Happy Thanksgiving! This year I’m thankful for the members of our community who ran for office or are currently serving in elected or appointed roles throughout Benton County. The work you are doing is noticed and important. May there be even more of you by 2026!
Local Events
Saturday, Nov. 30th from 7 - 10 p.m. - DACA Dance Party at Con Pillas Coffeehaus in Springdale (7253 W Sunset Ave); Irvin Camacho is helping local DACA recipients raise money for their annual renewal costs; You can support by making a donation and coming to this fun event with great music, people and food and drinks to purchase!
Thursday, Dec. 5th from 7 - 8 p.m. - Arkansas Justice Reform Coalition (AJRC) Monthly Meeting at St. Pauls (corner of College and Dickson) in Fayetteville. Meeting will include the AJRC legislative priorities and free pizza!
Monday, Dec. 9th from 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. - Democratic Party of Benton County (DPBC) Monthly Meeting at the Arvest Conference Center (behind the Arvest bank on the Bentonville Square); Meeting will include a review of the runoff, information from party members interested in leadership roles, and a celebration/thank you to our candidates and volunteers in 2024
Celebrate the Holidays
Free Events (with donations appreciated) for the NW Arkansas community:
Community Awareness
from Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families:
A new report by Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families finds that Arkansas child labor violations increased significantly over the past decade, both at the state and federal level. The number of cases, violations and penalties were all on the rise in the years immediately before Arkansas rolled back an important child labor employment certificate requirement in 2023.
The full report is available to read or download HERE.
AACF’s analysis of child labor cases revealed that from 2020 through 2023, the number of violations at the state level rose 266%, with the financial penalties growing 600% during that same period. The biggest violators were in food service, with that industry (mostly restaurants) accounting for 78% of state-level cases in recent years and 48% of federal cases from 2001 to 2022.
Read more reporting here:
From Tess Vrbin at Arkansas Advocate, “Arkansas child labor violations spike; advocates urge restoration of work permit for kids under 16 - More than two dozen states have proposed rollbacks of child labor laws since 2021”
From Worth Sparkman at Axios NW Arkansas, “Report: 2023 Arkansas child labor law could lead to fewer investigations”
In case you hadn’t heard, the federal government is investigating a potential child labor violation in Rogers. Read more from John McCracken at Investigate Midwest, HERE
Municipal Government Awareness
Bella Vista
Next Council Mtng: Monday, Nov. 25 at 6 p.m. (2483 Forest Hills Blvd)
Bentonville
Next Council Mtng: Tuesday, Nov. 26 at 6 p.m. (305 SW A St.)
Items of Note:
The final approval of the Bentonville Future Land Use Map has been delayed, and the city now believes the earliest Planning Commission meeting to review the Plan for approval will be January 21st (this is a change from Dec. 3rd). Residents still have time to access the latest information and provide feedback on the Plan HERE.
The City is looking for residents interested in serving on the newly-established Alternative Transportation Advisory Board. The City Council appointed board serves in an advisory capacity to the Mayor, City Staff, and City Council on policy matters pertaining to alternative transportation modalities. To learn more and submit an application by the Dec. 20th deadline, go HERE.
Cave Springs
Next Council Mtng: Tuesday, Nov. 26 at 6:30 p.m. (134 N. Main St.)
Items of Note:
The 3rd Annual Christmas Craft Show will be on Sat. Dec. 7th from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. in downtown Cave Springs
Centerton
Next Council Mtng: Tuesday, Dec. 10 at 6 p.m. (210 Municipal Dr.)
Items of Note:
Gravette
Next Council Mtng: Tuesday, Nov. 26 at 5:30 p.m. (202 Main St. NE)
Items of Note:
Enjoy the Gravette Christmas Parade along Main Street on Saturday, Dec. 7th at 4:30 p.m.
Lowell
Next Council Mtng: Tuesday, Dec. 17 at 6:30 p.m. (216 N. Lincoln St.)
Items of Note:
At the Nov. 19th council meeting, Chase Henrichs and Bryan Clark were both reappointed to the Lowell Planning Commission (terms expire June 2027)
The Lowell Christmas Parade and Tree Lighting will be on Saturday, Dec. 7th; parade begins at 5:30 p.m.
Pea Ridge
Next Council Mtng: Tuesday, Dec. 10 at 6 p.m. (911 Weston St.)
Items of Note:
The Garage Youth Center will be open Monday - Wednesday of Thanksgiving break from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for students age 13 - 17; sign your kid up for membership HERE
Rogers
Next Council Mtng: Tuesday, Nov. 26 at 6 p.m. (301 W. Chestnut)
Items of Note:
Arkansas Public Theatre will go on hiatus after their December performances of “A Christmas Story”. Their typical place of residence, the downtown Rogers Victory Theater, was heavily damaged during the Memorial weekend storm and requires a lengthy and expensive restoration.
Rogers Christmas parade will be held on Friday, Dec. 6th at 6:30 p.m.
Siloam Springs
Next Council Mtng: Tuesday, Dec. 3 at 6:30 p.m. (400 N. Broadway)
Items of Note:
The Historic Twin Springs Park in Siloam Springs was selected for a grant from the Project for Public Spaces and the Walton Foundation. The project should be completed by the fall of 2025.
At the Nov. 19th meeting, Holly Wiles and Mike Henry were reappointed to the Parks Advisory Board; and directors agreed to begin voting on an ordinance for the first increase in board compensation since 2016 for directors ($414 per regular meeting) and the mayor ($15.6k annual).
Springdale
Next Council Mtng: Tuesday, Nov. 26 at 6 p.m. (201 Spring St.)
County Government Awareness
Benton County Quorum Court
Quorum Court met last Thursday and voted 12-2 to approve an updated fee schedule for building permits for construction on county land that will go into effect in 2025. Additionally, they voted 13-1 to approve the authorization of alcohol sales for on-premises consumption in the unincorporated areas of the county; making it easier for entities to apply for state permits. FYI - Bethany Rosenbaum, the Republican JP for district 14 out of Lowell, voted against both ordinances. Read more about the meeting from Thomas Saccente at the NWA Dem Gazz HERE.
Upcoming County Government meetings at the Admin Building in downtown Bentonville:
Election Commission Meeting - Dec. 3 at 7:30 p.m. (at the Election Commission office in Rogers)
Planning Board Meeting - Dec. 4 at 6 p.m.
Finance Committee Meeting - Dec. 10 at 6 p.m.
Development Review Committee - Dec. 11 at 10 a.m.
Committee of the Whole - Dec. 12 at 6 p.m.
Quorum Court - Dec. 17 at 6 p.m.
State Government Awareness
95th General Legislative Assembly:
The 95th General Legislative Assembly convenes on Monday, January 13, 2025. Legislators were allowed to start submitting bills for the session on Wednesday, Nov. 20th. Here are a few bill highlights from the first three days:
Democrats filed about 35 bills last Wednesday ranging from strengthening voter protection to health related reforms to education priorities attempting to fix some of the damage from the Learns Act. I really appreciate the party for flooding the zone with good bills in an attempt to force the committees to have some serious discussions once meetings begin in January about items that really could benefit Arkansans. You can see the full list and each bills details from Rep. Andrew Collins (D - Little Rock) page HERE.
Hope you’ve been keeping up with your dental appointments, because some of our state legislators have fallen down the fluoride conspiracy hole. SB2 will remove the statewide fluoridation program statute, and SB4 will allow city or county governing bodies across the state call for elections for voters to determine if they will continue their current water fluoridation programs. Read more from Tess Vrbin in the Arkansas Advocate, “Proposed Arkansas legislation would repeal water fluoridation mandate, leave matter to local voters - Federal judge’s ruling, federal health secretary nominee’s comments have sparked debate over the safety of fluoride exposure”.
Dan Sullivan (R - Jonesboro) is back on his anti-DEI crusade with SB3, “An Act to Prohibit Discrimination or Preferential Treatment by the State of Arkansas and Other Public Entities”. From Antoinette Grajeda’s reporting in the Arkansas Advocate, “[SB3] again proposes eliminating required minority recruitment and retention plans and reports from public school districts and higher education institutions, as well as amending a scholarship designed to attract qualified minority teachers to the Delta.” Read more HERE.
So far, the award winner for “make this make sense” goes to SB6 (To Create a Criminal Offence for Vaccine Harm). The bill creates an unclassified felony with a sentence of one year for any executive of a pharmaceutical company that “knowingly” causes vaccine harm (death or serious injury) in Arkansas. Additionally it creates a Vaccine Harm Offense Fund which can receive funds from the feds (through grants), the state assembly, and other lawful revenues. The funds are to be used to support prosecution of the vaccine harm offense. The kicker, though, is the sections to create the felony and the fund EXPIRE on Dec. 31, 2026 (likely less than 1.5 years from implementation) and any of the funds gathered will be moved to the state’s General Revenue Fund. There is no way a case would be prosecuted during this time period, so one must wonder what is the point of this proposed legislation? Along the same topic, see this depressing article from Alex Golden at Axios NWA, “ Fewer kids are getting vaccinated in Arkansas.”
Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders:
Governor Sanders released her proposed fiscal year 2026 (July 2025-June 2026) budget last Thursday. I recommend reading at least one of the recaps from local journalists below on the budget details - especially to understand the continuing impact from the LEARNS Act.
From Antoinette Grajeda at the Arkansas Advocate, “Arkansas governor presents $6.49 billion budget proposal to state lawmakers”
From Worth Sparkman at Axios NW Arkansas, “Education, maternal health top Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ budget plan”
From Matt Campbell at the Arkansas Times, “Gov. Sanders’ misleading description of her proposed budget raises lots of questions”
Election Information
Arkansas General Election Runoff
Runoff elections start Tuesday! Read about the races in Benton County in my Runoff newsletter from last week HERE.
DPBC Leadership Elections
Nominations are open for the Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, and Election Commissioner positions to serve from mid-January 2025 to mid-January 2027. You’ll find descriptions of each position and information on the nomination process to officially submit your interest or nominate others HERE.
In the Ear
Listen to Matthew Moore of Ozarks at Large interview Arkansas’ first elected Latina state representative Diana Gonzales Worthen (D - Springdale) HERE
Hear from reporters at the Arkansas Times in the Week in Review podcast from Nov. 1th, “Franklin County pushes back on Sanders' prison plans”
On episode 276 of the District 3 Podcast, Irvin and Miggs sit down with Gabriela Caceres and Profesora Alejandra Campos and discuss feelings after last week's election; “Latinas/os Talk Election Results & Election Hangover”
Odds & Ends
From Julie Kohl in Only in Arkansas, “20 Post-Thanksgiving Hikes on Arkansas Trails”
From Heather McCombs at the Bentonville Bulletin, “Middle School Teacher Recognized For Commitment to Students And ‘Swiftie Fridays’”
From Dan Pfeiffer, “ Do Dems Need to Break Up with Legacy Media? The media landscape has changed and Democrats need to change our mentality”
And finally, from the NYT (gift article), read 16 year old Naomi Beinart’s guest opinion piece, “I’m 16. On Nov. 6 the Girls Cried, and the Boys Played Minecraft.”