Arkansas Intel
Economy
Reporting
“An Italian ammunition manufacturer is expanding its presence in central Arkansas. Fiocchi of America announced Tuesday it’s investing $42 million in a new facility at the Port of Little Rock.
It’s the second manufacturing facility for the company in the city, with the first opening in far southeast Little Rock in 2020. The new plant is expected to create 120 jobs.”
Arkansas ranked #41 among states struggling to fill open positions likely due to strong migration to the state. Alaska, Kentucky and Georgia ranked highest in filling vacancies.
A report by doxo.com ranked Arkansas 49th in cost of monthly household bills. Some parts of Arkansas are significantly above average, notably Fayetville, where costs are 8% higher than the state average.
Arkansas average gas prices hit new record of $4.48 per gallon.
Governor Hutchinson adds teacher salary increases as an item for upcoming special session. The special session is expected to be called in July or August and will include discussion of tax relief measures as Arkansas has a record $1.47 billion budget surplus for fiscal 2022.
Arkansas is predicted to have a surplus of $1.47 billion by June 30th, the end of the fiscal year.
Arkansas average gas price hits a record $3.99 a gallon.
After the latest Arkansas revenue collection report was released showing a record $1.1 billion in tax collections, Governor Asa Hutchinson said “taxpayers need and deserve at least a portion of the surplus to be returned to them because the state should not be generating this large of a surplus.”
Arkansas economics professors weigh in on recession risk: “I don’t think it’s the kind of thing that should keep you up late at night,” said Michael Pakko, an economist with the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. “I don’t think there’s a reason for individual families to panic… I think that the statistics that have been leading some people to have a dire outlook for the near future don’t really have the weight that convinces me that it’s a real danger,” said Jeremy Horpedahl, an assistant economics professor at the University of Central Arkansas.
Analyst Comment: Rising prices put downward pressure on demand increasing recession risk. Additionally, I’ve reported on indicators across many industries showing demand is decreasing. These folks are oblivious to the red flags vigorously warning of the coming storm. Unfortunately they are paid a lot of money to teach our young people a bastardized version of economic reality.
Wet weather is delaying crop plantings in Arkansas. Just 14% of rice acreage has been planted, compared to the 48% five-year average. Soybeans, corn, cotton and peanut plantings are also behind average planting schedules.
Military
Reporting
Arkansas National Guard range training ignited a brush fire at Fort Chaffee in Ft. Smith, AR. Local residents were evacuated and the fire was contained before it damaged any homes.
The National Guard will be extended to February 18th, at the Arkansas Department of Health warehouse.
The Arkansas National Guard has been extended to February 4th to assist in drive-thru testing.
Political
Reporting
Pending legislation in Arkansas and Louisiana would require websites hosting “harmful content” to verify the age of users using ID.
Analyst Comment: This is a backdoor to digital ID requirements and many right-wing states are taking the bait.
“Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders unveiled a new Arkansas education plan Wednesday that she touted during her response to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address Tuesday.
Among the specific proposals, Sanders announced Wednesday:
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> Minimum $50,000 salary for Arkansas teachers
> Bonuses of up to $10,000 for best-performing Arkansas teachers
> Complete student loan forgiveness for teachers who teach in the areas of highest need
> New Educational Freedom Account, which will fund enrollment at private, parochial and home schools. The program will be available for all Arkansas students in three years.
> Will deploy more than 100 reading teachers to places that need it most
> $500 tutoring grants for students struggling > Launching a dual-degree diploma in all Arkansas high schools that focuses on sending students to work instead of higher education”
Swiss billionaire Hansjörg Wyss has given tens of millions of dollars to left-wing groups “dedicated to overhauling the Supreme Court, supporting President Biden’s “Build Back Better” initiative, addressing alleged voter suppression and advocating for aggressive climate change policies…
Fund for a Better Future (FBF), which has received a majority of its funding from two nonprofit foundations overseen by Wyss…
In 2021, the group funneled nearly $10.7 million to the League of Conservation Voters (LCV), a powerful environmental organization that advocates for a massive green transition away from fossil fuels and which is active on Capitol Hill. The contribution was the largest donation FBF made to any group last year…
In addition, FBF gave $10 million last year to Priorities USA Action, a left-wing political action committee (PAC) that works to elect Democratic candidates across the country.”
Analyst Comment: Is this foreign election interference?
Menifee Arkansas, a city with a population under 300, was caught breaking Arkansas’ speed trap law by having 50% of the city’s revenue provided by speeding tickets alone. Under Arkansas law, no city can have more than 30% of their annual budget by speed enforcement fines.
“Diamond Arnold-Johnson was arrested after a warrant was issued on a charge of felony terroristic threatening, according to Little Rock Police. She was booked into the Pulaski County Jail.
Arnold-Johnson, 32, is a Democrat. She is running for state auditor against current state treasurer Dennis Milligan, a Republican, and Simeon Snow, a Libertarian.”
“Arkansas’ tax revenue surplus is almost $175 million to end the first quarter of Arkansas’ fiscal year (July-September 2022). Total revenue in the three month period was $2.08 billion, up 6.4% compared to the same period in 2021 and up 9.2% above forecast.”
Arkansas Attorney General Rutledge announces new lawsuit against President Biden’s student loan forgiveness. The suit was joined by Attorney’s General from Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and South Carolina.
“The Arkansas Attorney General announced a guilty plea from Billy T. Smith Wednesday, who immediately resigned his position as mayor of Glenwood, Arkansas.
In pleading, Smith admitted to a Class A misdemeanor of theft of property and abuse of office. Smith will pay $3,000 in restitution along with a $250 fine, the Attorney General stated.
The charge came from an August 2021 investigation that found Smith had hired a private company to transport asphalt millings valued at $4,000 from a nearby highway resurface project. The Attorney General stated the millings were used to repave Smith and his son’s driveways. “
Teacher shortages throughout Arkansas are increasing class sizes to 30-40 students. Substitute teachers are being brought in to fill vacancies until permanent teachers can be found.
US District Court Judge issues a temporary injunction blocking an Arkansas ban on “puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones (and) gender transition surgeries to minors.”
Social
Reporting
CONWAY, Ark. – Protests over decisions made by the Conway School Board led to arrests outside of a board meeting Tuesday evening.
The board recently stirred controversy after an October vote regarding the use of bathrooms and room assignments on overnight trips being determined by a student’s gender at birth.
Tuesday night, students and adults protested outside of the school board meeting and three people were arrested.
58-year-old Arkansas man accused of sexually assaulting 31 children over the span of 25 years.
Former Bentonville Pastor, Keenan Hord, was arrested on child abuse charges. Based on his cell phone records, police believe there are up to 30 victims.
Shooting at Arkansas county fair in Fayetteville, leaves at least one injured. The suspect remains at large.
Pro-abortion protests continue across Arkansas, but the crowds have shrank substantially. Most ongoing protest efforts consist of a handful to a couple dozen protestors.
Small pro-abortion protests throughout Arkansas last night. Mainly in Fayetteville and Little Rock. The largest had maybe a couple hundred people. Looks like no major violence.
200 people attend rally in Little Rock to protest gun violence.
A driver blocked traffic along the westbound I-40 near West Memphis. He was armed and pointed his firearm at motorists. Arkansas police responded and were able to take the driver into custody without incident.
An escaped inmate from Texas was fatally shot by an Arkansas officer after the inmate struggled with police officers trying to take him into custody. The inmate had made it across Texas and into Arkansas where he was shot and killed.
The Arkansas Attorney General’s office is warning of a “family emergency” scam that involves a call from a person claiming to be experiencing some type of emergency, and requiring money for help. The AG’s office offered the following recommendations to avoid falling victim to scams like this:
- Resist pressure to act quickly.
- Ask the caller for his or her name, and if it’s not provided, hang up immediately.
- Never give or wire money based on any unsolicited phone call.
- Verify the friend or family member’s location by calling the family member directly, or confirm with another family member or friend.
- Do not send money to an unknown account or entity.
- Have a plan in place when a family member is traveling to easily identify whether or not a need is genuine.
Information
Reporting
“Officials with the Arkansas Department of Human Services said they have discovered a data breach that released client data.
The officials said the breach came on Sept. 16 when an employee sent emails from her DHS email account to her personal Yahoo email account. The emails had attachments of spreadsheets that listed 925 DHS Medicaid clients who had been diagnosed with the flu.
Listed in the attachments were the person’s Medicaid ID, date of birth, gender, county, zip code and diagnosis. Officials noted that names, Social Security numbers full addresses and financial information were not disclosed in the breach.
Department officials added that they had notified the affected clients by mail about the breach.”
Youtube has removed a Tucker Carlson interview with a detransitioned woman claiming the video violated its policy on “spam, deceptive practices, and scams.”
Fake News Arkansas Edition: 4StateNews highlighted a tweet claiming if Arkansas was a country it would be among the top 10 in the world.
Analyst Comment: As one commenter pointed out, there are 11 other states with higher death rates. So If we treated individual states as countries, Arkansas would be around #22. However, the CDC has admitted to over-classifying deaths as “from Covid” when many of the deaths are actually “with Covid.” US death rates are dramatically overstated and the CDC has yet to release updated figures. Finally, Covid deaths per day remain low and are dropping fast. This wave is just about over despite corporate media’s attempts to scare people into vaccinations.
Physical Environment
Forecast
Wildfires
Reporting
“Arkansas hospitals have been struggling to keep up with COVID, flu, and other viruses on the rise right now.
Now, we have new numbers showing just how serious this has become.
In the state, 287 people are currently in the hospital with flu. Of those, 65 are in the ICU.
This comes as hospitals struggle to meet the increase in patients. In the past two months, emergency rooms across Arkansas have become busier.
According to the Department of Health, in the past week, 2,000 more people have visited the emergency room compared to this time last month.”
USDA adds more Arkansas counties to drought disaster declaration:
+ Benton
+ Boone
+ Carroll
+ Clay
+ Cleburne
+ Conway
+ Faulkner
+ Independence
+ Izard
+ Johnson
+ Lawrence
+ Madison
+ Marion
+ Newton
+ Polk
+ Pope
+ Searcy
+ Stone
+ Van Buren
+ Washington
USDA declares a disaster due to drought in Baxter, Fulton, Sharp, and Randolph counties. “The disaster declaration would allow the USDA to consider Farm Service Agency emergency loans to the counties impacted.”
Arkansas Governor Hutchinson asks for a disaster declaration due to ongoing drought conditions throughout the state.
High heat and little rainfall in some parts of Arkansas are endangering livestock operations. “We’re holding steady right now,” said Michael Lee, who runs Flying C Ranch, a cow-calf operation in Faulkner County. “The grass is struggling. If it doesn’t rain pretty significantly in the next week or two, there will probably be a lot of cows that will have to be sold here on the farm.”
New Covid-19 cases continue to rise in Arkansas with around 1,400 new cases a day. Death count remains very low.
All 75 Arkansas counties under moderate to high wildfire risk according to Arkansas Department of Agriculture’s Forestry Division.
Burn bans have been issued in counties throughout North Central Arkansas as hot, dry conditions persist.
Arkansas Department of Health is tracking a growing number of Covid-19 cases. There are 8,344 active cases with 178 hospitalizations.
The FBI have been conducting searches across multiple business in Central Arkansas as part of a “court-authorized law enforcement operation”. “The Arkansas State Police, Little Rock Police Department, Saline County Sheriff’s Office and Benton Police Department are involved in the operations, along with agents from the Department of Homeland Security Homeland Security Investigations division,” and the FBI.
Infrastructure
Reporting
“Officials with the Arkansas Department of Human Services said they have discovered a data breach that released client data.
The officials said the breach came on Sept. 16 when an employee sent emails from her DHS email account to her personal Yahoo email account. The emails had attachments of spreadsheets that listed 925 DHS Medicaid clients who had been diagnosed with the flu.
Listed in the attachments were the person’s Medicaid ID, date of birth, gender, county, zip code and diagnosis. Officials noted that names, Social Security numbers full addresses and financial information were not disclosed in the breach.
Department officials added that they had notified the affected clients by mail about the breach.”
Youtube has removed a Tucker Carlson interview with a detransitioned woman claiming the video violated its policy on “spam, deceptive practices, and scams.”
Fake News Arkansas Edition: 4StateNews highlighted a tweet claiming if Arkansas was a country it would be among the top 10 in the world.
Analyst Comment: As one commenter pointed out, there are 11 other states with higher death rates. So If we treated individual states as countries, Arkansas would be around #22. However, the CDC has admitted to over-classifying deaths as “from Covid” when many of the deaths are actually “with Covid.” US death rates are dramatically overstated and the CDC has yet to release updated figures. Finally, Covid deaths per day remain low and are dropping fast. This wave is just about over despite corporate media’s attempts to scare people into vaccinations.