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The legislature is preparing to convene again on Sept. 29, to redraw boundaries of the four Congressional districts in Arkansas.
On Sept. 11, 2001, I had just taken charge as administrator of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. For today’s weekly address, we are offering a shortened version of A Thousand Deep: Asa Hutchinson Remembers 9.11 which is a video with my reflections about the day of the 9/11 attacks an…
Arkansas legislators continue to support a statewide expansion of broadband service as quickly as possible, especially in areas where there is no Internet at all and in places where the technology is obsolete.
The county fair is one of the traditions that we missed last year because of the pandemic, and today I’m very excited to talk about the reopening of the fairs this fall.
A federal appeals court has ruled in favor of the state Education Department, and against four south Arkansas school districts that want to be exempt from the state school choice law.
Airports and air travel are essential to Arkansas’s growth and economic development, and the history of aeronautics in Arkansas is colorful. Today I’d like to talk about this industry that has contributed so much to the high quality of life in the Natural State.
The number of people who live in Arkansas increased by about 95,600 over the past 10 years, a growth rate of 3.3 percent that brought the state’s population to more than three million people.
Over the past several weeks, I have visited 16 communities on my Community COVID Conversations tour, and I heard heartfelt concerns, heartbreaking stories, and heartening testimonies about the value of the COVID-19 vaccines.
Today I’d like to talk about a sector of our culinary industry that is the perfect business model for dining establishments during a pandemic.
The Arkansas Legislative Council approved a funding request of more than $245 million to help hospitals and nursing homes recruit and retain staff, and to cope with extraordinary expenses caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
This year computer and electronic equipment will be included in the Arkansas sales tax holiday.
Since the days I was taking out Hardy Boys mysteries from the Gravette School Library, I have always been in the middle of reading a book or two. The First Lady and I read to our children and our grandchildren. I encourage families to keep books at home to read aloud and to encourage childre…
Last week, I announced I would be traveling the state for a series of Community COVID Conversations, and today I’d like to talk about why these exercises in democracy matter.
In the regular session of 2021 the legislature approved at least 25 new election laws that will go into effect on July 28.
Last Thursday was the first of my Community COVID Conversations in Cabot, and I am so grateful for the crowd who attended and filled every seat with the overflow left standing along the walls. The time was well spent with citizens asking questions and providing ideas as to how to overcome th…
The state Department of Human Services has installed a new system for filling out applications for social services.
The state Board of Education has approved another round of plans submitted by Arkansas school districts that want the option of offering online classes in the fall.
Last week, we lost another police officer in the line of duty, and if we could pass a law to guarantee we will never lose another one, then I would pass it and sign it today. But we know that is not realistic.
As the Arkansas tourism industry recovers from the economic impacts of the pandemic, the governor announced the creation of a new Office of Outdoor Recreation.
First, the Arkansas General Assembly had the tough task of choosing the two people who would represent Arkansas in Statuary Hall in our nation’s capital, and then we had a nationwide search for the artists who would sculpt the statues. Today I’m happy to report we now have selected the artis…
Arkansas Works will end on Dec. 31, and today I’d like to talk about the program that will replace it.
State Medicaid officials are asking the federal government for approval of ARHOME, the newest version of Medicaid expansion.
The state will commit $17 million to extending a runway at the Ebbing Air National Guard Base in Fort Smith.
I have proclaimed that June is Blackberry Month in Arkansas and today I’d like to talk about a crowning blackberry achievement at the University of Arkansas’s Fruit Research Station in Clarksville.
The state is on pace to have a record surplus of more than $1 billion, which is a strong indicator that the Arkansas economy is recovering from the negative effects of the pandemic.
Two weeks ago, we were all alarmed to learn about a significant crack in a beam that supports the I-40 Hernando DeSoto Bridge, which connects Arkansas and Tennessee.
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State and local governments are preparing to receive a large infusion of federal aid, under the American Rescue Plan of 2021. Schools and universities in Arkansas also are receiving federal funds.
The state’s emergency health declaration ended this Sunday, and today I’d like to encourage Arkansans to remember that although the emergency has passed, we are still in a pandemic.
The state is now offering help to low-income families who have fallen behind on their rent because of financial problems caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
We opened Arkansas’s rental-assistance program last week, and today I’d like to talk about how we will help renters and landlords who are struggling to make ends meet during the pandemic.
Last week was National Nurses Week in Arkansas, and today I’d like to talk about how the pandemic has highlighted the value of our nurses and about the laws the General Assembly passed this year that allow nurses to offer more services.
The Arkansas legislature enacted several new pro-life laws during the 2021 regular session.
On Wednesday, I traveled to Poinsett County for the dedication of the state’s newest water trail. Today I’d like to share a bit of the story behind the Sunken Lands Water Trail, which was created by the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, the St. Francis Lake Association, the Trumann Area Cha…
The legislature referred three proposed constitutional amendments to Arkansas voters.
The legislature brought the 2021 regular session to a close with a dramatic midnight meeting to approve a Sovereignty Act, which declares new federal laws invalid if they infringe on the right to bear arms.
Last week the 93rd General Assembly concluded its business, and today I’d like to talk about a few of the success stories from the legislative session.
Fiscal issues took center stage during the final week of the legislative session.
For years, we have struggled to find enough teachers, nurses, and other licensed professionals to fill jobs in Arkansas, and today I’d like to talk about Act 746, a law that will help overcome that challenge by enlarging the field of employees. I signed it into law this last week.
This week, I signed legislation that will increase the median salary of schoolteachers by $2,000 over the next two years. The raise is one way to show teachers we value their work, and this legislation was one of my top priorities. Senator Missy Irvin and Representative Bruce Cozart sponsore…
The legislature has enacted numerous reforms to Arkansas election laws.
April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. We all understand that the best way to prevent the abuse of children is to strengthen families. Today I’d like to share the story of state employees whose intervention stabilized a family and allowed a mother to keep her children.
Arkansas became the first state in the nation to prohibit physicians from performing gender transition procedures on minors, either through surgery or hormone therapy.
This time last year, I knew COVID-19 was a serious threat, but I was confident if we pulled together as a state and nation, then we could over time defeat the virus.
The legislature has approved a broad reform of the laws governing water providers, a measure that sponsors have been working on for the past four years.
The legislature voted to extend the 2021 session until April 30, and then to recess for an extended period rather than to adjourn.
This week I signed Senate Bill 107, which requires high school students to take at least one computer science course in order to graduate.
The Senate has approved legislation to grant to certified nurse practitioners full and independent practice authority.
Arkansas is springing to life. The White Trout-lily is in full bloom in the woods. Spring ephemerals such as Pale Corydalis, Spring Beauty, Toothwort, Bloodroot, and Violets are coloring the forest floor. The return of Arkansas’s natural beauty is a relief and a reminder that the pandemic of…
The historic flood of 2019 exposed the weakness of Arkansas’s levee system, an issue that required immediate and focused attention, so I created the Arkansas Levee Task Force.
