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“Reduce the state’s income tax…repeal the state’s capital gains tax.” Murphy Commission, Policy Foundation project, 1998   (April 2013) The capital gains tax cut1 approved by the first Republican-controlled state legislature since Reconstruction is a modest step toward creating a more pro-growth economic climate in Arkansas. The measure, sponsored by House Speaker Davy Carter, R-Cabot, increases […]

“The long-term liabilities of the ARKids First program should be identified.”  Policy Foundation research memos, 2006   (March 2013) The unfunded liabilities1 of the state’s ‘ARKids First2 program,’ a major part of Arkansas Medicaid are estimated to expand by more than $1 billion under a so-called “private” option under review by state legislators.   Under the so-called “private” option advanced by some […]

  (February 2013) Beebe administration officials are asking the state General Assembly to approve a $125 million bond deal for a steel production facility at Osceola in east Arkansas that promises 525 new jobs.  But the state of Arkansas manufacturing is so weak, compared to historical levels that the proposed mill is likely to have minimal […]

(January 15, 2013) Policymakers across the Arkansas political spectrum agree that a proposed Medicaid expansion is the biggest issue in the legislative session that began this week.  Democratic Gov. Mike Beebe told the General Assembly today, “(I)t is clear that Medicaid will receive the lion’s share of attention, and rightfully so.”2 “Medicaid is certainly the biggest elephant in […]

Taxes were raised in 1983 and, again, in 2004 with the following result: Arkansas ranked 47th, 48th or 49th nationally in per capita personal income, with a level 75 to 78 percent of the U.S. thru 2006. In sum, income improved by a mere three-hundredths (3/100ths) in nearly a quarter-century.  This is the sad economic record defended by tax […]

“The most callused aspect of the current education monopoly in Arkansas is that it willingly and deliberately forces children–except those whose parents have wealth–to attend bad schools. And it does so with financial resources taken from parents already struggling financially and at the expense of their ability to choose a better school for their sons […]

“Reduce the state’s income tax…repeal the state’s capital gains tax.” Arkansas Policy Foundation, Murphy Commission project, 1998   (November 2012) The policy climate has shifted dramatically in Arkansas, with Republicans winning control of the state Senate, 21-14, and state House, 51-48-11, for the first time since Reconstruction.  The stage is set for a serious policy debate […]

(October 2012) Former President Bill Clinton noted Arkansas and Michigan are sister states1 during a March 1997 speech to the Michigan legislature.  Arkansas and Michigan share another distinction: the number of female legislators has increased significantly since the people2 approved similar term limits constitutional amendments3 by landslide margins4 in 1992.   Legislators in both states are limited to no more […]

The Orange County treasurer managed the pools, which totaled approximately $7.6 billion.  The treasurer used reverse repurchase agreements, a type of derivative. The deposits were leveraged to more than $20 billion.  Orange County declared bankruptcy in December 1994. (U.S. Senate testimony)1   (September 2012) The Arkansas State Treasurer has no written policy regarding financial derivatives, according to […]

  “Governor Beebe has repeatedly said that the current rate of Medicaid growth is unsustainable.” The Journal of the Arkansas Medical Society, November 2011   (September 2012) Long-term Arkansas Medicaid spending exceeded the U.S. average and the Consumer Price Index (CPI) before Gov. Mike Beebe supported expanding the program after the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision upholding nationalized […]