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Follow along with us as we keep you connected to what's going on in Arkansas' legislature.

Sanders proposes state legislation to fund Jefferson County

Marianna McMurdock
/
The 74

Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders says the state is stepping in amid Jefferson County government’s inability to put forward a working budget for those on the county payroll.

With a full month of 2025 gone, the governor said at a press event Monday morning that, due to the stalemate at the county level, the state legislature will push a bill requiring the county to revert to last year’s budget, requiring Jefferson County to once again pay its employees.

Sanders read a few messages she had received from county residents.

“We received one message from a corporal in the sheriff's office that is truly heartbreaking. She's a single mom, and she hasn't received a paycheck in a month. She says that she hasn't been to the grocery store in weeks, because she doesn't have money in her bank account, which is now almost $1,000 in the negative.”

State Rep. Glenn Barnes, D-Pine Bluff, represents much of Jefferson County. He said he was there to respond to the suffering arising from the impasse.

“We believe that this legislation will allow the servants of Jefferson County to be paid, and the bills to be paid. It is morally right, as well as lawfully right. Dr. Martin Luther King said, 'when a man refuses to stand for what is right, he dies.' Today, we are standing, and we hope that the people of Jefferson County will soon be able to receive their checks and pay their bills.”

Sen. Ben Gilmore, R-Crossett, represents a portion of southwestern Jefferson County. He called on elected officials to set aside their differences and move forward on the revised budget.

Reporting by the Pine Bluff Commercial outlines the stalemate at the Jefferson County Quorum Court, which met for its fourth budget hearing on January 28 without coming to a resolution.

Due to disagreements among justices of the peace about the budget proposal, many of the county's employees have not received paychecks since around Christmas.

Responding to questions following the press conference, Sanders says she aims to get the legislation completed and passed as early as next week.

Copyright 2025 KUAR

Nathan Treece
Formally KUAR, news from the staff of content partners Little Rock Public Radio at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. They are a NPR member station.