The Pew Charitable Trusts - State and Consumer Initiatives from Arkansas

Attorneys General Prepare to Defend Controversial Laws

State attorneys general are about to head to court to defend controversial state laws. Are they required to defend laws that might not survive legal scrutiny?

Obama Administration Poised to Approve Arkansas-style Medicaid Expansions

The Obama Administration is inviting states to apply for Arkansas-style Medicaid expansions in an effort to woo those balking at traditional Medicaid expansion.

Expanding Medicaid with Private Insurance

Arkansas and Ohio are pursuing a “private option” for expanding Medicaid.

Arkansas Passes Nation’s Strictest Abortion Law

Arkansas legislature votes to override Gov. Mike Beebe’s veto, banning all abortions after 12 weeks.

Should Judges Be Forced To Retire?

Judges in 33 states are forced to retire at a certain age. State legislators are not so sure this is a good idea.

Governors Balance Pardons With Politics

Governors are more reluctant to use their pardon power in the face of heightened political scrutiny. But some still issue regular pardons.

Governing: How Can States Eliminate Medicaid Fraud?

Eradicating Medicaid fraud has become a central focus for states in recent years, especially as the low-income insurance program has consumed more and more of state budgets.

Arkansas State of the State Address 2013

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas -- Jan. 15 -- Following is the prepared text of Gov. Jim Beebe's (D) 2013 State of the State Address:

Public Safety in Arkansas

Public safety in Arkansas

Falling Short on Dental Sealants: Arkansas

How well is Arkansas protecting kids from tooth decay?

State Legislators on Sentencing and Corrections Reforms

Six state legislative leaders reflect on how they successfully enacted comprehensive sentencing and corrections reforms using a bipartisan, interbranch working group and focusing on data and research to craft policies that met their unique challenges.

After Tax Hike, Arkansas Plans Highway Building Boom

Transportation funding advocates have suffered setbacks in several states recently. In Arkansas, they won big.

The Impact of the Fiscal Cliff: Arkansas

Federal and state finances are closely intertwined, and the fiscal cliff’s tax and spending provisions will have consequences for states.

Still Risky: Checking Accounts in Arkansas

Checking accounts, the most widely used financial product in America, contain hidden risks that can harm consumers. Five of the 12 largest banks nationwide offer checking accounts in Arkansas and hold 17 percent of all deposits in the state. Here’s what consumers in Arkansas may be paying.

Following Racially Charged Writings, Three Arkansas Candidates Lose GOP Funding

Arkansas Republicans have run into a stumbling block in their quest to take control of the state legislature: the racially charged writings of three of their candidates for the statehouse.

A New Health Care Initiative in Arkansas

Arkansas ranks near the bottom among states in health and income. But it’s much closer to the top when it comes to rising health care costs — they’ve doubled in just the past decade. Reduced benefits and lower provider fees have not halted the escalation.

State Scholarship Changes Could Cost Students

Legislators in Arkansas are considering tying scholarship levels to academic progress.

Democrats Seeking Comeback in State Legislatures

Republicans won landslide victories in legislative chambers two years ago. Democrats hope to reverse some of the results in November. In many states, though, it won’t be easy.

Courts Struggle to Maintain Safety

No one is sure why, but courthouses are becoming more dangerous every year. Better security is needed, but security isn’t cheap.

Mandatory Life Sentences for Juveniles Ruled Unconstitutional

Many states will have to reexamine their sentencing guidelines following a Supreme Court ruling that mandatory life sentences without parole are unconstitutional for juveniles.

Widening Gap Update: Arkansas

Although Arkansas consistently paid, or exceeded, its full annual pension contribution from 2005 to 2010, the system was 75 percent funded in fiscal year 2010 and faced a $6 billion funding gap.

Time Served in Arkansas

The average offender released in 2009 in Arkansas served 3.2 years in custody, 69% more than the average offender released in 1990.

Jurors on the Internet: A Dilemma for Courts

Most jurors are warned not to use electronic media to discuss a case while they are trying it. But some just ignore the warnings.

Election Websites: Arkansas

Being Online Is Still Not Enough provides state-by-state reviews and analysis based on detailed criteria of election websites for all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Infographic: Southern Strength

Republican dominance in the South started with presidential elections and only later came to statehouses.

The Arkansas Approach: How One State Has Avoided Fiscal Disaster

Arkansas defaulted on its debt in the 1930s. The painful memory of that experience has been a help to its budget process ever since.

Health Care Law is Bigger Challenge for Some States

TODAY'S TAKE: Eight states will face the greatest difficulties in handling the influx of new Medicaid patients expected after the federal Affordable Care Act goes into full effect in 2014, a new study says.

Measuring Transportation Investments: Arkansas

A May 2011 report, Measuring Transportation Investments: The Road to Results, found considerable differences among the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Just 13 states are leading the way overall, with goals, performance measures and data that decision makers can use to choose cost-effective policy options and ensure the likelihood of a strong return for taxpayers. Arkansas was one of 19 states trailing behind in having essential tools—goals, performance measures and data—needed to help decision makers choose more cost-effective transportation funding and policy options. The state spent an estimated $970 million on transportation in fiscal year 2010.

Children's Dental Health: Arkansas

Arkansas met four of the eight policy benchmarks for improving children’s dental health needs, two more than it met in 2010. The change in grade reflects the fact that in 2009, more than half of the children in Arkansas’ Medicaid program received dental services, a notable increase.

Arkansas Asks Voters for Highway Money

TRANSPORTATION BEAT: Arkansas voters will get a chance to decide whether better roads are worth a tax increase ... Florida's decision to give back federal high-speed rail money has other states scrambling for the funds … Officials in the Northwest and Midwest explore public-private partnerships for new projects, and other transportation news.

Arkansas' Public Pensions Show Signs of Improvement

Even though some government pension plans across the country are still struggling, Arkansas' two major pension funds are showing signs of improvement after suffering millions of dollars in investment losses in 2008 and 2009. For the fiscal year that ended June 30, the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System reported market value assets of $9.884 billion, which was up $1.037 billion from the prior year.

Surprisingly Small Tuition Increase in Connecticut

EDUCATION BEAT: Connecticut avoids big tuition hike ... School consolidation resisted in Arkansas ... New law cracks down on teacher strikes in Michigan, and other education news.

Arkansas State of the State Address 2011

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - Jan. 11 - Following is the prepared text of Gov. Mike Beebe's (D) 2011 state of the state address: Click here to access the governor's Web page and view or hear the address. Mr. President, Mr. Speaker, Ladies and Gentlemen of the House and Senate, Constitutional Officers, Mr. Chief Justice,

With Rick Scott as Governor, Merit Pay Plan for Florida Teachers May Pass

TRANSITION WATCH: Florida conservatives are eager to revisit merit pay, Arizona's Republican Senate President breaks with business groups on tax incentives and other news of the historic shift in power in the states.

In Tough Economy, Arkansas' Lottery Launch Exceeds Expectations

Arkansas is the latest state to create a lottery whose proceeds fund college scholarships for state residents. In less than a year, revenues have come in well above what was expected, and 28,000 students will get money this fall. Can the good news last?

Arkansas: Improving Public Safety and Containing Corrections Costs

Arkansas's prison population is projected to grow by as much as 43 percent over the next decade. Building and operating new prisons to accommodate this growth will cost approximately $1.1 billion between 2010 and 2020. With the state prison system already at full capacity, Arkansas policy makers are considering data-driven alternatives that will contain prison growth and corrections spending while protecting public safety. This June 2010 report detailed the steps state leaders took to advance public safety policy solutions.

States Limit Sweeping Tax Hikes — So Far

TODAY'S TAKE: While much of the nation may be focusing today (May 18) on key U.S. Senate primaries in Arkansas, Kentucky and Pennsylvania, a special statewide election in Arizona could gauge voters' temperature on the question of whether or not to raise taxes. Arizona voters will decide whether to endorse Republican Governor Jan Brewer's proposal to raise the state sales tax by a penny to 6.6 percent.

Balloting for the Busy

As early voting, mail-in voting and other more convenient means of casting ballots become common, the old-fashioned precinct polling place is going out of style.

Still Too Many Schools?

As states become determined to keep more school money inside the classroom, rather than in an administrative office, they are beginning to turn to the thorny issue of consolidation as a way to save on administrative costs. But consolidation of anything related to schools is notoriously difficult, and doesn't always turn out to provide the fiscal windfall states hope for. Implementation is fraught with complexities. Communities worry about the possibility of local schools closing even when it's promised that proposed changes would be largely administrative.

The Trillion Dollar Gap: Arkansas

Arkansas is managing its long-term pension liability well, but it needs to improve how it handles the bill coming due for its retiree health care and other benefits.

Ark., Wash. Trade Blame Over Suspect

TODAY'S TAKE: The fatal shooting of four police officers in Washington state this week has set off angry finger-pointing between Washington and Arkansas over why the suspect in the killings -- a man convicted of at least five felonies in Arkansas and charged with at least eight more in Washington this year alone -- was not behind bars.

Weekly Wrap: Louisiana Pleasantly Surprised by Haul From Tax Amnesty Program

More than $300 million is generated from delinquent Louisiana taxpayers; California finance chief hangs it up; Iowa Gov. Culver campaigns as problem solver; and stimulus Web site turns up boo-boos.

One in 31: Arkansas

1 in 29 adults in Arkansas is under correctional control.

With Crisis as Catalyst, Govs Push Big Changes

Governors are using the economic crisis to sell big changes in how state and local jurisdictions operate, promising overhauls that could alter the face of government around the country. Their proposals range from sharing state helicopters between Minnesota and Wisconsin to shrinking Pennsylvania's system of 500 school districts to just 100.

Economic crisis: Today's state perspective(2)

A scan of today's state news stories shows spreading economic distress - and an array of political plans to cushion the impact, including talk in Nevada of taxing prostitution (it's legal in some counties there). Nevada is among the states hit hardest by the recession.

Arkansas State of the State Address 2009

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - Jan. 13 - Following is the prepared text of Gov. Mike Beebe's (D) 2009 state of the state address: Click here to access the governor's Web page and view or hear the address. Mr. President, Mr. Speaker, Ladies and Gentlemen of the House and Senate, Constitutional Officers, Mr. Chief Justi

Arkansas Delegation Coping with Death of Leader

Aug. 26, 2008, 4:00 p.m. EDTDENVER - The trip to Denver has been bittersweet for Arkansas' Democratic delegates. They just buried their party chairman, Bill Gwatney, last week. He was fatally shot Aug. 13. Read more in Arkansans find convention bittersweet. --Stephen C. Fehr Comments

Arkansans Find Convention Bittersweet

DENVER - After the murder of the state party chairman, Bill Gwatney, Arkansas' delegates honor his memory at the Democratic National Convention in Denver.

Ultrasound at Center of State Abortion Wars

A new Oklahoma law slated to take effect Aug. 1 requires doctors to show a woman considering abortion an ultrasound image of her fetus and recite details of its development. Experts expect a slew of similar statutes next year as abortion foes push states to require the procedure for all abortions.

WORTH NOTING: 'Gas Pain' Troubles for Utah Governor

Utah's chief executive gives reporters too much information. An influential Idaho politician endorses two legislative candidates - for the same House seat. And Arkansas tourism officials are taking "Clinton Country" to the next level. In case you missed those stories this week, "Worth Noting" fills you in.