More to do for the Arkansas Legislature

The 90th Generally Assembly has ended, at least the part of it that occurred in the regular session. There’s probably not a more unique feeling in the world. It’s just fun to watch a big, bumpy ride come in for a landing.

Last week, on the night the session was declared over, I coincidently crossed paths with our governor at Doe’s. I joked that if his eating habits didn’t improve, he’d be looking like me before too long (I had also seen him there for lunch earlier the same day). He didn’t seem concerned. The session was over, after all.

Those feelings of relief will fade quickly. In the meantime, most everyone will begin offering opinions about everything that just happened. I will do the same.

In some ways, it’s hard to offer much of an opinion today. Unlike previous sessions where the clock starts and ends with complete clarity, our leaders this time have slowly strolled down a path, and the destination is still not quite clear. It might not even be halftime yet.

Things like healthcare, highways, and other issues have yet to be resolved. Even on tax policy, we reduced some of the income tax rates inside the current structure, but still need a plan for overall reform. That should include a painful look into credits and exemptions that conservatives so often preach against.

If you think I’m being critical, you’re reading this with the wrong tone. The strategy of doing whatever it took to get through the session – while still accomplishing your main goals – was probably the right one. It means the things that could be done quickly were done quickly. The things that needed more time weren’t rushed.

But now that the deck has been cleared of all of the other things, it’s time to work on the big things. So any accurate summation will have to wait for future resolution. It’s too early to say what will define this General Assembly. It won’t be the past 80 days.
Important things did happen, though, and it’s a mixed bag. It usually is.

Many good bills failed to become law. They included a conservative run at tort reform, some basic limitations on when special elections can occur, and the easing of barriers that prevent licensed faculty from carrying a weapon on campus. Some other bills failed to get much attention, but could potentially have an outsized impact.

Rep. Neal gave the governor much enhanced power on board and commission appointments. It was needed, but never done because it seemed too difficult a hill to climb. I guess someone just needed to try.

Rep. Murdock passed a bill that gave public schools the ability to seek waivers from burdensome rules and regulations. Sound familiar? It essentially gives all public schools the same opportunity as charter schools. It represents a massive shift in thinking. Usually when governments over-regulate, alternatives emerge and disrupt the market. The reaction of the government that caused the problem is to regulate even further, in an attempt ensure the equal sharing of misery.

This time, a new precedent was set. Rep. Murdock basically said, “Hey, if charter schools get that, I want public schools to get it too.” He leveled the playing field, but did it in the right way. We moved toward more flexibility, not away from it.

This happened in a few other instances as well. I think we’ll look back and appreciate that more over time.

The legislature cut the income tax, reformed our workforce development programs, and incentivized the teaching of computer coding in schools. These are all major accomplishments, and likely don’t receive enough praise because of the non-dramatic way the process happened.

So I guess in a way that may be the defining aspect of the 90th General Assembly: they did a lot, and they did it smoothly, but partly by avoiding the things that guarantee the lack of smoothness.

Future task force meetings and a special session(s) are needed before outcomes are fully known and measured. For now, legislators should celebrate what they were able to do, and rest for the things ahead.

It won’t be getting easier.