Monticello Live

When bright minds can’t afford college, Arkansas pays the price. That’s why the Arkansas legislature worked especially hard in the 2010 Fiscal Session to develop the guidelines for the Arkansas Lottery Scholarship.

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When the governor presented his requests for supplemental appropriations, the legislature got a clear picture of its agenda for the fiscal session that begins on February 13.

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Last week we nearly finished the pre-fiscal session budget hearings with the various state agencies. It has been an exasperating task for many. As human nature would have it, apparently “everyone” needs more money for expansion or survival. It rather appears that some seem to think that can easily be solved by just printing more, but it’s far from that simple.

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Last year Arkansas high school graduates were better prepared academically for college than they have been in the recent past, according to a recent survey based on remediation rates of freshmen.

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Greetings! This is my first legislative report of 2012. It is the middle of January and legislative activities are back in full swing. Since I have been asked, my reports are my thoughts and experiences and are not generated as generic recitations. They are filled with my personal activities, thoughts and pursuits. I want to share my personal journal with you.

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Fifteen Arkansas school districts and one technical center will receive money to expand and innovate course offerings in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

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The new year began with good financial news for state government, although budget officials were careful to temper their statements with sober caution about potential long-term problems.

First, the governor and the director of the Human Services Department reported that the state Medicaid program appears to have enough money to get through the next fiscal year without a major shortfall.

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This will be my last legislative report for 2011 since our last meeting of the year was held last Tuesday, December 20. It was a “humdinger” too. The meeting was held to gather information and insight into the situation that led to the budget crisis and the subsequent dismissal of 39 employees of the Arkansas Forestry Commission.

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Greetings! The week after Thanksgiving was fairly slow at the Capitol, but business certainly picked up last week! Education Committee meetings filled many of my days and I want to share thoughts on some topics with you for your awareness and general information.

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Provisions in the Arkansas tort reform law limiting punitive damages that can be awarded in a civil suit were ruled unconstitutional by the state Supreme Court.

The ruling came in a lawsuit out of Lonoke County filed by rice farmers against a German multi-national corporation. The farmers claimed that their rice was contaminated by genetically altered strains that had not been approved for human consumption. The rice farmers won $5.9 million in compensatory damages and $42 million in punitive damages.

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From Senator Jimmy Jeffress, chairman of the Senate Education Committee, andRepresentative Eddie Cheatham, chairman of the House Education Committee

Picture it: a single parent maintains a full-time job while working to complete a college degree to learn the job skills needed to better provide for his or her family.

It’s a common scenario, and many people can make it work by taking advantage of the flexibility and accessibility of online courses. Most of Arkansas’s higher education institutions offer courses online. Last school year, Arkansas students enrolled in more than 10,000 web-based classes offered at Arkansas campuses. Increasing the availability of online classes is key to improving the state’s college graduation rate. (more…)

Local law enforcement agencies in Arkansas and all across the United States got some good news recently when the federal Department of Justice announced that funding for cleanup of meth labs had been partially restored.

The grant program was cut earlier this year, leaving state and local governments with the bill for cleanup.

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I have just completed another interesting “fortnight” as your representative and I appreciate your trust and support. Although things have been a tad slower at the Capitol, the third week in November was quite busy for me.

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The governor has authorized a transfer of money from an emergency fund so that trial court assistants will be paid through December.

However, the funding problem of the trial courts likely will continue unless there is a sudden turnaround in collections of filing fees and court costs. They have gone down dramatically since the summer. The salaries of the trial court assistants are paid from filing fees and court costs.

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The state Board of Education denied applications from organizations seeking to open charter schools for at risk youths in Texarkana, West Memphis and Jonesboro. The Board also denied a request to open a bilingual charter school in Little Rock for Spanish speaking students learning English as a second language.

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Arkansas voters overwhelmingly voted to renew a bond program that will pay for improvements to more than 400 miles of interstate highways.

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Greetings! Many people have asked me if I am having fun at this job. Invariably I answer, “Well, it’s been very interesting!” That’s true! I take my responsibilities seriously and did not run to “have fun” but to make a difference in southeast Arkansas. (I have met a few very “unpleasant” people though.)

That said, I have thoroughly enjoyed some special activities over the past two weeks that I want to share with you because they involve the most important “part” of our society – our young people.

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Greetings! Most of my legislative work during this two week time period has dealt with education. Most of the committee meetings dealt primarily with Higher Education, meaning education beyond K-12, and the last of the “cost-containment” reports from Arkansas’ two-year institutions of higher learning. We have been looking at raises in tuition and fees, textbook costs, on-campus room-and-board costs and miscellaneous expenses to the students, as well as salaries, contracts, outstanding debt, loan defaults, graduation rates and energy conservation and other cost-saving measures. All of this has been geared to holding down the rising cost of obtaining a quality education.

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Many meetings are held weekly for the education of the membership of the 88th General Assembly in regard to our state’s problems and policies. Here is a synopsis of the meetings/discussions in which I have participated these past two weeks in October to keep you informed about the “people’s business”.

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Legislators got a double dose of good news last week – enrollment is on the increase in Arkansas colleges and universities while the number of juveniles getting in trouble and being sent to lockups has gone down.

To top it off, state government revenue for September was up slightly from last year. Budget officials remain cautious, but an increase in revenue indicates economic growth and is welcome.

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Once again, I want to share with you some of the activities and meetings I have attended as I have represented you in the Arkansas House of Representatives during the last half of September.

The week beginning September 19th was an especially busy week, and it proved to be enormously educational, as well as interesting and informative.

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Arkansas two-year colleges have received a federal grant of $14.7 million to help students complete degree programs in fields in which they are more likely to find good jobs.

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The fall season has not slowed the pace of the legislature. I have had a very busy first half of this month. Both the Education Committee meetings and the Legislative Auditing Committee meetings have been quite extensive – and very “enlightening”.

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We have been very busy at the Capitol since my mid-August report. Most of the hubbub has settled down after redistricting and everyone is anticipating the fiscal session ahead of us next spring and the next legislative session as well.

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The governor has set November 8 as the date of a special election on whether to renew $575 million in bonds to repair about 300 miles of interstate highways.

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With the beginning of the 2011-2012 school year, Arkansas has begun the transition toward teaching national mathematics and English curricula known as Common Core State Standards.

The first step toward bringing Arkansas schools in line with Common Core is to introduce the national standards in kindergarten through second grade classes, beginning this school year. Next year the curriculum standards will be brought into classes from third to eighth grades. Ninth through twelfth grade classes will work under the Common Core standards beginning in the 2013-2014 school year.

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As I left you at the end of July, the redistricting maps had been approved by the apportionment committee of three – the governor, the attorney general and the secretary of state – and now we must abide by them the next ten years. However, the new district lines will not take effect until January, 2012, so I am honored to be your representative in District 10 until that time. After then, my new district will be District 9.

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Several members of the state Board of Education suggested newer and tougher standards for determining whether an Arkansas school district should be classified as being in academic distress.

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June has been a very, very busy month for me. As I mentioned earlier, the privilege of helping at Girls State this June was a highly enjoyable and motivating experience for me again. I’m ready for next year!!

I also told you earlier about some of the activities of the Legislative Audit Committee, particularly mentioning the Pulaski County Special School District fiscal situation and the committee’s request that the Arkansas Department of Education dismiss the PCSSD school board and assume the management of the district.

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For many folks, Memorial Day brings a welcome day off of work. It’s become a time to spend a long weekend with friends and family, enjoying a backyard barbecue, or getting away to one of the Natural State’s beautiful lakes or rivers. The last weekend in May has come to signify the unofficial start to summer – an especially welcome arrival after the tumultuous weather of this spring!

However, as we mark the Memorial Day weekend with good food and good times with loved ones, it is important that we also pause to reflect on the true meaning of the holiday. It is a time to remember and honor the brave men and women who have given their lives while defending our country. (more…)

This update concerns education and its most pressing immediate issue – the lottery scholarships. As youth all across Arkansas have shed their commencement robes, I trust they have taken care of business as relates to applying for a lottery scholarship. These scholarships are available to all graduating seniors who qualify, all current students who have not applied before, and some non-traditional students, but please be aware the deadline for applications is June 1!! All supporting materials, such as transcripts, are due by June 15th. These deadlines apply to both fall and spring semesters. If you, or your student, have not taken care of this, please do so quickly. (Only $12,000,000 has been set aside for non-traditional students.)

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Officials at the state Department of Human Services are working to correct problems at the State Hospital.

One area of concern is treatment of children with dual diagnoses, meaning they suffer from mental illness as well as a developmental disability. An advocacy group has asked federal authorities to review disciplinary incidents to determine if treatment of children put them in danger. The group also is seeking changes in how medications are prescribed to avoid excess use of sedatives as a method of keeping the children docile.

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Wow! This has been a fast-moving winter for me and I daresay all members of the 88th General Assembly. We have now completed ten weeks of work at a furious pace. Although we haven’t had time to “stop and smell the roses”, the Japanese magnolias in front of the Capitol have been gorgeous!

In the past two weeks many bills have come and gone before us, rightly or wrongly, and it has been an “interesting” experience – some days more than others. March 7 was the last day to file bills and a total of 2,235 bills had been filed by that date. Since then, a projected dismissal day has been set for April 1st. We have a busy two weeks ahead of us and I have been told some bills may not be considered at all this session. I just hope the most necessary ones get acted upon.

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We have now completed another “interesting” two weeks at the Arkansas Legislature. (When people ask me what I think about serving in the legislature, my standard reply is “It’s interesting” because the experience has been that! Strangely enough, it has provided all sorts of emotions that are so complicated to explain that I am at a loss for words!)

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