Tag: Asa Hutchinson

LITTLE ROCK — While the legislative session isn’t over yet, Gov. Asa Hutchinson is already focused on what will happen after the 92nd General Assembly dismisses. Appearing on this week’s edition of Talk Business & Politics, Hutchinson is preparing for the implementation of his transformation plan and the campaign for a highway package. He also suggests his time in politics won’t end after his second term as governor. Hutchinson’s effort to streamline state government from 42 to 15 cabinet level reports still must clear the State Senate. Hutchinson thinks his plan will pass that chamber and he’s prepared to put a transition team in place to execute the transition. “There will be a transition team that will be set up to help guide the cabinet secretaries that will be named,” he said. “This sets the pattern for the 15 different agencies, and the first thing you’ve got to do is put the personnel in place, and then you got to have, where can you concentrate on areas of efficiencies, better management of it The transformation doesn’t happen on day one. It is a process.” Hutchinson said that part of that process will be naming new cabinet secretaries, which might not correlate directly to current agency directors.

(AR Money & Politics) - It’s been more than a decade since anyone other than Mark Stodola has occupied 500 Markham St., having served as the mayor of Little Rock since January 2007. What do you consider to be the biggest issue facing Little Rock today? The biggest issue facing Little Rock today is crime and public safety. In five years, I expect we will still be working to improve our public schools, but as mayor, over the next four years, I hope to make significant progress in creating a city-wide plan to ensure that every student in Little Rock has access to a quality public education no matter where they live. The biggest issue facing Little Rock is our lack of economic competitiveness. It took over several years for Little Rock to get into this position, and it will take at least the next mayor’s full term to get these issues resolved. The biggest issues facing Little Rock are public safety, economic development and education. In different forms, these challenges have been the issues in Little Rock, and other cities, for generations. In five years we will be dealing with these topics, but I hope we will be working in a more positive way. I hope we are directing more of our resources toward early childhood education, community support and enrichment, and quality of life.

The Story: Governor Asa Hutchinson (R-AR), on Tuesday May 22, advanced his reelection cause by defeating his primary opponent, Jan Morgan, a woman who denied...