FAYETTEVILLE -- A fraction of the money set aside to lure big, new employers could give struggling small businesses all over Arkansas a better chance, the Democratic challenger for governor said Friday in Fayetteville.
"Luring big businesses is always important but it is not a complete economic development strategy," candidate Jared Henderson told the crowd of at least 100 as the club met for lunch at Mermaids Restaurant in Fayetteville.
Gov. Asa Hutchinson's latest budget proposals would put $48 million into a special reserve fund for attracting business to the state. Henderson said bringing a big business to Arkansas through incentives paid with such reserve funds and tax breaks show their political benefits early. Such windfalls draw a lot of favorable attention when they happen, he said. The long-terms costs to the state government's financial reserve and to the tax base take much longer to show.
Entrepreneurs across the state are trying to start up businesses even though they many have never had a basic business course on how to run one, Henderson said. Even a minimal amount of support for such classes would be invaluable to helping more of these ventures survive, creating jobs all over the state instead of one big rise in employment for one area only, which is what you get even with a successful industrial recruiting effort, he said.
"Under the conservative leadership of Gov. Hutchinson, Arkansas reached the lowest unemployment rate in our history and our state has created 60,000 new jobs since his taking office in 2015. These jobs ranged from small businesses to large corporations and it takes a dual approach for success in job creation. For example, the Governor worked to recruit SIG Sauer to open operations in Arkansas. As a result of his outreach, SIG Sauer is relying upon small businesses as part of their supply chain. The Governor has continued his efforts of creating a business-friendly environment in Arkansas," Jaime Barker, spokesman for Hutchingson's re-election campaign, said in a statement Friday.
SIG Sauer is a firearms and ammunition manufacturer that announced in 2016 it was concentrating all its ammunition production at a then-new plant in Jacksonville.
The governor also faces a GOP primary opponent, gun range owner Jan Morgan of Hot Springs. Libertarian Mark West, a pastor in Batesville, has also announced his candidacy for governor. Candidate filing for party primaries begins Feb. 22 and ends March 1. The primary is set for May 22 with the general election Nov. 6. Governors can serve two terms of four years each. If re-elected, this would be Hutchinson's second term.
Henderson lived in Springdale as a child, he reminded the crowd. Henderson recruited college graduates and professionals to teach in low-income areas as Teach for America's executive director in Arkansas for four years until June. He was the nonprofit group's senior vice president of regional operations for the previous two years. He and his wife, Melanie Prince, own a medical practice.
Henderson's son, born 15 months ago, "is the first blood relative I've ever met," the candidate said. Henderson was adopted as a child. He is a graduate of the University of Arkansas in computer science and physics and has a master's degree from Harvard University in business administration and public administration.
Asked what practical experience he has in governing by an audience member, Henderson cited his time at McKinsey & Company, a management and consulting company that advised both Detroit and Dallas on coping with budget shortfalls, $300 million a year in Detroit's case and $100 million for Dallas. He played a role in solving each of those city's financial problems, Henderson said.
He began his career as a research scientist and manager at NASA and worked at consulting firm, . He holds bachelor's degrees in computer science and physics from the University of Arkansas. He later earned master's degrees in business administration and public administration from Harvard University.
NW News on 02/10/2018