inspections of service-line materials. The September 23, 2026 director report records 52,441 automated meter units installed and lead connectors found at 309 locations. These are dated program counts, not a completion claim or the number of households with unsafe tap-water test results. The same report says staff were developing supplementary contracting and a statistical inspection sample. The program connects billing operations with the task of identifying older plumbing materials.
The choices behind utility bills
Lee was explaining utility-rate proposals publicly before becoming director. In May 2020, Public Radio Tulsa reported that the proposed sewer increase had been reduced from 7% to 3% during the pandemic, with Council approval still required. Lee linked the repair program to avoiding future regulatory orders. That is a historical account of his stated rationale and a proposal, not proof of a current consent-decree disposition. For drinking water, the City’s June 2026 release reported that its system met state and federal requirements throughout 2025. That compliance statement is the City’s account of the prior calendar year and should not be read as an independent audit of all current water conditions.
Interpretation
Why these connections matter
Lee’s institutional importance lies in translating engineering needs into operating priorities, capital work and public explanations of rates. His municipal-policy network and former state advisory role connect that practical work to wider regulatory discussions. The documented paths explain responsibility and access. They establish neither control over trustees nor personal ownership of public infrastructure.
Check the record
Sources & corrections
Research checked 2026-10-03. Roles and financial figures retain their source dates. Sections appear only when supported material is available; an omitted section is not a finding that no such relationship exists.
- City of Tulsa — Water and Sewer ↗
primary · Checked 2026-10-03
Director heading and About Tulsa’s Water; current roster checked October 3.
- Eric Lee named next Water and Sewer director ↗
primary · Source date 2023-01-11 · Checked 2026-10-03
Appointment, career, education and professional memberships; institutional biography.
- Tulsa Metropolitan Utility Authority — purpose and membership ↗
primary · Checked 2026-10-03
Purpose and trustee roster; public trust responsibilities and membership structure.
- City of Tulsa — About the City’s Budget ↗
primary · Checked 2026-10-03
Budget process and Utility Rates sections; institutional explanation of approval sequence.
- TMUA September 9, 2026 meeting minutes ↗
primary · Source date 2026-09-09 · Checked 2026-10-03
Pages 1–3: trustees, director report. Page 4, item 4a: USD contract amendment and cumulative contract authorization; posted September 17 in September 23 packet. Approval date of these minutes not separately established.
- Water and Sewer director status report — September 23, 2026, revision 2 ↗
primary · Source date 2026-09-23 · Checked 2026-10-03
Pages 1–2; posted September 23, 2026 at 6:50 a.m. directory time. Unit counts are cumulative program reports; p2 USD balances are FY27 year-end projections after anticipated encumbrances. Visually inspected.
- Oklahoma Municipal League — OMUP ↗
primary · Checked 2026-10-03
2026–2027 steering committee and legislative-action-group purpose. Lee is listed as former chair; accompanying City job title is outdated.
- Signed reappointment of Eric Lee to WQMAC ↗
primary · Source date 2025-11-25 · Checked 2026-10-03
Page 1, signed by Senate President Pro Tempore Lonnie Paxton; received November 25, 2025. Immediate start; nominal end November 24, 2028. Superseded operationally by council sunset. Visually inspected.
- DEQ — Advisory Councils ↗
primary · Checked 2026-10-03
Sunsetting of DEQ Advisory Councils: July 1, 2026; functions assumed by Environmental Quality Board and DEQ staff.
- DEQ — WQMAC meeting description, January 7, 2025 ↗
primary · Source date 2025-01-07 · Checked 2026-10-03
Historical council composition, rule review and recommendations to Environmental Quality Board.
- City of Tulsa — True Reads ↗
primary · Checked 2026-10-03
AMR and lead-service-line FAQs; spring 2023 start, approximately 145,000 planned meters, concurrent materials inspections. Estimates are not completion counts.
- Tulsa City Council recap — March 29, 2023 ↗
primary · Source date 2023-03-31 · Checked 2026-10-03
Urban and Economic Development committee: Lee presented True Reads; page updated April 17, 2023.
- City optimistic about Zink Lake progress; officials explain water testing plan ↗
independent-reporting · Source date 2024-02-01 · Checked 2026-10-03
Ben Abrams and Graycen Wheeler reporting on January 31 committee presentation and pollution concerns.
- City of Tulsa — Zink Dam and Zink Lake ↗
primary · Checked 2026-10-03
Opening in Labor Day weekend 2024; water-quality dashboard; River Parks Authority operations and safety responsibilities.
- City releases 2026 Water Quality Report ↗
primary · Source date 2026-06-09 · Checked 2026-10-03
City statement about compliance and testing for calendar year 2025; attributed, not an independent audit.
- Proposed Tulsa sewer rate increase would mean additional $1.03 for most ↗
independent-reporting · Source date 2020-05-18 · Checked 2026-10-03
Matt Trotter reporting: proposed increase reduced from 7% to 3% during pandemic; Council approval required. Historical proposal only.
- Trash transition begins next month ↗
reporting · Source date 2012-06-18 · Checked 2026-10-03
Contemporaneous account identifying Lee as solid waste services manager during 2012 transition; heavily relies on City/TARE statements.