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Family Council Releases Candidate Surveys Ahead of May Primaries

Apr 22, 2014JerryArkansas Voter's GuideArkansas Voter's Guide

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Little Rock – On Tuesday, Family Council unveiled the 2014 Arkansas Voter’s Guide for the upcoming Preferential Primary Elections for Democratic and Republican candidates.

“We are pleased to offer these candidate survey results to the people of Arkansas,” said Family Council President Jerry Cox. “The Arkansas Voter’s Guide has been the state’s leading source for nonpartisan candidate information since 1990. We surveyed candidates for state and federal office. Eighty-four percent of the candidates with opposition in the May primaries chose to complete our survey this year. That’s one of the highest response rates we’ve ever had.

“We don’t endorse candidates or try to tell the People of Arkansas who they should vote for,” Cox said. “Our goal is simply to help voters of all political persuasions educate themselves ahead of the upcoming elections.”

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Family Council to Unveil Voter’s Guide Monday

Apr 18, 2014JerryArkansas Voter's GuideArkansas Voter's Guide

Since 1990 Family Council has been Arkansas’ leading source for nonpartisan information on candidates. This Monday we will unveil our 2014 Arkansas Voter’s Guide for the upcoming primary elections on May 20.

This year Family Council surveyed Democratic and Republican candidates who have opposition in the upcoming primary on key issues including abortion, balancing the federal budget, education, energy, marijuana, marriage, Medicaid expansion, Obamacare, and the Second Amendment.

The guide will include candidates for state and federal offices. Check out http://www.ArkansasVotersGuide.com at 5:00pm on Monday to see the 2014 Arkansas Voter’s Guide, and call our office at 501-375-7000 for more information.

Does the Arkansas Lottery Plan to Market to College Kids?

Apr 17, 2014JerryArkansas LotteryArkansas Lottery

The Arkansas Lottery Commission voted yesterday to authorize monitor games despite objections from Arkansas lawmakers. That was a very controversial move, but another decision by the commission is receiving much less attention: The decision to pursue marketing in conjunction with Arkansas’ colleges and universities.

According to the Associated Press, Lottery Director Bishop Woosley says the lottery might sell Arkansas Razorback-themed lottery tickets and advertise the lottery at college sporting events. For a lottery that rolled out more gambling in its first two months than other states did in five years, a Razorback scratch-off ticket may not sound like much; the bigger question is does this vote allow the Arkansas Lottery to do more “marketing” on college campuses than Woosley let on?

Arkansas Code Section 23-115-402 (b) states:

This chapter does not prohibit the [lottery] commission from designating certain of its agents and employees to sell or give tickets or shares directly to the public.

Arkansas Code Section 23-115-601 Subdivision (f)(5)(B)(vii)(b) states:

[T]his section does not preclude the [lottery] commission from selling or giving away tickets or shares for promotional purposes.

Finally, concerning lottery ticket retailers, Arkansas Code Section 23-115-402 (c) states:

Subject to prior approval by the commission, retailers may give away tickets or shares as a means of promoting goods or services to customers or prospective customers.

So under the enabling legislation that established the Arkansas Lottery Commission in 2009, the commission can sell or give away lottery tickets for promotional purposes, and retailers may (with the commission’s blessing) give away tickets as well.

This raises a question: Does the Arkansas Lottery Commission plan to “promote” the Arkansas Lottery by giving away free lottery tickets on college campuses? (more…)