Opinion

I like machines. Occasionally, usually on the couch, I envision an idyllic future, like the one in The Jetsons, where a robot rolls over to me with a martini. In the timeless classic by Flight of the Concords, the song Robots, set in “the distant future, the year 2000”, it is Man vs. Robot. The song is so good I’m rooting for the robots! And who could forget Short Circuit, the 1986 film starring Steve Guttenberg alongside a delightful robot, Number 5? The picture also gave us the hit single Who’s Johnny, by El Debarge. Okay, fine. Most people forgot that film but I did not! #neverforget!

One thing we have learned or have had reinforced from this pandemic is our need for human contact. And the important role of technology in communicating with others. There’s a skill to communicating efficiently and properly using technology. Even a basic text can be misunderstood without the element of facial expression; hence the creation of emoticons to assist in getting a message across.

Little Rock– The legislature has begun budget hearings in preparation for the 2022 fiscal session, which begins on February 14. Legislators will consider the governor’s proposed balanced budget of about $6 billion for Fiscal Year 2023, which officially begins on July 1.

Pre-fiscal budget hearings began this week with the Governor outlining his balanced budget proposal calling for a 3.3% increase in spending. We will be reviewing the proposal while we continue to hear requests from state agencies and commissions in the days ahead.

A November 2021 Gallup poll identified inflation as one of the top five most important issues for Americans. This is no surprise considering the price increases we’re facing for everyday essentials. Each month, our dollars stretch less and too many are forced to make difficult decisions about their budgets.

Little Rock- Throughout the pandemic, testing for the coronavirus (COVID-19) has been a vital tool for controlling the spread of the disease and ensuring that Arkansans can safely continue with their daily lives. The State of Arkansas has recently obtained 1.5 million rapid at-home COVID-19 tests that are available to Arkansans free of charge. For a list of locations where the at-home tests are available, visit the Health Department’s website.

This week, we announced an economic development win for Arkansas that is the largest single project investment in state history. Today, I’d like to share some details about the new U.S. Steel plant, which eventually will create more than 900 high-paying jobs and will make Mississippi County the Number 1 steel-producing county in the nation.

Little Rock- This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Arkansas Supreme Court’s landmark decision in the Lake View school funding case. In 2002 the court ruled that the state’s system of funding public school was unconstitutional.

LITTLE ROCK –Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge today announced an almost $8 million-dollar civil settlement with Empower Healthcare Solutions, LLC (Empower). The false claims settlement was based on a joint investigation conducted by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) of the Attorney General’s Office and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General. The investigation was initiated after the Arkansas Department of Human Services (DHS) and the Arkansas Medicaid Inspector General raised questions concerning how Empower was reporting expenses in 2020.

Congress ended 2021 by strengthening national security and improving resources to our servicemembers and their families with passage of the bipartisan Fiscal Year 2022 National Defense Authorization Act, which will allow us to be better prepared for threats from our adversaries and protect our interests at home and abroad. The bipartisan support for this bill was a big accomplishment considering Congress spent much of the year debating the partisan agenda driven by the president and his allies in Congress. It’s time to leave that agenda behind and instead advance policies where consensus is possible, and members of both parties are invited to participate. I’ve introduced and championed legislation that gives us a good starting point.