Special Reports

Reference Materials

Based on nearly every economic indicator, 2011 was a rebound year for Arkansas tourism. What does 2012 have in store?

Income Tax Refunds Hurt February Overall Revenues

Arkansas’ February tax revenues netted $190.1 million for the month — down 11.2% from a year ago and 10.6% below forecast.

Filing Period Closes, Election Field Is Set

Candidate filing closed at noon today (March 1) setting the field for the May primaries and potential November elections.

Justice Fund Report Pinpoints 3 Reasons For Revenue Decline

Court officials released a special report that explains why the depleted Administration of Justice (AOJ) fund lost so much money in 2011 that Gov. Mike Beebe (D) has had to bail it out with emergency funds.

Home Sales Trending Downward In January

Arkansas’ housing market continues on a slow pace toward recovery, with low interest rates and economic uncertainty competing for the attention of potential home buyers.

House, Senate Races Shaping Up With Filing Deadline Looming

With filing season less than a month away, candidates for the Arkansas House and Senate are starting to come into clearer picture.

Strong December Tax Revenues Boost Year-to-date Totals

A strong month of income tax collections and improving sales taxes led the state of Arkansas to a solid position at the six-month mark of the fiscal year. Officials from…

Home Sales In Arkansas Nearly Break-even For The Year

Home sales in Arkansas grew nearly 9% compared to last November boosting year-to-date totals near last year’s levels, according to the latest statistics from the Arkansas Realtors Association. During November…

Trucking, GDP Reports Show Economic Growth

Private and public sector reports show signs of small gains in the national economy, with a trucking industry economist saying the economy will not slide back into recession. The American…

Arkansas Unemployment Drops To 8% In November

Arkansas workforce officials reported that November’s unemployment rate fell two-tenths of a percent to 8.0%. The U.S. unemployment rate fell four-tenths from October to 8.6%. One year ago, the state’s…

Arkansas House & Senate Candidate Lists

A look at the latest candidates for the Arkansas House and Senate.

October Home Sales Up Slightly, Full Year Totals Improve

The Arkansas Realtors Association reported October home sales — which showed a mixed bag of results in the state’s major markets — slipping slightly, but sales still showed some improvement…

November Revenue Report Sees Slip In Personal Income Taxes

State finance officials are probably hoping it’s not a November to remember. They’ve certainly seen better ones in terms of revenue growth. Two major components of tax collections missed their…

State Unemployment Dips In October

For the first time since March 2011, Arkansas’ unemployment rate declined. According to the latest report, Arkansas’ jobless rate fell one-tenth of a percent to 8.2% in October. You can…

Arkansas Home Sales Rise 10% in September

Home sales in Arkansas rose 10% in September compared to one year ago, according to the latest statewide housing report from the Arkansas Realtors Association.

Statewide home prices increased slightly by 0.7% to an average of $146,694.

There was strength in central and northwest Arkansas as four of the top five counties for sales were in those regions of the state. Pulaski County led the state in volume, highlighted by a 19% increase.

Benton and Washington counties reported 16.8% and 8.9% gains in a year-over-year comparison. Units sold in Saline and Faulkner counties were up 34.4% and 25.6% respectively compared to last September.

Year-to-date home sales in Arkansas are still about 8% lower than the first 9 months of 2010.

Arkansas Tax Revenue Up 3.3% Year-to-Date

Despite “weak” retail sales the gross year-to-date tax collections in Arkansas total $1.842 billion, up 3.3% compared to the 2010 period, according to an Arkansas Department of Finance & Administration report released Wednesday (Nov. 2).

The year-to-date gross revenue for the first four months of Arkansas’ 2012 fiscal year (July-October) is 1.1% above the forecast.

The year-to-date gross receipts collections — a gauge of consumer spending — total $719.8 million, down 0.5% compared to 2010 and down 3.4% below the revenue forecast.