Griffin to host event on 1st day in office
Lt. Gov.-elect Tim Griffin will hold a reception Jan. 13 in the lieutenant governor's office, after Gov-elect Asa Hutchinson's noon inaugural address on the steps of the state Capitol.
The reception, held on the day Griffin takes office, will be 1-2:30p.m, Griffin said Friday.
Griffin is a Republican from Little Rock who is leaving Congress after two terms representing Arkansas' 2nd Congressional District.
The lieutenant governor's office is located in Suite 270 in the state Capitol.
The position has been vacant since Springdale Republican Mark Darr resigned in February.
Darr resigned after he agreed to pay a $11,000 fine to the state Ethics Commission for 11 violations of state ethics rules and regulations relating to misspending of campaign and taxpayer dollars.
-- Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Bald Knob council fires police chief
BALD KNOB -- The police chief in Bald Knob was fired during a City Council meeting called by the town's new mayor on her first day in office.
The council voted 4-3 Wednesday with Mayor Beth Hale Calhoun casting the tie-breaking vote to fire Police Chief Tim Sanford after calling the special meeting to vote on firing him.
Calhoun said more than 750 people asked her to make the change while she was campaigning for mayor. She declined further comment.
Sanford said he was dedicated to the job and called it his life.
Calhoun appointed Assistant Chief Eric Ballantine to serve as interim police chief.
-- The Associated Press
Health clinic bill aimed at schools
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A Missouri lawmaker is proposing the state create incentives for health clinics at rural schools.
State Rep. Jay Barnes recently filed legislation to encourage health centers at schools with large populations of students from low-income families.
The bill from the Jefferson City Republican would require the Department of Social Services to create incentives for schools.
The legislation applies to public elementary and secondary schools if at least half of their students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.
Those clinics would be banned from providing abortions or forms of contraception.
Parents' permission would be required for children to receive care.
The state would need federal approval before schools could implement the clinics.
-- The Associated Press
Oklahomans push driver-texting ban
OKLAHOMA CITY -- Supporters of a ban on texting while driving in Oklahoma are renewing their push for more restrictions ahead of the 2015 legislative session, and several bills already have been filed to make it illegal.
Highway safety officials, insurance companies and grassroots organizations of teenagers have pushed hard in recent years to further restrict the use of mobile phones while driving, but the Republican-controlled Legislature has so far resisted those efforts. Opponents of a ban have said it would be difficult to enforce and that state laws prohibiting distracted driving are adequate.
According to the national Governor's Highway Safety Office, Oklahoma is one of just six states in the country without a ban on texting while driving. More than a dozen states prohibit cellphone use altogether while driving.
-- The Associated Press
Oklahoma drought lingers in new year
OKLAHOMA CITY -- It's a new year in Oklahoma, but the same old drought remains.
The U.S. Drought Monitor said Oklahoma's lingering drought barely budged for the second consecutive week.
The report said about 62 percent of the state remains in drought. The Oklahoman reported that nearly 22 percent of Oklahoma was listed in extreme or exceptional drought.
The drought's worst effects are in southwestern and western Oklahoma. Many of those areas have been in drought since October 2010.
Although parts of the state received record snowfall over the weekend, it brought little moisture to the state. Oklahoma state climatologist Gary McManus said about 10 inches of snow generally equals an inch of moisture. McManus said any snow that falls over the next few days is unlikely to offer much help.
-- The Associated Press
NW News on 01/03/2015