A.G. Rejects Another Recreational Marijuana Proposal

Marijuana

Last week Attorney General Leslie Rutledge rejected yet another recreational marijuana proposal.

The latest proposal was similar to measures the A.G. previously rejected. It effectively would have legalized marijuana despite the fact marijuana remains illegal under federal law.

Among other things, Attorney General Rutledge noted serious ambiguities in the proposal’s wording.

While we are glad the A.G. rejected this marijuana proposal, all of this underscores the fact that full legalization of marijuana is the endgame for marijuana supporters.

As we keep saying, every state that has legalized so-called “medical marijuana” has seen an increased push to legalize recreational marijuana. Now that Arkansas has “medical marijuana,” it makes sense that marijuana proponents would push for recreational as well.

You can read the A.G.’s opinion rejecting the proposal here.

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Fewer Women From Neighboring States Travelling to Arkansas for Abortion

Abortion, , ,

One problem we have highlighted in the past is the number of abortions Arkansas “exports” to women in other states.

Each year hundreds of women travel to Arkansas for abortions. Many of these women come from neighboring states like Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas, and Missouri.

A recent report from the Arkansas Department of Health shows that may be changing: The number of women coming to Arkansas for abortions has dropped significantly in the past two years.

In 2014, 925 women from out-of-state had abortions in Arkansas; in 2016 that number fell to 534.

The report also shows the number of abortions being performed on Arkansans has fallen to record lows. There were over 2,000 fewer abortions performed on women from Arkansas last year than there were 15 years before.

While it’s often difficult to say for sure what is behind these changes, one reason for the decline could be new pro-life laws passed in recent years–such as the improved informed-consent law the Arkansas Legislature passed in 2015.

The bottom line is this: Fewer unborn children are being killed and fewer women are being harmed by abortion. That’s a very good thing.

Below is a breakdown of the abortion numbers from 2000-2016.

Year Arkansas Residents Out-of-State Residents
2000 4,548 953
2001 4,981 943
2002 4,511 805
2003 4,582 826
2004 3,835 808
2005 4,062 633
2006 4,292 696
2007 4,132 712
2008 4,054 735
2009 3,960 620
2010 3,937 595
2011 3,523 510
2012 3,361 421
2013 3,205 527
2014 3,148 925
2015 3,070 701
2016 2,673 534

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Lottery Scholarship Revenue Drops in May

Arkansas Lottery

On Friday the Arkansas Lottery released its monthly financial report for May.

According to the report, the Arkansas Lottery took in over $38 million in May, but paid out roughly $7 million in scholarships–about 18 cents for every dollar it made.

Overall, Lottery revenue and scholarship funding have declined since April.

There’s simply no excuse for the Arkansas Lottery’s consistently low scholarship budget. If you would like to know the one thing the Arkansas Lottery could do to pay more to scholarships right now–even if lottery revenue dropped by tens of millions of dollars–click here.

Below is a breakdown of the Lottery’s financial figures for this fiscal year.

Month Gross Lottery Revenue Paid to Scholarships % Gross Revenue
July 38,237,293.92 8,714,386.39 22.8%
August 35,091,022.09 5,498,714.86 15.7%
September 33,113,391.64 5,773,076.42 17.4%
October 34,061,993.14 5,165,040.54 15.2%
November 37,042,079.72 6,570,979.51 17.7%
December 35,352,159.35 4,596,532.22 13.0%
January, 2017 37,062,291.39 7,947,546.21 21.4%
February 41,176,854.60 6,698,099.62 16.3%
March 43,405,541.56 6,204,704.75 14.3%
April 38,671,617.14 7,845,827.56 20.3%
May 38,185,263.61 7,068,770.18 18.5%
Total $411,399,508.16 $72,083,678.26 17.5%

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