Arkansas is enduring extraordinary times and we must rise to the challenge. Democrats are stepping up and putting Arkansas families first.
The Arkansas Legislature convened its Fiscal Session on Wednesday, which will deal heavily with fallout from COVID-19. The Legislature has made some bi-partisan strides recently to secure additional protective gear for healthcare workers. But very little has been done to help Arkansas workers and families impacted by COVID-19. That’s why Democratic House Minority Leader Fred Love is stepping up.
He’s calling for an immediate suspension to planned tax cuts for only the wealthiest high-earners; a fully-staffed unemployment hotline; support services for small businesses navigating new loan programs; relief for renters and homeowners facing evictions and utility terminations; and safeguarding against draconian budget cuts to education and healthcare during this crisis. Arkansans deserve a basic level of security for the duration of this crisis.
He addressed the public from his office at the Capitol, following State of the State Remarks from Governor Asa Hutchinson.
Rep. Love on priorities, unemployment, small businesses, and evictions.
Our budget this Fiscal session needs to put the people of Arkansas first. This, above all else is our mission, it’s our calling. Arkansas deserves no less. As a state, we can’t be asking families to head into the months ahead not knowing if they’ll get unemployment help, or be able to procure a loan for their small business —or whether or not they’ll be evicted because they are barred from going to work because of a state-issued public health order. The governor has described the problem as historic. It is a monumental challenge — and we must rise to the occasion.
Rep. Love on the budget and holding-off on the governor’s tax cuts for high-incomes.
State revenue is falling by hundreds of millions of dollars. There’s also about a $100 million tax cut that will go into effect soon. But almost all of it goes only to those who are already very well-off. That’s why I am calling to delay the tax cut plan for people making more than $450-thousand until this crisis is over and our economy has had a chance to recover — and serve the working people of Arkansas. They are my top priority. The well-being of working families should come second to none.
Rep. Love on safeguarding against drastic, harmful budget cuts and providing common-sense help to people facing COVID-19 economic problems.
If we are smart, we can make the necessary changes to our budget. We face this budget shortfall, while at the same time ensuring that life-saving, critical services are not cut — but instead boosted. Healthcare workers can be safeguarded. We can staff the unemployment hotline so people pick up the phone. We can give small business owners a hotline to handle loan questions.
This fiscal session is a chance for every member of the legislature to do the right thing by their constituents, the people who voted them into office, and the people who trust them to put their needs first.
See Rep. Love’s full written remarks below >>>
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“Greetings everyone, my name is Fred Love and I’m the Democratic Minority Leader in the Arkansas House of Representatives. I’m speaking to you from my office at the state Capitol building. I appreciate your time and attention, as the Legislature prepares to respond to COVID-19.
We need to use this opportunity to ensure that our budget reflects our values, to make sure that the priorities of the people of Arkansas are put first. This, above all else is our mission, it’s our calling. Arkansas deserves no less.
Like the rest of the nation, Arkansas is not immune to the havoc that COVID-19 is inflicting on our public health — and importantly, the daily lives of Arkansans.
Now, more than ever Arkansans deserve a basic sense of security.
As a state, we can not be asking families to head into the months ahead not knowing if they’ll get unemployment help, or be able to procure a loan for their small business —or whether or not they’ll be evicted because they are barred from going to work because of a state-issued public health order.
Uncertainty is ruling the day for far too many Arkansans. The governor has described the problem as historic. It is a monumental challenge — and we must rise to the occasion.
Democrats are ready to heed the call. We are working with our colleagues across the aisle. The people of Arkansas deserve extraordinary leadership in these extraordinary times.
Let’s be blunt, Governor Hutchinson has lowered the state’s revenue forecast for the 2020 fiscal year by $353 million. He is anticipating revenue for the 2021 fiscal year to drop by more than $200 million.
There’s also about a $100 million tax cut that will go into effect soon. But that won’t help working families. Those benefits go almost entirely to people making more than $450,000 a year. Those people are few and far between in most parts of Arkansas.
That’s why I am calling to delay the tax cut plan until this crisis is over and our economy has had a chance to recover — and serve the working people of Arkansas. They are my top priority.
The well-being of working families should come second to none. We can do the right thing by them.
This fiscal session is a chance for every member of the legislature to do the right thing by their constituents, the people who voted them into office, and the people who trust them to put their needs first.
We face this budget shortfall at the same moment when we need to ensure that life-saving, critical services are not cut — but instead boosted.
We need more support for our public health workers. Doctors, nurses, and first responders deserve all of our support at this moment. They take care of us, and we must take care of them.
We need to ensure our already-meager unemployment fund will be able to make payments for the duration of this crisis. We must not fail them. The unemployment hotline needs to extend its hours, the unemployment website needs greater accessibility — and people need their questions and calls answered.
Our small business owners are also in need. The state needs to establish a hotline and greater support services for them as they navigate a confusing process on the federal and state level. We must assist them — they mean too much to our communities to ignore.
And finally, as the state moves forward during this Fiscal Session we must ensure that we balance necessary with the need to ensure that critical services are not starved and dismantled.
Yes, there is a real pressure to make our budget make sense in the face of declining revenues due to COVID-19.
But this can not be made into an excuse to gut our education budget, to slash healthcare spending — or to kick Arkansans when they’re down.
This crisis was unexpected. Ideas that might have made sense to some before, like the governor’s expensive tax cut plan for high-earners, look differently to many under this new light. That’s understandable.
For some, our priorities need to shift.
The working men and women of Arkansas deserve nothing less.
We are asking some to keep going into harm’s way, to stock our groceries, to feed us, to keep us healthy.
We are asking others to stay home, denying them the ability to provide for their own families.
We can not be asking Arkansans to keep making these sacrifices over and over and over, with little to nothing in return. We must show some gratitude, some appreciation, and some real love and support for people who are really going through it right now.
I’m Fred Love, the Minority Leader of the Arkansas House.
God bless you and God bless the state of Arkansas.”