Arkansas

Arkansas ended the fiscal year with a $1.161 billion tax revenue surplus driven in part by a more than 8% growth in sales tax collections. But recent federal data suggests Arkansas’ economy may not be as robust in the back half of 2023.

Total tax revenue in the fiscal year (July 2022-July 2023) was $8.85 billion, up 0.9% compared with the previous fiscal year and 1.7% more than the budget forecast, according to a report posted Wednesday (July 5) by the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration (DFA).

Individual income tax revenue in the fiscal year was $3.916 billion, down 6.1% compared to the previous fiscal year and 1.1% above the budget forecast. Sales and use tax revenue in the fiscal year was $3.418 billion, up 8.4% compared with the previous fiscal year and up 1% above the forecast. Corporate income tax revenue was $842.5 million, up 0.6% compared to the previous fiscal year and 6.5% above the forecast.

The Vilonia Planning Commission unanimously voted against plans to build a cryptocurrency mine at an unusually packed meeting Thursday night.

Last week, the Vilonia City Council voted to cap town-wide sound at 60 decibels. At the same meeting, several residents expressed negative sentiments against the proposed mines.

No representatives from the company seeking to build the crypto mine came to the meeting. The only person connected to the mine was Barry Davidson, a civil engineer who had been contracted from a separate company. When asked before the meeting, Davidson struggled to remember the name of the mining company.

“You haven't met them, and you're their civil engineer,” commission member Kim Williams noted during the meeting. Another member said the fact that no one from the mining company was there showed an “unseriousness.”

NetChoice, a group whose members include Facebook parent Meta, TikTok and Twitter, filed a federal lawsuit over the measure signed by Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders in April. The law requires social media companies to contract with third-party vendors to perform age verification checks on new users. The requirement is set to go into effect on Sept. 1.

Tomorrow (Thursday, 2023-06-29) the entire state will be covered in a Heat Advisory Warning with the majority of the state being covered in the more severe Excessive Heat Warning.

The Excessive Heat Warning covers heat index temperatures above 110F.

If you must be outside, drink plenty of water, rest frequently, and take advantage of shade where possible. Know the signs of heat related injuries such as heat stroke and know how to spot them in others.

The storms on Sunday (2023-06-25) caused damage and power outages across the state. The linked article is specific to Conway but the damage was certainly not limited to it.

I'll be roadtripping/vanlifing in a year or two and I've been trying to plot various travel destinations/routes - what's in Arkansas?

anything fun to visit? touristy? places to avoid? things to do/not do?

my grandparents had a cabin in the ozarks, so I've been there, 40 some odd years ago, but never again since.

Are there any concerts y'all are excited for? I saw Incubus and I'm going to see Disturbed in NWA. Just curious what the interests here are.

Excerpt :

The Vilonia City Council heard from several residents who voiced their concerns and objections to the newly-approved crypto-mining site in the city during its regular meeting Tuesday.

Dozens of concerned residents from Vilonia and the surrounding area filled the city hall chamber Tuesday to express their outrage about the facility in Vilonia.

At the April city council meeting, aldermen unanimously approved a conditional-use permit to allow for a new crypto-mining site in the city that would be located in the industrial mining district off Energy Lane.

More info in the article.

A federal judge struck down Arkansas' first-in-the-nation ban on gender-affirming care for children as unconstitutional Tuesday, the first ruling to overturn such a prohibition as a growing number of Republican-led states adopt similar restrictions.

In his order, Moody ruled that the prohibition violated the due process and equal protection rights of transgender youth and families. He said the law also violated the First Amendment rights of medical providers.

Small excerpt below, much more information is available in the article.

Saline County and Pulaski County are currently bracing for the impacts of a law regulating books found in their libraries.

Act 372 was passed in the Arkansas Legislature this year. The law requires books deemed “harmful to children” to be in a separate restricted section of the library. The law doesn’t go into effect until August, but in the meantime, the Saline County Quorum Court is debating an ordinance telling libraries to “proactively take steps” to relocate certain content.

A Saline County Library board meeting last May turned into an emotional debate over relocating certain books available to children and young adults. At the next board meeting, debate ensued over a policy to allow county judges to make relocation decisions.

On Wednesday, the Commission approved an ambitious plan to transform Lake Conway into a showcase that will provide high quality fishing opportunities not only for Conway and Mayflower, but for all of Central Arkansas.

Ben Batten, deputy director for the Game and Fish Commission, said that the plan will increase water volume in the lake from 28-46%. The average depth will increase by 1.5%, and as much as 3 feet in some areas. This will restore its water storage capacity to its 1975 level, Batten said.

As at Lake Poinsett, the commission will drain Lake Conway for 18-24 months. Exposing the lake bottom to the atmosphere and to direct sunlight will bake the soil and cause it to settle and compact. It will remain hard when the lake refills. This hard bottom will serve as fish spawning habitat.

Also, the commission will improve boat lanes by removing stumps.

Additionally, the commission will install artificial fish structures and natural brush piles. Batten said that the agency will install about 3,500 structures. That translates to a one structure every two acres. The AGFC will also install pea gravel spawning beds and stake beds. It will also plant cypress trees.

This text is directly from the article, in its entirety, so not much else to be learned from the link.

In a Thursday morning ruling, the Arkansas Supreme Court said the new education law known as the LEARNS Act can start immediately.

K8 News reported back in May that a judge issued a temporary restraining order on the LEARNS Act.

However, the state supreme court voided the restraining order.

There’s a separate lawsuit filed by concerned parents and Citizens for Arkansas Public Education and Students.

The lawsuit states that because the act had an emergency clause, that was not voted on separately from the bill, Arkansas LEARNS is not yet state law.

Under the new ordinance, unaccompanied minors found after 9 p.m. in designated entertainment districts, which include the River Market and SoMa neighborhoods, could be subject to a citation. The ordinance will also apply to some public parks.

Side note : There is currently no /c/LittleRock. Not residing there I don't feel qualified to create one but I'd be happy to help out if anyone wants to.

FDA recall on strawberries potentially contaminated with Hepatitis A more details in the linked article.

included in the recall are Great Value Sliced Strawberries and Great Value Mixed Fruit, both sold as 64-ounce packages at Walmart stores in Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming from January 24, 2023, to June 8, 2023.