Arkansas

Arkansas transparency group will collect signatures for proposed amendment OK'd by AG – Arkansas Advocate

Published

2 years ago

January 24, 2024

Arkansas transparency group will collect signatures for proposed amendment OK'd by AG – Arkansas Advocate

Arkansas government transparency advocates will begin collecting signatures for a November ballot measure to enshrine government openness in the state Constitution.

Attorney General Tim Griffin certified language for four potential popular names and ballot titles, including “The Arkansas Government Disclosure Amendment of 2024,” a title he substituted for the submission of “The Arkansas Government Transparency Amendment.”

Griffin’s opinions issued Wednesday approved Arkansas Citizens for Transparency’s third attempt to advance the proposed amendment after he rejected previous attempts in December and earlier this month.

In addition to seeking the required 90,704 signatures from registered voters by July 5, the nonpartisan ACT will continue with the lawsuit it filed against Griffin at the Arkansas Supreme Court on Tuesday, said David Couch, the lead attorney in the lawsuit and a member of ACT’s drafting committee.

The legal complaint alleges that Griffin’s past refusals to certify the proposed amendment were to prevent the group from having enough time to gather signatures in support of the measures, and it asks the court to “compel the Attorney General to approve or rewrite the popular name and ballot title for each measure.”

Griffin wrote in his rejection of the first draft that the petitioners needed to define “government transparency,” which he claimed had “partisan coloring.” Subsequent versions of the ballot language define the term as “the government’s obligation to share information with citizens.”

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Couch said the second iteration of the ballot language, rejected Jan. 8, was ACT’s preferred version. The first two amendment proposals said the state Legislature “shall not make a law that diminishes public access to government” without the approval of the people of Arkansas.

The third proposal did not include this clause or a definition of the phrase “diminishes public access to government.” Instead it said the Legislature “shall not make a law concerning government transparency” without the people’s approval.

Couch said the change was necessary to receive Griffin’s approval but was not satisfactory in ACT’s view.

“Why should the people have to vote on something that benefits them if the General Assembly has passed it?” he said.

The proposed amendment would require two-thirds of both the House and Senate to approve a government transparency law, which would then be sent to the voters. In emergency situations, a law would go into effect with 90% approval from both chambers but still be subject to a statewide vote later.

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Next steps

ACT will start collecting signatures for a version of the amendment certified Wednesday in hopes of meeting the July 5 deadline, Couch said, but the legal challenge of Griffin’s use of his powers regarding ballot titles will continue.

“It’s such an important principle, not only for us but for people who intend to collect signatures in the future,” Couch said. “The attorney general’s role in the process needs to be clarified by the Supreme Court.”

The Arkansas AG’s office had long reviewed ballot titles and popular names until the General Assembly, with support of then-Attorney General Leslie Rutledge, shifted ballot title certification responsibility to the State Board of Election Commissioners in 2019.

Early last year, Act 194 of 2023 shifted this power back to the attorney general’s office.

ACT is not the only group to have recently taken legal action to get language certified for proposed constitutional amendments with the goal of putting them on the November ballot.

Group submits third proposed Arkansas FOIA change to attorney general after second rejection

Earlier this month, the nonprofit Arkansas Voter Integrity Initiative asked the Supreme Court to certify two measures aimed at trading voting machines for hand-marked paper ballots and limiting absentee voting. Griffin rejected one measure and certified a substitute proposal for the other. The Supreme Court granted a motion last week for an expedited hearing in the case.

Couch filed a motion asking the high court for an expedited hearing in ACT’s case on Wednesday.

ACT has also submitted a third version of ballot language for an initiated act, which would alter the state Freedom of Information Act. Griffin will issue an opinion Thursday on the proposal.

A primary goal of the proposed act, the drafters have said, is to codify a definition of a “public meeting” and broaden the legal definitions of a “governing body” and “communication” among members.

The statutory changes would also:

Protect citizens’ right to appeal FOIA decisions and collect any resulting attorneys’ fees.
Create the Arkansas Government Transparency Commission, with its members appointed by state elected officials, to help citizens enforce their rights to obtain public records and observe public meetings.
Create stiffer civil penalties for violating the FOIA.
Repeal Act 883 of 2023, which gave Arkansas school boards more reasons to go into executive session and allow more people to have closed-door meetings with school board members.
Mandate that records concerning the planning or provision of security services to the governor and other state elected officials be considered public and accessible under the FOIA after three months.

ACT formed in response to Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ signing of a law enacted during a special legislative session in September that shields certain state officials’ security records from public access. Sanders advocated for several more exemptions to the FOIA that met bipartisan pushback and did not advance in the Legislature.

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Arkansas

Arkansas looks like Mississippi State’s most winnable SEC game again. Can Jeff Lebby break through?

Published

8 hours ago

October 30, 2025

Press Room

Arkansas looks like Mississippi State’s most winnable SEC game again. Can Jeff Lebby break through?

STARKVILLE — Coach Jeff Lebby doesn’t talk about last season to his Mississippi State football players anymore.

Nothing can be changed from the Bulldogs’ 2-10 record in Lebby’s first season where they lost every SEC game by double digits and only notched wins against FCS Eastern Kentucky and then-FBS independent UMass.

But with MSU’s next game at Arkansas (2-6, 0-4 SEC) on Nov. 1 (3 p.m., SEC Network) perhaps a portion of last season should be revisited.

The matchup for MSU (4-4, 0-4) appears to be its best remaining chance to end its 16-game SEC losing streak. But that was also a thought last season when Mississippi State hosted Arkansas. Mississippi State was served a humbling 58-25 beatdown at Davis Wade Stadium.

“One thing I mentioned last year was ‘Hey, let’s go play as hard as we possibly can,’” Lebby said. “‘Let’s do everything we can this week to go play as hard as we can and maybe the ball will bounce the right way and somehow we’ll be able to go win a football game.’ That was the reality of it. I didn’t talk like that during the season because I never will.

“This is a completely different situation. We got a good football team. We did not a year ago. We have a good enough team to win.”

Even with Arkansas’ six-game losing streak and Bobby Petrino as the interim coach, Lebby said the Bulldogs will have to beat “the best 2-6 football team in the country” to get the elusive SEC win. The program’s last SEC win was at Arkansas in 2023.

Why Arkansas is Mississippi State’s best chance to snap SEC losing streak

Mississippi State has four games remaining. Arkansas is the only opponent not ranked in the US LBM Coaches Poll. Mississippi State still has home games against No. 5 Georgia, No. 8 Ole Miss and a road game at No. 20 Missouri.

In a way, Arkansas is similar to last season’s Mississippi State team. It’s in the midst of a long losing streak. Arkansas is anchored down by the SEC’s worst defense, just like MSU in 2024.

But there are differences too that make the Razorbacks not a gimme. BetMGM lists Mississippi State as a 4.5-point underdog as of Oct. 29.

The Razorbacks have played all of their SEC games close, including Ole Miss, Tennessee and Texas A&M. Taylen Green is a quarterback who causes problems in the air and on the ground. He scored six touchdowns against the Bulldogs last season.

Arkansas fired its defensive coordinator, defensive line coach and secondary coach on Sept. 29.

“Defensively, they’re completely different,” Lebby said. “… We have three games that we’ve watched that can kind give you the information of what we’re going to get this weekend. It’s very limited tape, but feel like we have a good grasp of what it’s going to look like and what we’re going to get.”

How Mississippi State vs Arkansas could be decided

Three of the last four games for Mississippi State have been heartbreaking losses.

MSU led Tennessee by seven points in the fourth quarter before losing in overtime. It was in range for a potential game-winning field goal at Florida until quarterback Blake Shapen threw an interception. In Week 9, MSU coughed up a 17-point lead in the fourth quarter before losing to Texas in overtime.

“It’s truly each position and that’s what we talked about in the team meeting,” Lebby said. “It’s not one guy in one situation and one thing happening that’s keeping us from knocking the door down and getting the victory. It’s every position on the field. It’s giving these guys something a little better to go execute.”

Arkansas has lost those same battles as Mississippi State.

Against Ole Miss, the Razorbacks lost a fumble near the red zone while trailing by six with two minutes to play. They also fumbled with 1:18 remaining while in field-goal range against Memphis before losing 32-31. Their losses to Tennessee and Texas A&M were both by three points. Arkansas’ last game ended in a brutal 33-24 loss to Auburn when in the fourth quarter it committed four turnovers and was outscored 17-0.

“I think every game in this league is hard to win,” MSU wide receiver Brenen Thompson said. “I think winning is hard as it is no matter what league you’re in, but especially this league. Every game gets diagnosed the same. Every game gets the same amount of effort put in to it, at least for me and this team.”

Sam Sklar is the Mississippi State beat reporter for The Clarion Ledger. Email him at ssklar@gannett.com and follow him on X @sklarsam_.

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Arkansas looks to build on Sweet 16 run with new recruits and transfers

Published

1 day ago

October 29, 2025

Press Room

Arkansas looks to build on Sweet 16 run with new recruits and transfers

Arkansas (22-14, 8-10 SEC)

After a run to the Sweet 16 following a middling regular season, the No. 14 Razorbacks enter the second year of the John Calipari era having to replace their top three scorers from last season. Calipari reloaded with a highly-rated freshman recruiting class and the Razorbacks picked up a pair of all-conference big men from the portal to bolster a frontcourt that was outrebounded in league play more often than not last season.

Players to watch

Darius Acuff (freshman, G, 6-2). Acuff is the star recruit of Calipari’s 2025 class. He should step into the point guard role that Boogie Fland handled a year ago before transferring to Florida.

DJ Wagner (junior, G, 6-4, 11.2 ppg). Wagner is the only returner who averaged double-figure scoring last season. His experience playing both point and off guard should help bring Acuff and fellow freshman Meleek Thomas along.

Trevon Brazile (senior, F, 6-10, 6.8 ppg). Brazile’s points-per-game totals belie his importance. He was the team’s best player in the late-season run the Razorbacks needed just to make the NCAA Tournament.

Departures and arrivals

Fland is gone, and top scorer Adou Thiero was lost to the NBA.

Acuff and Thomas were both McDonald’s All-Americans last season in high school, while 6-foot-7 guard Isaiah Sealy ranked in the top 100. They’re joined in the frontcourt by Florida State transfer Malique Ewin (6-11, senior, C, 14.2 ppg) and longtime SEC veteran Nick Pringle (6-10, senior, F, 9.5 ppg), who played two seasons at Alabama before playing last year at South Carolina.

Top games

The Razorbacks have five ranked opponents during non-conference play. Texas Tech, the team that knocked the Razorbacks out the NCAA Tournament last year is one of them. They will league play against No. 18 Tennessee at home on Jan. 3. Calipari will face his old Kentucky team in Fayetteville on Jan. 30. And Arkansas travels to defending national champion Florida during the stretch run, Feb. 28.

Arkansas guard Meleek Thomas (1) dribbles the ball defended by Memphis center Thierno Sylla (31), of Guinea, and guard Zach Davis (2) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball exhibition game Monday, Oct. 27, 2025, in Memphis, Tenn. Credit: AP/Nikki Boertman

Facts and figures

Not only have the Razorbacks started the last two years of SEC play at 1-6, but before that they went 1-5, 0-3 and 1-4. Still, Arkansas has qualified for the NCAA Tournament in four of those five seasons, reaching the Sweet 16 all four times. … Arkansas will play 19 games against teams that made the Big Dance last year, including all four Final Four teams in Duke, Michigan State, Houston and Auburn.

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Arkansas High School Football Rankings: Top 25 Teams – Oct. 28

Published

2 days ago

October 28, 2025

Press Room

Arkansas High School Football Rankings: Top 25 Teams – Oct. 28

The Arkansas high school football high school football season is nearing its end and the Bryant Hornets remain in the top spot Top 25 rankings.

Besides the Hornets, who else makes the cut for the Top 25 high school football teams list out of Arkansas?

From established powers to emerging programs, here are the top 25 teams in the Natural State, according to Massey.

The Massey Ratings, officially used during the BCS era, is a model that ranks sports teams by analyzing game outcomes, strength of schedule, and margin of victory as of Oct. 28.

1. Bryant Hornets

Bryant (8-0) has maintained the top spot in the Arkansas high school football rankings throughout the season as the head to the regular season finish line. Hornets up next will face North Little Rock (3-5) this Friday night.

The Hornets most recent win was a 49-3 decision over Cabot as they have two games remaining.

All the question marks on offense have been checked off as the Hornets have begun a new era behind center with Kyler Shelby, who saw limited game action in 2024 as a sophomore last season while playing behind Jordan Walker.

2. Bentonville Tigers

Bentonville (9-0) is coming off a tight victory over No. 4 Rogers, with the Tigers winning 31-28.

The 5-time state champion Tigers are coming off a 9-4 campaign and needing to replace plenty of starters on both sides of the ball. Bentonville is armed with a pair of Arkansas commitments in four-star wide receiver Dequane Prevo and three-star Blair Irvin.

The Tigers finish the regular season with games against Springdale and Bentonville West.

3. Greenwood Bulldogs

Greenwood Bulldogs (8-0) having the state’s best quarterback in Kane Archer certainly helps and the Bulldogs boasting the UCF commit behind center makes them dangerous every Friday night on offense.

Archer has made the argument to being the state’s Most Valuable Player as the senior signal caller, with the future Knight completing 172 of 227 passes for 2,141 yards and 18 touchdowns.

The Bulldogs finishes off the season with Southside and No. 11 Mountain Home.

4. Rogers Mountaineers

The Rogers Mountaineers (7-1) are coming off a narrow 31-28 loss to Bentonville last week, but remain in the Top 5 of this week’s rankings.

The Mountaineers’ defense has been solid all season long behind the play of BYU commitment Braxton Lindsey, who leads a defensive unit that’s only yielded. Rogers closes out the regular season with games against Har-Ber and Rogers Heritage.

5. Conway Wampus Cats

Conway (7-1) started the season off with an offensive explosion as they defeated Jonesboro in a 68-37 shootout.

The Wampus Cats feature a couple of the state’s top players in three-star safety Tay Lockett (Arkansas commit) and interior offensive lineman Isaiah Bowman (Arkansas State commit). Lockett is already making an impact on both sides of the ball as Conway has become a viable state title contender.

Last week, Conway won another offensive shootout, 61-38, over Pulaski Academy. This Friday night the Wampus Cats take on Little Rock Christian Academy.

6. Benton (6-2)
7. Shiloh Christian (7-2)
8. Bentonville West (6-2)
9. Joe T. Robinson (8-0)
10. Fayetteville (4-4)

11. Mountain Home (7-1)
12. Little Rock Christian Academy (6-2)
13. Parkview Magnet (5-3)
14. Greenbrier (8-0)
15. Lakeside (7-1)

16. Arkadelphia (7-1)
17. Sylvan Hills (7-1)
18. Pulaski Academy (2-6)
19. Hot Springs (7-1)
20. Jonesboro (4-4)

21. El Dorado (5-3)
22. Farmington (6-2)
23. Searcy (7-1)
24. Har-Ber (3-5)
25. North Little Rock (3-5)

For Arkansas high school football fans, staying updated on the action is now easier than ever with the Rivals High School Scoreboard. This comprehensive resource provides real-time updates and final scores from across the state, ensuring you never miss a moment of the Friday night frenzy. From nail-biting finishes to dominant performances, the Rivals High School Scoreboard is your one-stop destination for tracking all the gridiron excitement in the Natural State.

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