Thank you, Gov. Beebe for taking these questions. As a senior, I continue to find health care becoming more and more unafordable. As others age this will be their situation too. So what will Arkansas legislators be able to do to improve healthcare in our great state? Oh yea...anything on obesity?? Thanks

Thank you everyone who has submitted questions. I'm going to answer as many as I can this morning. I'll revisit more later if there's time. Any that I don't reply to I will still be showing to my staff.

As to this first question about health care, we have an opportunity to fund and improve health-care programs throughout the state through our tobacco tax. While specifics will come next week in my State of the State address, I can tell you now that any increase will not only fund a statewide trauma system, it will fund health-care programs that can potentially benefit everyone in our state. A trauma system is the important first step, but this is an opportunity to improve our overall health-care system in Arkansas.

As I understand it, State employees are covered by a health insurance plan that is self funded and their premiums are MUCH less than the public teachers. Since public school teachers are also State employees, why are they not included in the State plan?

I would like to add to the question about health insurance for teachers. Retired teachers pay more than double the amount other retired state employees pay. Will you support legislation to put retired teachers under the State health plan as other State employees?
Sue Buffalo, Counselor
Robinson High School
20+ years in public education

While our teachers play a vital role in educating all of Arkansas’s children, and districts pay them through the use of State funds, they aren’t by legal definition State employees. Both active and retired teachers are compensated through a separate system than State employees. Over the past five years, the State has made more money available for teachers, and most districts and the teachers themselves have steered that money toward salaries rather than insurance. In fact, overall compensation for teachers has risen more rapidly than for state employees during those five years.

Governor Beebe, I don't think you responded to my question. You told me the way things are, I am asking you to make a change. Yes, indeed, teachers do play a vital role in the future of our State; however, because of the outrageous cost of health insurance many cannot retire until they qualify for MediCare. Is that the way the State repays this vital group of citizens? Will you support a change?
I hope you will respond to my question this time.

Sue Y. Buffalo

Why do you want to base the college scolarships generated from the new lottery on financial need as well as grades? Why not not base them strictly on the merits of the child? We are a middle class family who makes just a little too much to get any assistance for anything.The needy are already getting help, the rich can afford it, and now you'd like to cut us out of this benefit as well? Please let me know your thoughts. Thank you Rodney Bowen

I'm with you on the merit-based idea. If the kids make the grades, why discriminate against them based on their parents income level? If I remember right Lt. Gov. Halter proposed modeling Arkansas' scholarship after the Hope Scholarship in Georgia, which doesn't discriminate based on the family's income. I'm with you & Lt. Gov. Halter. Hopefully more family's & individuals will speak up on this issue.

There is a lot of discussion about how best to spend the future proceeds of the new lottery in Arkansas, and I agree with both posters who say that more Arkansas families should qualify for merit-based scholarships. I think that both need-based and merit-based financial aid programs must have higher cutoffs for family incomes and higher yearly stipends for students. This will be part of the discussion in the legislative session. We have to make sure that we only promise scholarships that we can guarantee will have the revenue available to pay for them throughout a student’s time in college.

We also need to make the application process easier for our families, and everyone agrees that there are steps we can take to put more of the work of matching students to scholarships on the State rather than students and their families.

I'm confident that whatever final form our scholarship system takes, it will be easier for Rodney to obtain scholarships for his kids and other families like his to do the same.

I strongly agree with your proposal to increase the tax on cigarettes to fund a trauma system and other health programs. My question to you is why don't you propose a tax increase on alcoholic beverages as well?

Doesn't excessive alcohol use contribute just as much to health problems in Arkansas as tobacco use? From the CDC:

"According to recent national surveys, more than half of the adult U.S. population drank alcohol in the past 30 days. Approximately 5% of the total population drank heavily, while 15% of the population binge drank. From 2001–2005, there were approximately 79,000 deaths annually attributable to excessive alcohol use. In fact, excessive alcohol use is the 3rd leading lifestyle-related cause of death for people in the United States each year."

Good morning, Governor-

I see that another poster has the same question as I do about the proposed tax to fund a trauma system. That poster wants to add alcoholic beverages to the tax. To me, taxing cigarettes and alcohol places a heavy burden on a narrow -and shrinking, in the case of smoking- part of the population. Wouldn't it be more fair to make it a smaller, but broader-based tax? Maybe take that remaining grocery tax you want to eliminate and re-route it into the trauma system. Everyone has to eat, and this would be a relatively painless and much fairer way of dealing with this whole thing.

While it is sad that the LN Industries windmill manufacturers have had to lay off people because of the bad economy, I hope that doesn't change the direction I hope this state is taking towards attracting sustainable/green industries. We have an opportunity- although obscured by the economy- to become a real leader in this area. I hope we can take advantage of this. I could not help but say "I told you so!" when that coveted Toyota plant which chose Mississippi over us decided to close its doors. We need to seek out innovative and relatively recession-proof industries to invite here. Of course, the way things are, all the 'recession-proof' rules are changing. We have to be prepared to act fast. I hope that things like this are being considered- I plan to bend the ear of my own House member about these things.

Thank you for listening to us.
L. A. Johnson

L.A. -

LM Glasfiber’s slowdown is similar to what other companies in the wind industry are facing with a slowdown in orders, but it will not deter their commitment to Arkansas or our commitment to pursuing alternative energies. Although fuel prices are still relatively low, history has taught us that they will not stay that way and we need to develop alternatives that break our dependence on foreign oil.

I have two questions.
1. Regarding the Trauma Center needs.Though I do not have an issue with taxing cigarettes, could the state not use or apply for a grant from Home Land Security funds for this purpose. Since a Trauma Center would be a necessary Control for a Disaster, it seems a natural course of action to me.
2. The University of Arkansas has recently hired a staff member to instruct law students in the area of illegal immegration. This individual holds the opinion that illegal immegration is not a crime but a civil issue. How can a state agency like the University of Arkansas support, and teach illogical rehtoric like that? Thank You.

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection published a list of 54 chemicals used in hydro-fracturing fluid used in Pennsylvania's Marcellus Shale. Many of these chemicals are known carcinogens and endocrine disruptors. The same type of chemicals have been used in Arkansas's Fayetteville shale for the last two years. Why hasn't the Department of Health or ADEQ made these chemicals known to the public?

Thanks for your answer,

Rod Bryan

Rod -

ADEQ already has a list available, and I think you’ve obtained one yourself, of the chemicals typically contained in the liquids used in these drilling operations. The permit process for companies who later apply these liquids to land areas is changing to require submission of a full chemical breakdown of those fluids to ADEQ for review.

Thanks for the reply Governor,

If ADEQ has a list available, they have not made it public to my knowledge, or even gone so far as to acknowledge the existence of such a list when I spoke to them on the phone. In other words, they acted like they had never heard of such a list when I spoke to them. Perhaps that's protocol? It seems to me that if such a list has been acknowledged by ADEQ, it should be expeditiously shared with anyone and everyone who wants to see it.

Are you committed to changing the quota system for UAMS so that the most qualified candidates are accepted into the program instead of selection based on county of residence,etc.? Thank you.

Good afternoon, Governor

I am a employee with 20 years of service to the Great State of Arkansas and have been looking at the new proposed state employee pay plan scale. I can clearly see where starting salaries have been increased for some positions to attract new qualified employee's, it is greatly needed. I, along with many other longtime veteran state employee's are quite upset that veteran employee's will be basically making a starting salary again, even though they have many years of dedicated service behind them. Is anything going to be added to this plan in attempt to get veteran employee's to remain under state employment who have already been trained for the duties? This pay plan address's the need to enhance pay for better recruitment but does nothing to retain good, dedicated employee's who have remained in state employment through hard times such as low pay, dangerous work enviroment's and even department wide leave without pay due to budget problems. Thank you in advance for your answer.

Dear Governor,

Currently stream bank land owners are allowed to remove unlimited amounts of material from the stream bed and completely denude the stream banks. This is destroying our small streams in Arkansas. What can you and the legislature do to address this problem and protect our streams and water quality?

What can be done to create a more direct route from Hot Springs to Interstate 40? Hwy 7 and Hwy 9 are very difficult to drive, especially at night. Thank you, and I appreciate the great job you are doing as our governor.

Governor Beebe, the past eight years have been tragic for all of those Americans who still believe in civil liberties. This shift in policy can be credited to our Republican President. I fear that the state of Arkansas fell prey to the trend of regarding the preferences and comfort of the majority over the rights and liberties of the individual, and of the minority. This is evident in programs such as the Arkansas Clean indoor Air act of 2006, No-Knock Search Warrants, Pre-textual sweeps of vihicles along with the use of "reasonable suspicion" in the stead of probable cause, local police saturation programs, singling out of smokers with usuerous taxation on tobacco, and of course, discriminating against all unmarried couples, both hetero and homosexual who wish to care for and provide a loving and stable home for neglected and otherwise unfortunate children in the care of the state. I say this to respectfully ask what you as Governor intend to do to help work with the Obama administration to help right the wrongs of the Republican war on liberty and strengthen the rights of Arkansans.

I would like to hear the governor's take on the West Memphis Three Case. Thank you.

It seems creating lottery legislation has become more difficult than it should. While working with legislative leadership on what bill you would sign, why reinvent the wheel? Find a state which is similar to Arkansas – like Louisiana – take their law and substitute Arkansas for Louisiana. That should get as 98% towards legislation they could pass and you could sign. The sooner a bill is created and sign, the sooner education can reap the benefits. Thanks

Why is this posting inappropiate?

Governor Beebe, thank you for answering these questions. As a social worker who works with the state's foster children, I have been alarmed at the state of DHS and the secrecy surrounding the removal of children from abusive homes, the 4 children who died in state custody in two months, and the recent closing of abusive foster homes. I feel like the secrecy in which this government agency operates leads to us making assumptions about what's going on and by my work with these children are that the services they are being provide are woefully inadequate. What are you doing to protect the state's children that have been warded to you?

Hello, Governor,

I have heard about efforts to create a Housing Trust Fund for Arkansas. As I understand it, the purpose of the Fund is to increase affordable, decent, and accessible housing for families. I've heard also that Arkansas is one of only twelve other states which don't have a Housing Fund. Do you like the idea? I think it's a good one, but I don't know how to pay for it.

Joe Zimble, Little Rock

Gov. Beebe:

Would you and the legislature please consider looking into group health care for all state employees? I work at a local college and our health care coverage is very poor. However, I have family who for other state agencies, such as the highway department and other universities, and they have excellent coverage. One comprehensive group plan for the entire state would significantly lower rates and increase coverage. Or, I would like the option of joining coverage of another state agency.

Thank you.

Dear Governor Beebe,

The other day during the announcement that Caterpillar was going to locate in North Little Rock, I heard you say that you hoped that area colleges would step up and help educate future workers for the plant. I work at Arkansas Baptist College, and I was wondering if you could provide us with specific information about what type of skills or classes will help us ensure that interested ABC graduates will have the opportunity to land their share of the 600 new jobs which will be coming to the area. I have asked this same question by email to your website, but I want to be sure I get an answer so we can better serve our students and, in so doing, better serve Arkansas. Thank you for your time.