-
2 days ago | 
magnoliareporter.com | Tess Vrbin |Arkansas Advocate
The inaugural SoMa Pride festivities in June 2024 brought hundreds of people to the Little Rock neighborhood to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community. SoMa Pride will return this June 7 “no matter what,” organizer Elizabeth Michael said — even if a funding shortage forces it to downsize.
-
4 days ago | 
mhobserver.com | Sonny Albarado |Arkansas Advocate
Arkansas State Library Board members on Friday voted to recommend a 10.39% across-the-board cut in state aid to public libraries in fiscal 2026, which starts July 1. The recommendation would allow 20 libraries currently ineligible for state funds to receive the money. State Librarian Jennifer Chilcoat presented the proposal as one option for complying with a 2023 state appropriation bill that called for new eligibility criteria to be adopted by July 1, 2024.
-
5 days ago | 
magnoliareporter.com | Ainsley Platt |Arkansas Advocate
“Generational” April storms that brought historic rainfall and a record number of tornadoes to states in the Central Mississippi river valley like Arkansas were made 40% more likely due to the warming climate, according to a new report from an international coalition of climate researchers.
-
1 week ago | 
mhobserver.com | Antoinette Grajeda |Arkansas Advocate
The League of Women Voters of Arkansas on Wednesday decried the attorney general’s rejection of its proposed constitutional amendment under a new law that prohibits ballot titles from being written above an eighth-grade reading level. This is the third time Attorney General Tim Griffin has rejected the nonpartisan organization’s proposal to amend the state’s initiative and referendum process and the first time he has rejected any proposed ballot measure under Act 602, which became law last month.
-
1 week ago | 
magnoliareporter.com | Tess Vrbin |Ainsley Platt |Arkansas Advocate
The Arkansas House and Senate adjourned sine die Monday morning, May 5, 2025 marking the end of the nearly four-month 2025 legislative session. Sine die — a Latin phrase for “without day” — means the Legislature isn’t scheduled to convene again this year unless Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders calls for a special session. The next scheduled session will be the 2026 fiscal session early next year.
-
1 week ago | 
magnoliareporter.com | Antoinette Grajeda |Arkansas Advocate
The League of Women Voters of Arkansas on Wednesday, May 7, 2025 decried the attorney general’s rejection of its proposed constitutional amendment under a new law that prohibits ballot titles from being written above an eighth-grade reading level.
-
1 week ago | 
magnoliareporter.com | Antoinette Grajeda |Arkansas Advocate
Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration officials announced Wednesday that duplicate driver’s licenses can be ordered online and delivered by mail beginning Monday, May 12, 2025. The temporary online processing of duplicate and replacement licenses and ID cards will allow DFA officials to focus on issuing REAL IDs, according to a press release. New, first-time licenses may still be obtained at any State Revenue Office.
-
1 week ago | 
arkansasadvocate.com | Antoinette Grajeda |Arkansas Advocate
by Antoinette Grajeda, Arkansas Advocate May 7, 2025 Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration officials announced Wednesday that duplicate driver’s licenses can be ordered online and delivered by mail beginning May 12. The temporary online processing of duplicate and replacement licenses and ID cards will allow DFA officials to focus on issuing REAL IDs, according to a press release. New, first-time licenses may still be obtained at any State Revenue Office.
-
1 week ago | 
magnoliareporter.com | Ainsley Platt |Arkansas Advocate
A joint venture looking to extract lithium from South Arkansas brine wells has increased its proposed royalty rate to mineral rights owners to 2.5%. After a resounding defeat of a 1.82% royalty rate in November, Standard Lithium and its partner, Equinor, submitted a new royalty application Friday, May 2, 2025 to the Arkansas Oil and Gas Commission to establish a “fair and equitable” payment to rights holders.
-
1 week ago | 
arkansasadvocate.com | Sofia Resnick |Arkansas Advocate
Thomas Lang and Jeff Davis — conservative Catholics from Wisconsin — did the unexpected on a recent Tuesday: They asked some of their conservative legislators to extend a social safety net for pregnant women. Both men support local crisis pregnancy centers and groups opposed to abortion, and they typically oppose expanding public services. Davis said he’s always been a conservative spender, having grown up with a Depression-era father.
