Arkansas Senate OKs Bill on Teacher Raises, School Vouchers
The proposal, which now heads to the majority-Republican House, is advocated by GOP Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders as her top priority this legislative session. read more >
The proposal, which now heads to the majority-Republican House, is advocated by GOP Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders as her top priority this legislative session. read more >
The tax cut plan has raised questions about whether it could jeopardize some of the state's federal COVID-19 aid. read more >
The move faced opposition from Democrats who said it was an effort to avoid considering raising teacher salaries while the state sits on a $1.6 million surplus. read more >
In February, the National Education Association released a survey showing that 55% of educators are thinking about leaving the profession earlier than they had planned. It was a big jump from the 37% who expressed the same sentiment just six months earlier. read more >
Critics argued that the cuts are skewed toward the wealthy and that the money would be better spent elsewhere. read more >
Legislative panels also endorsed incentives aimed at helping the state lure a U.S. Steel expansion in Mississippi County. read more >
The primary focus will be on a tax cut package that calls for reducing the state's top income tax rate from 5.9% to 4.9% read more >
An Arkansas judge has temporarily blocked the state from enforcing a law that prevents schools and other governmental agencies from requiring masks. read more >
Legislators meeting in a special session file two bills dealing with Act 1002, which prohibits state and local governments from imposing mask mandates. read more >
Gov. Asa Hutchinson says he is considering calling lawmakers back to the Capitol to revisit a state law banning mask mandates by state and local governments. read more >
Gov. Asa Hutchinson says he plans to meet with House and Senate leaders about growing calls to allow schools to require face masks as the state reported 23 more deaths from COVID-19. read more >
The Arkansas Senate on approves a stripped-down hate crimes bill derided by opponents as too vague. read more >
Arkansas legislative leaders introduce a drastically scaled-back hate crimes measure that no longer explicitly refers to race, sexual orientation or gender identity, drawing the the ire of longtime proponents of such laws. read more >
Senate Bill 3, commonly known as the “hate crimes bill,” boils down to a crucial chance to burnish Arkansas’ image and remove a hurdle to recruiting companies and workers, government officials and business leaders say. read more >
An Arkansas lawmaker was censured for calling a colleague a “dumbass" during debate Tuesday over a nonbinding resolution on history that was overwhelmingly rejected. read more >
Arkansas lawmakers return to the Capitol on Monday for a legislative session overshadowed by the coronavirus pandemic that has killed thousands in the state. read more >
Republican state Sen. Jimmy Hickey was elected Thursday as the next leader of the the Arkansas Senate. read more >
Arkansas Procurement Director Edward Armstrong's answer to being sued over a ruling that gave a fourth-place bidder a major state contract boils down to four words: His word is final. So far, the law seems to agree with him. read more >
An Arkansas panel defeated an effort to revise the state procurement proces, siding with engineers, architects and attorneys who testified that a bill to emphasize price in awarding state contracts was flawed and unnecessary read more >
Disputes over recent state contracts have put Republican lawmakers at odds with the Republican governor, angered potential vendors and muddied understanding on what businesses can expect from the process of awarding state work. read more >
