AAC Annual Conference | Association of Arkansas Counties

Dallas County Sheriff Mike Knoedl and the Fordyce Police Department have been working non-stop to make sure the town recovers after a deadly mass shooting on June 21. In the wake of this tragic shooting, they have one message to tell people about the small but mighty town. "This will not define us and it will not divide us," Knoedl said.

Attorney General Tim Griffin has filed a lawsuit against pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) Optum, Inc., and Express Scripts, Inc., and their subsidiaries for "their roles as a cause of the opioid epidemic in Arkansas."

Three large-scale Arkansas projects will receive part of a $1.8 billion in federal infrastructure grant program announced Wednesday.

Although the Arkansas General Assembly met for the first time in January 2023, a select set of bills passed were set to begin going into effect on July 1, 2024.

Arkansas’ 45 drug courts received $1 million in opioid settlement funding to support program participants’ various needs as part of ongoing efforts to address the nation’s opioid epidemic.

For the third time in 15 months, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed legislation to lower taxes for Arkansans. This round, approved during this week’s special session, will affect approximately 1.1 million taxpayers. Along with trimming the state’s top individual and corporate income tax rates, Sanders also signed legislation to increase the homestead property tax credit and fund the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission.

Arkansas Historic Preservation Program announces the fiscal year 2024 Courthouse and Historic Preservation Restoration Grants. “Working to save the special places that tell the story of Arkansas and that serve her people is a job we take seriously at Arkansas Heritage,” said Marty Ryall, director of Arkansas Heritage. “I appreciate the work from the applicants, their committees and teams of experts, and our grant selection committee. It’s an honor to award this money each year and rewarding to see the progress photos and reports that come into our office throughout the process. The real winners in all of this are the citizens of our state.”

Rep. Matthew Shepherd, R-El Dorado, reflected on six years as speaker of the Arkansas House as he presided over the chamber Wednesday for what he told lawmakers would likely be his last time in the role.

Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Tuesday called a special legislative session to take up tax cuts and the budget for the agency overseeing hunting and fishing. The Republican governor said in a post on X that she’s calling for $500 million in income and $50 million in property tax cuts during the special session, scheduled to begin next week on Monday.