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Arkansas

State Senate confirms 25 of Sanders’ appointees

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State Senate confirms 25 of Sanders’ appointees


The Arkansas Senate on Wednesday voted to confirm 25 of Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ appointees to state executive branch posts, boards and commissions.

The Republican governor’s appointments confirmed Wednesday include state Department of Finance and Administration Secretary Jim Hudson, state Department of Parks, Heritage and Tourism Secretary Shea Lewis, state Department of Health Secretary Renee Mallory, and state Board of Education member Leigh Keener.

Other appointments the Senate voted to confirm included eight members of the State Plant Board; eight members of the state Board of Appraisers, Abstractors and Home Inspectors; three members of the Arkansas Fire Protection Services Board, and two members of the Arkansas State Board of Pharmacy.

The eight appointees confirmed Wednesday to the State Plant Board include David Wallace Jr., George Dunklin, Jon Bierbaum, Kyle Batz, Robert Thorne, Robin Ralston, Sammy Angel and Garrett Frost.

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The Senate’s action came after the Senate Rules Committee recommended the full Senate confirm this latest batch of gubernatorial appointees.

During the Senate Rules Committee meeting Wednesday, Senate Republican whip Ricky Hill of Cabot asked Rules Committee chairman Sen. Clint Penzo, R-Springdale, whether each of the senators, who had a prospective appointee residing in their district, were consulted by the governor’s office prior to the appointments.

In response, Penzo said “one slipped through the cracks this time,” but the senator looked into the background of the appointee residing in that senator’s district and indicated he approved of the appointment.

Afterward, Penzo declined to reveal the name of the senator to whom he referred.

During the Senate Rules Committee’s last meeting on July 21, Hill said senators need to make sure officials in the governor’s office consult the senator whose constituent is being considered for an appointment by the governor, before the governor makes that appointment with all gubernatorial appointments.

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At that time, Senate President Pro Tempore Bart Hester, R-Cave Springs, said officials in the governor’s office now fully understand they need to consult with senators about prospective appointees in their districts, and he doesn’t expect the governor’s office to fail to do that in the future.

Historically, the Senate has confirmed or rejected gubernatorial appointees based on the wishes of the senator of the district in which an appointee resides in most cases.

Asked whether Sanders’ office is continuing the tradition of seeking prior approval of a senator in whose district a prospective appointee resides, Sanders spokeswoman Alexa Henning said Wednesday in a written statement that “The Governor’s office always strives to be good partners with the legislature and maintain open lines of communication.”

During the past two decades the Senate has rarely declined to confirm a governor’s appointees until earlier this year, when the Senate and the Senate Rules Committee rejected more than 30 of former Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s appointees.

During this year’s regular session, the Legislature enacted Act 794 to require the Senate president pro tempore to call for a meeting of the Senate at least once every three months between legislative sessions to consider recommendations from the Senate Rules Committee regarding confirmation of gubernatorial appointments. The regular session adjourned May 1.

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Prior to Act 794 becoming effective April 12, the Senate could only consider confirming gubernatorial appointees during a regular, fiscal or special session.

Act 794 is one of two bills from the regular session that Sanders allowed to become law without her signature, according to records in the secretary of state’s office.

The other is Act 477, which will require the Arkansas Economic Development Commission to conduct a study, or hire or engage a third party to conduct a study, to determine the feasibility of developing a spaceport in Arkansas. Under Act 477, the feasibility study for developing a spaceport in Arkansas will be required to be completed no later than Jan. 1, 2024, if funding is available.

In April, Henning said in a written statement that “These are bills Governor Sanders didn’t advocate for or support but found no justifiable reason to object to them becoming law, so she allowed them to do so without her signature.”



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Arkansas

DoorDash activates severe weather protocol, suspending service in parts of Arkansas

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DoorDash activates severe weather protocol, suspending service in parts of Arkansas


LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Due to the ongoing winter storm sweeping through the Natural State, DoorDash has activated its Severe Weather Protocol and temporarily suspended operations in Little Rock and various parts of the Natural State.

According to a release Friday night, the precautionary measure comes as the winter storms deliver hazardous conditions across the city, including heavy snowfall and strong winds.

Cities with suspended operations include Little Rock, North Little Rock, Conway, Pine Bluff, Jacksonville, Cabot, Searcy, Malvern, Lonoke, Heber Springs, Star City, Clinton, Rison and Sheridan.

“With heavy snowfall and low visibility, the snowstorm is a serious threat to our community, and we’ve taken decisive action by activating our Severe Weather Protocol,” DoorDash spokesperson Julian Crowley said. “We deeply appreciate the patience and understanding of Dashers, merchants and consumers, and will resume operations as soon as it’s safe to do so.”

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Officials said they will continue to monitor conditions on the ground and will communicate additional changes to their operations as needed. 



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Knowing the Florida Gators Opponent: Arkansas Razorbacks

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Knowing the Florida Gators Opponent: Arkansas Razorbacks


Gainesville, Fla. – The Florida Gators men’s basketball team’s next destination is Fayetteville, Ark., as they’ll take on the Arkansas Razorbacks (11-4, 0-2) on Saturday for their third SEC matchup of the season. 

Florida is currently sitting at 14-1 on the season and 1-1 in conference play. They opened their SEC slate with a nail-biting loss to the Kentucky Wildcats, losing 106-100 in Lexington. 

However, the Gators were able to avenge this loss with one of the most dominant wins in men’s basketball history on Tuesday over No. 1 Tennessee. They trounced the Volunteers 73-43 in the O’Dome, marking the Gators’ first regular-season win over an AP No. 1-ranked team in program history and the biggest win over a No. 1-ranked team in the NCAA since 1968. 

But enough about what Florida has done this season, let’s shift the focus to their opponents, the Razorbacks, and see who they are. 

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Arkansas’ season started out nice with a win over Lipscomb. However, it wouldn’t be the same for them in their second game of the season against then-ranked No. 8 Baylor, as they found themselves on the losing end of a tightly contested battle. 

Then, following a good stretch for the team in red, they were tasked with the current No. 13 in the AP Poll, Illinois, and things wouldn’t go so well for new Razorbacks head coach John Calipari. His team was outclassed in this game 90-77, which ended their winning streak at four. 

Arkansas did make amends with their fans a few games later, though. While participating in the Jimmy V Classic, they matched up with then-ranked No. 14 Michigan, who they narrowed past 89-87. 

This win over the Wolverines helped maintain a three-game win streak that would eventually turn into a six-game streak. However, since SEC play started for the Razorbacks, they are 0-2 with losses to Tennessee and Ole Miss, who are currently ranked in the Top 25 AP Poll. 

These pair of losses put Arkansas at just a 1-4 record against teams on their schedule to have been ranked or that are currently ranked.

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While it was a complete roster overhaul for Calipari and the Razorbacks this offseason that was fueled by the transfer portal, their biggest grab has been from the high school ranks. 

They added highly ranked players like Johnell Davis, Adou Thiero and Jonas Aidoo all from the portal, but it’s former five-star guard Boogie Fland who’s been arguably the best player for the Razorbacks this season. 

Fland is averaging 15.5 points, 5.9 assists and 3.6 rebounds per game through 15 games this season. He is also connecting on 35.7 percent of his threes, which shows he’s more than just an inside scorer. Additionally, his 5.9 assists rank 24th among his competitors. 

But in these first two SEC games, Fland is just 10-for-35 from the field and 3-for-17 from deep. 

If the Gators can’t keep him in check like he’s been over these last two, then it might be a long afternoon for the visitors on Saturday. 

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Despite bringing in tons of talent that should’ve resulted in a great offense, Arkansas has been anything but that. 

They currently rank inside the bottom five teams in the SEC in scoring offense, averaging 79.4 points per game. They do have two players scoring at least 15.0 points per game, but that’s pretty much it. Outside of Thiero (16.9) and Fland, they only have one other player in double figures (DJ Wagner, 10.5). 

Moreover, if this becomes a free-throw-dominated affair, the Gators shouldn’t be too worried about the Razorbacks’ performance at the line. They are shooting 71.1 percent from the charity stripe, which is good for 12th in the league. 

And, lastly, they have little to no presence on the glass. They are the worst team in the SEC in offensive rebounding, and they are 13th out of 16 teams in overall rebounding. These are two areas where the Gators dominate, and if things play out like they have been this season, then the visitors should outmuscle their counterparts. 

This game will be televised on Saturday at 4 pm on ESPN. 

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Viewer pictures: The Natural State transforms into a winter wonderland

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Viewer pictures: The Natural State transforms into a winter wonderland


LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – A winter storm rolled into Arkansas Thursday and brought with it snow to the majority of western and central Arkansas.

Many from around the Natural State sent in pictures of their area covered in snow.

Though Arkansas is already full of natural beauty, there’s something about the state covered in snow that makes it even more of a winter wonderland.

Several kids from around the state got out and took advantage of the day off of school by throwing snowballs, digging up the snow, sledding and of course making snow angels.

Many who got out in the snow had enough accumulated to make snow men.

Share your snow day pictures at KARK.com/winter-pics.

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