I wish I could say that exploiting the state reimbursement system is strictly a Republican phenomenon. Between Mark Martin and the legislators exposed as salary padding hypocrites Wednesday, one might even get that impression. The fact of the matter, however,…
Category: Culture
HB 1887: And Never The Twain Shall Meet
About seven weeks ago, when it was rumored that Rep. Andy Mayberry was going to file a bill banning abortions after 20 weeks’ gestation, I wrote a post explaining the likely problems with such a bill. Mayberry has now filed…
Well, just a second there, Professor. We *fixed* the *glitch*.
Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families released a statement yesterday regarding HB 1056, filed by Uvalde Lindsey (D-88, Fayetteville) and joined by over 40 additional Representatives and Senators, which would provide an exemption from income taxes for poor single parents.…
The streetlights just came on, and my mama's in the street tellin' me to come home
At the end of February, Rep. Stephen Meeks (R-47, Greenbrier) filed HB 1711, “AN ACT TO CREATE THE ARKANSAS NIGHTTIME ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION ACT.” The bill included a number of findings, which are not to be codified, including, inter alia: (1)(A)…
Hey, Johnny, what did that Mexican mean by "a sick horse is going to get us"?
Today was the deadline for filing bills and resolutions for consideration during the 88th General Assembly’s regular session. All told, there were 529 filings Monday (h/t @TolbertReport), bringing the total number of filings in 2011 to 2,358 (h/t LobbyUp). Prior…
Just When I Thought I Was Out, They Pull Me Back In (At 520% Interest)
Via Jason Tolbert, I see that Steve Brawner has written in defense of Senate Bill 586, which would carve certain exceptions to the constitutional 17-percent interest rate cap for loans under $5000. (In case you were wondering, that would be…
Guest Post: Legislature Coins A Quarter Controversy
[Editor’s note: An anonymous fan of our web site submits a story that surely The Onion or The Daily Show would appreciate. We found it hilarious and thought it worth passing along to you as an early April Fools gift.…
ABC, As Easy As 1-2-3 (Or 90% of $900K)
When I wrote the first post about Rep. Justin Harris and his daycare, Growing God’s Kingdom (“GGK”), I purposefully kept the post focused entirely on the money received and not the propriety of the money itself. As the story has…
All Hail Your New Oligarchy Overlords
Accelerated in large part by the truly execrable Citizens United decision, America is quickly sliding into an oligarchy. Sadly, this is no longer hyperbole: we’ve always known many politicians were nothing more than puppets for the rich, they simply don’t…
Econ 101: The Beatings Will Continue Until Morale Improves
Rep. Ed Garner’s hypothesis, plainly stated, is this: we will encourage more companies to come here and create more jobs, making everyone’s life better in the long run, if we just remove the capital gains tax on new investments. Implicit…