We were delighted by the coverage our ARKids First Red Tape Rally got last week. Especially an editorial from the Fort Smith Times Record: Children in Arkansas deserve to have their health-care needs met and being disqualified because of...
Roby Brock of Talk Business recently asked us to counter the arguments that some lawmakers have for cutting capital gains taxes. We told him that our research shows that under House Bill 1002, the top 1 percent of taxpayers...
There have been bills filed that will hurt our most economically vulnerable middle class Arkansas families, those who have been laid off from their jobs and are receiving or applying for Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits to temporarily meet basic...
We all want to believe that the worst of the recession is behind us. That people who have lost their jobs are finding work. Sadly, we’re not there yet. Families are still struggling and jobs aren’t readily available for...
In a few weeks we’ll see a flood of new data from the 2010 survey of the U.S. Census Bureau. Since 2000, we’ve relied on smaller samply surveys for estimates on demographics and trends year by year. For many...
During the past year, as the entire nation has been focused on the country’s continuing economic problems, Medicaid and CHIP have continued to play a central role in providing coverage to millions of people who would otherwise lack affordable...
It was a busy week in Washington, highlighted of course by the President’s annual State of the Union speech to a joint session of Congress. President Obama took this opportunity to speak broadly about the challenges facing America and...
House bill 1008, an attempt to keep some Arkansas high school graduates from accessing public institutions of higher education at in-state tuition rates, was presented to the House Education Committee on Thursday. The bill seeks to preempt any future...
House bill 1053, an attempt to remove requirements under the new health care law, failed to get out of the House committee this morning. We detailed here yesterday why this bill moves the state backward, and not ahead, on the health...
We weren’t the only ones who jumped out of our chairs when Gov. Mike Beebe mentioned a big issue of ours during this State of the State address the other day. Hendrix Professor Jay Barth and education advocates across...