Latest news with #ArkansasSenate
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Division continues over Franklin County prison funding as proposal hits senate resistance
After three failed attempts, the Arkansas Senate has yet to secure the votes needed to fund a 3,000-bed prison on Mill Creek Mountain in Franklin County. The latest version of SB354 failed April 3 by a vote of 19-10. Another vote is scheduled for April 7. The bill's repeated appearances reflect the governor's continued push for its passage. While the proposal has evolved between votes, it has not reached the 27 votes needed for approval. It failed 19-10 on April 1 and 18-13 on April 2. Sen. John Payton (R-Wilburn), who voted 'nay' during the first two rounds, changed his vote to 'present' on Thursday. 'I'm working on due diligence regarding scale/size,' Payton said. 'I'm concerned that if we overbuild, we would be unable to utilize the whole facility because of a staffing shortage. It takes 'yes' votes for passage, so my change to 'present' indicates I'm working on solidifying my position.' Sam Dubke, spokesperson for Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, said, 'Governor Sanders and a bipartisan majority of legislators agree: it's time to fund the Franklin County prison, public safety and the future of Arkansas. The Governor will continue working with the legislature to pass this appropriation.' Sen. Jim Petty (R-Van Buren) has consistently supported the prison and sees an opportunity to improve outcomes for those incarcerated. 'As you can tell, this is a very complicated matter when building a prison anywhere,' Petty said. 'I certainly understand the resistance from the Franklin County community around the unknown of a new prison in the area where they live. I would never be critical of their position on the issue.' Petty emphasized the state's overcrowded prison system and the burden placed on county jails, which are not equipped to provide rehabilitation or long-term services. 'Maybe the most critical element is that we want to rehabilitate as many prisoners as possible for reentry back into society,' Petty said. 'Turning these criminals into productive citizens is always the first goal where possible. County jails can't provide many of the long-term services related to medical, education and reentry. Centralizing those services is the most cost-effective way to administer them.' Sen. Justin Boyd (R-Fort Smith) echoed Petty's comments about moving state prisoners out of county jails. The Sebastian County jail continues to be at or over capacity, with 46% of the inmates in a state prison. 'If the state held the bulk of those individuals in prison, the jail would not be overcrowded,' Boyd said. 'Forcing the county to house state inmates in a jail at capacity more or less eliminates misdemeanor justice. Also, let's not forget that it wasn't long ago that an individual died in the Sebastian County jail. That person should have been in a state facility.' Boyd said that Sebastian County has taken 'significant steps' to ensure those who need to be incarcerated are incarcerated and those who need intervention receive the appropriate intervention with drug and mental health courts, crisis intervention training, and crisis stabilization units. He also cited the intervention programs implemented by the Fort Smith Police Department. 'It's time for our state to own the situation of overcrowded jails in Sebastian County and elsewhere, not continue to push state inmates off onto the counties,' said Boyd. 'The answer shouldn't be for counties to raise its sales tax to pay to house state inmates.' The Arkansas Department of Corrections has estimated the prison will cost $825 million to build — not including the additional infrastructure upgrades needed at the site. The proposed location lacks water service and is accessible only by a narrow, two-lane county road that winds up Mill Creek Mountain. The road has double-yellow lines and no shoulders. The mountain sits 860 feet above sea level. In comparison, the nearby town of Charleston, about 12 miles away, is at roughly 500 feet. 'I believe that until we solve this complicated problem of jail space, we will continue to have problems in Arkansas around public safety and the overcrowding in the county jails and state prisons,' Petty said. 'While it's a difficult problem to try to solve, we know that difficult problems often require difficult decisions. This is one of those problems, and I plan to continue my support.' Petty also clarified that the $405 million previously set aside was never intended to cover the entire prison construction cost. Instead, he said, the money would be used to begin full due diligence on the site, including soil testing, environmental clearances, utility availability and capacity studies and road improvement assessments. 'My opinion, based on early discussions, is that many members of the Senate have always believed the cost would range between $1 and $1.5 billion,' he said. 'The cash set aside was to begin saving toward the overall cost. The reporting of cost estimates doubling or changing multiple times is simply inaccurate. It's more about identifying appropriation levels that members are comfortable with. We must proceed with the detailed design phase to determine the cost.' Boyd added that Arkansans will have to deal with the same issues no matter where the prison lands. 'Workforce continues to be a challenge for areas of the state which continue to depopulate,' Boyd said. 'There is no perfect location. There will be concerned individuals regardless of the location, and rightly so. 'This is a big change for a community.' Several key lawmakers and local officials, including the bill's sponsors, Sen. Jonathan Dismang and Sen. Alan Clark, were contacted to understand the ongoing debate over SB354 better. They were asked about the bill's future and potential impact on Arkansas's broader crime prevention efforts. This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: SB354 faces fourth vote as prison funding debate continues
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Arkansas lawmakers approve legislation aimed at mitigating energy bill spikes
Sen. Jonathan Dismang, R-Searcy, presents Senate Bill 307 to the Arkansas Senate on March 5, 2025. (Antoinette Grajeda/Arkansas Advocate) The Arkansas House signed off on legislation Tuesday that supporters said will mitigate expected electricity rate increases by altering the current process for constructing power plants. Senate Bill 307 will allow utility companies to begin recovering the costs of building a new generating plant during the construction phase instead of having to wait until the end of the project to do so, which will result in lower costs for customers over the long term, bill sponsor and Searcy Republican Rep. Les Eaves said. With two coal-fired plants set to go offline in the next few years, Eaves said Arkansas will need to generate or purchase energy to keep up with current demand. Ratepayers' bills will go up regardless, Eaves said, but the process outlined in the bill could ease a sharp spike in prices and will provide the Arkansas Public Service Commission more oversight of the projects. Additionally, the Generating Arkansas Jobs Act of 2025, could help the state attract economic development projects like data centers, which could lead to more jobs, Eaves said. Failing to approve SB 307 would result in those companies moving on to other states, he said. 'And those other states will benefit from the economic development projects and those jobs that come with it,' Eaves said. 'There's also the very real possibility that one or more of these data centers will invest hundreds of millions of dollars here in new power generation and this will result again in overall lower power costs to our ratepayers.' Stalled energy bill advances out of Arkansas Senate In a House committee meeting Monday, Eaves said the bill would attract more than data centers but other big users of electricity, such as aerospace manufacturers and lithium processors. Allison Thompson, president and CEO of the Economic Development Alliance for Jefferson County, spoke in favor of the bill in Monday's hearing, saying one of the first questions she's asked by new project proponents is whether there is reliable and abundant available energy. Jefferson County is home to the White Bluff Power Plant that's scheduled for closure. Speaking in favor of the legislation from the House floor Tuesday, Rep. Stephen Meeks, R-Greenbrier, said he really liked the forward-thinking nature of the bill. 'I support the bill, that we're trying to ramp electric bills and not have those sharp cliffs, that we're building base generation that we need for a reliable grid here in the state of Arkansas, and this bill is always looking to the future at new technologies and how we can implement them to help make sure we have a reliable grid,' Meeks said. No one spoke against the bill, which the Arkansas House approved by a vote of 77-13. Nine members voted present. SB 307 passed in the Senate last week by a vote of 23-9. The bill now awaits the governor's signature. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Arkansas lawmakers request energy bill recommendations from utility commission
Sen. Jimmy Hickey, R-Texarkana, makes a motion on Senate Bill 307 while his colleagues (from top) Sens. Jonathan Dismang, Ricky Hill and Missy Irvin listen on March 6, 2025. (Antoinette Grajeda/Arkansas Advocate) The Arkansas Senate on Thursday asked the state's utility regulator to provide suggestions on a bill that would change the process for building electricity-generating plants. Sen. Jimmy Hickey, R-Texarkana, made the motion for the Arkansas Public Service Commission to provide the requested analysis of Senate Bill 307 by 9 a.m. Monday. The goal of the 62-page bill, lead sponsor Sen. Jonathan Dismang, R-Searcy, told his colleagues Wednesday, is to mitigate the sharp increase in rates expected as a result of generating or purchasing energy to meet the demand that will be created by at least two of the state's coal-fired plants going offline in a few years. Hickey made his motion Thursday after SB 307 failed to garner enough support to advance Wednesday. Noting that he had spoken to Dismang ahead of time, Hickey told senators they were allowed to make this request because the Arkansas Supreme Court has previously defined the PSC as 'a quasi legislative and executive agency.' 'I believe that this has the potential of one of the largest fiscal impacts, at least monetary, for the whole state that we've seen in years, and I believe that we need to give it its utmost importance, and this is an attempt to do that,' he said. Hickey's motion specifically requested that the PSC recommend: How to best use a model to provide protection for ratepayers, and also provide expediency to maintain and efficiently expand energy generation. How to define 'strategic investment' allowed under the bill. How to quickly determine the feasibility of projects and whether they're providing a positive cost benefit to the state. How to structure additional aspects of the bill that the PSC may deem problematic. Hickey also asked that Doyle Webb, current PSC chairman and former Republican Party of Arkansas chairman, create an environment that will allow the document to be prepared without the influence of the legislative and executive branches, and utilities, industry or other parties that 'may have a vested interest in the bill.' Crossett Republican Sen. Ben Gilmore asked Hickey about requesting the PSC to weigh in on policy that it will have to make decisions on, noting that while chairing the energy committee, he heard its representatives say they were 'policytakers not policymakers.' Arkansas Senate rejects legislation to increase energy production, attract industry The Arkansas Legislature and governor will remain the policymakers because they'll ultimately decide how to direct the language of the bill, Hickey said. In response to Benton Republican Sen. Kim Hammer's question of whether Monday's deadline allowed enough time for the PSC to comply with the Senate's request, Hickey said the agency is already familiar with the bill, and the deadline was reasonable. 'The importance of this and what it means for Arkansas, I just think we're going to have to find that time,' he said. After the Senate unanimously approved Hickey's motion on a voice vote, the Texarkana Republican suggested that his colleagues consider debating the bill on the Senate floor as a committee of the whole, which would allow people to give sworn testimony and to help the bill to move quickly through the Legislature. 'I just think that that's going to be the most prudent and efficient way to handle a bill of this size,' Hickey said. 'So again, I'm not making that a thing, that is just food for thought for you all to think about over the weekend so that you're not blindsided.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Arkansas Senate rejects legislation to increase energy production, attract industry
Sen. Jonathan Dismang, R-Searcy, presents Senate Bill 307 to the Arkansas Senate on March 5, 2025. (Antoinette Grajeda/Arkansas Advocate) A bill that would alter the process for creating new electricity-generating plants to meet the state's anticipated energy needs stalled in the Arkansas Senate Wednesday. As a result of at least two of the state's coal-fired plants going offline by the end of 2030, Sen. Jonathan Dismang, Searcy Republican and lead sponsor of Senate Bill 307, said energy rates are expected to increase because Arkansas will have to buy energy from an out-of-state utility or build new sources of energy. The goal of the 62-page bill, also known as the Generating Arkansas Jobs Act of 2025, is to mitigate those increases, Dismang said. 'This is a new path forward for us to create the energy that we have to create that will ultimately, because of that new generation that is required, be at a lesser cost of generation than it would be under the old model — the old model that does not have the roadblocks and the reviews and the approvals that this does at multiple steps in the process,' he said. Renewable energy needed for Arkansas' future, industry experts tell lawmakers Under the current model, Dismang said, interest is accrued during construction and then capitalized, creating 'a significant jump in rates' once the power plant is operational. SB 307 recommends another option that would allow utilities to begin recovering costs incrementally during construction by enabling 'a strategic investment' that he said would result in a 'lower, long-term recovery rate for consumers.' SB 307 proposes that the Arkansas Public Service Commission must approve a strategic investment within six months of application, 'ensuring that it is in the public interest,' Dismang said. The PSC then has 60 days to approve the rider rates, but can request another 30 days if additional time is needed. When construction begins and the new rate is being collected, the PSC will review that project every 12 months, Dismang said. Once completed, the PSC has a one-year audit period to make sure everything was 'done prudently so that our ratepayers are protected,' he said. In addition to saving ratepayers money, Dismang said his proposal 'provides more protection and oversight by the PSC because they're able to monitor what's happening through the entire process.' Supporters of the bill have also said it will make Arkansas more competitive in attracting to the state new employers, such as data centers that may require a lot of energy to operate, which would create more jobs. Arkansas legislative panel moves 'strategic energy infrastructure' bill forward Sen. Dave Wallace, a Leachville Republican who voted for SB 307, said he chopped cotton growing up because there were no other jobs in Arkansas, a factor that led many in his generation to leave the state. 'You grow or you die,' Wallace said. '…We have opportunity to be in the lead and to have energy and to bring companies to our state…if we have power, we're going to bring those businesses and Arkansas is going to grow.' Sen. Reginald Murdock, D-Marianna, said the entire Senate believes in the concept of the bill, but he had concerns about the process and making sure to 'protect our ratepayers, specifically the most vulnerable people in the state.' 'I think this process has taken away the ability to provide some alternatives, some Plan B's, some Plan C's, that could do a better job of protecting ratepayers if given the time to sit down and deal with this in a different way, from a time standpoint,' Murdock said. 'So I do think there are some alternatives that can be brought forward that may help us.' Sen. Jimmy Hickey, R-Texarkana, said it was important to watch out for ratepayers from a cost and risk standpoint. While he thanked Dismang for his hard work on a complicated bill and agreed action is needed, Hickey said SB 307 is not ready as is. Hickey called for more discussion about the bill's proposal to keep Arkansas' rates at 10% below the national average, noting that by some estimates, Arkansas' current rate is 25% below that threshold. He also noted that a better definition for 'strategic investments' is needed. 'It's a whole lot easier to come down here and start throwing rocks at it than to sit and devise this type of policy, but again, I just don't think that we're ready to go forward,' Hickey said. Hickey was among 11 senators who voted against SB 307. The legislation received 17 affirmative votes, one shy of the 18 needed for a bill to pass out of the Senate. Murdock was one of four senators who did not cast a vote. Democratic Sens. Greg Leding of Fayetteville and Fredrick Love of Mabelvale, and Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Jonesboro, voted present. The Senate voted in favor of Dismang's motion to expunge the vote, which will allow him to bring SB 307 back to his colleagues at a later date. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Arkansas House Committee passes anti-affirmative action bill, heads to full House
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – There was an emotional debate Wednesday as an Arkansas House Committee considered a bill aiming to prohibit discrimination or preferential treatment favoring an individual or group 'on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in matters of state employment, public education, or state procurement.' The bill would not change preferences provided to veterans and not prohibit religious-based preferences. Arkansas Senate passes bill to end affirmative action, bill headed to House Rep. Mary Bentley (R-Perryville) is one of the bill's sponsors. 'It is time for Arkansas to move forward and time for Arkansas to catch up with the law and to eliminate state-sanctioned discrimination and preferential treatment,' Bentley said. Daisy Onoriobe spoke against the bill. 'SB3 doesn't prohibit discrimination it dismantles policies that were designed to ensure access to opportunity for those who have historically been denied it,' Onoriobe said. Arkansas lawmakers respond to Supreme Court decision rolling back affirmative action Much of the debate surrounded merit. Supporters of the bill believe hiring, school admissions and more should be merit-based. 'We need to base things on merit, it shouldn't matter what color their skin are, what should matter is that they're getting the best and the brightest in those positions and that they're addressing those areas of critical needs,' Bentley said. But some say the chance to show merit in the first place is being taken away through this bill. Discussion of the scope of the bill occurred after testimony saying schools might be cautious in how they approach any kind of extra access leading Representative Julie Mayberry to vote against the bill.'I want to feel confident that this does not inadvertently affect students who have 504S and IEPs,' Mayberry said. Leaders grapple with end of affirmative action This bill passed through a Senate Committee and the full Senate last week and now moves to the full House after it passed through House committee today. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
