Recent Stories
Cash relief foreseen to prop up Medicaid
State ends year with $145 million surplus
A record fiscal year-end surplus of more than $145 million can help Arkansas soften an expected shortfall in Medicaid funds next year as well as deal with other one-time needs, Gov. Mike Beebe said Tuesday.
Lottery ticket sales up $10 million in ’12
Scholarship totals unclear, officials say
Sales of Arkansas lottery tickets were up $10 million in fiscal 2012 from the previous year, officials announced Monday, but it’s not clear how much of that will go toward scholarships.
Gas-tax campaign has sparks flying
Nelson: Petition signers were badgered
If a proposal to raise the state’s severance tax on natural gas gets on the November ballot, it will be despite the best efforts of the natural-gas industry, which helped fund a “don’t sign” campaign to thwart a petition campaign aimed at getting it on the ballot.
Darr looks ahead to elections for fix
In his 2010 campaign, Lt. Gov. Mark Darr pledged to challenge the constitutionality of the federal health-care law, and he said Thursday that the U.S. Supreme Court ruling upholding the law’s constitutionality is not a loss but “a wake-up call.”
Nelson requests inquiry by SEC
He says gas firms misleading public
Sheffield Nelson asked the Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday to investigate an Exxon Mobil subsidiary and Southwestern Energy, alleging that they have misled the public and their shareholders in the course of opposing an increase in the severance tax on natural gas.
Incentives reel in businesses, but state gains hard to gauge
A company’s announcement that it plans to open a factory or office in the state is often met with great fanfare.
State justices strike 2009 execution law
The state Supreme Court on Friday struck down as unconstitutional Arkansas’ lethal-injection law, saying it gave too much discretion to the Arkansas Department of Correction to decide how executions would be carried out and which chemicals would be used.
Bid to get back law license fails
Felony conviction too high a bar, justices say in 5-2 decision
In a 5-2 decision, the state Supreme Court declined Thursday to reinstate the law license of a lawyer who pleaded guilty to a felony over a decade ago.
Court: Breath test in other county legal
A law enforcement officer who arrested someone for driving under the influence and then transported him across a county line for a breath test acted reasonably, and the test did not constitute an illegal search, the state Supreme Court ruled Thursday.
Tobacco panel chooses director
Faulkner County’s Shepherd starts work July 16 at a salary of $60,214
The Arkansas Tobacco Settlement Commission has selected Faye Shepherd as its new director, after months of searching.
