In the News

Republican legislators in Arkansas are urging Rick Perry, the newly elected secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), to “preserve states’ rights” and review Clean Line Energy Partners’ proposed Plains & Eastern Clean Line project, a 700-mile transmission line that would bring wind power from the Oklahoma Panhandle region to the mid-south and southeastern U.S. U.S. Sens. John Boozman and Tom Cotton and U.S. Reps. Rick Crawford, French Hill, Steve Womack and Bruce Westerman sent a letter ... Read more

The House voted Wednesday to approve a $578 billion spending bill that keeps the U.S. armed forces operating through September and sets the stage for substantial increases in the Pentagon's budget as advocated by President Donald Trump. The fiscal 2017 defense legislation passed by 371-48 in the GOP-led chamber, clearing the way for the Senate to act. Arkansas' four representatives, all Republicans, backed the bill. The Trump administration is preparing a $30 billion supplement to the bill, whic... Read more

The House Financial Services Committee (HFSC) approved six bills today, each designed to improve the environment for small business. All of these bills had previously passed the Committee in a prior iteration. Several had been approved by the full House. HFCS Chairman Jeb Hensarling commented on the legislation; “Top-down, driven policies have stacked the deck against small businesses. Excessive and outdated regulations give the biggest companies a competitive advantage, but undermine entreprene... Read more

Legislation that would allow for wider distribution of research on exchange-traded funds advanced in the Senate on Thursday. The Senate Banking Committee approved the measure, the Fair Access to Investment Research Act of 2017, by a voice vote. The bill would enable broker-dealers to provide ETF research to clients without the information being considered an unregistered offering. The practice isn't currently allowed because of a technicality in securities law that doesn't give ETFs the same saf... Read more

All six members of Arkansas' congressional delegation urged Energy Secretary Rick Perry on Tuesday to "protect state sovereignty" and defend "states' rights" by blocking construction of an energy transmission line proposed to cut across Arkansas. In a letter, the six Republicans urged the former Texas governor to help them fight Clean Line Energy Partners' $2 billion project, which would carry electricity from Oklahoma wind farms to consumers in the southeastern United States. U.S. Sens. John Bo... Read more

David Nason, a General Electric executive and former Treasury Department official, has told the White House he is no longer interested in serving as the Federal Reserve's bank supervision chief. Nason, who heads GE's Energy Financial Services division, had been seen as a leading candidate for the vice chair for supervision position, a critical role in efforts by the administration of President Donald Trump to revamp financial rules. "Mr. Nason informed the White House that he no longer wished to... Read more

embers of Arkansas’ Congressional delegation plan to send a letter to newly appointed U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry asking him to reverse the Obama Administration’s participation in the controversial Clean Line project through Arkansas. Ernest Moniz, the energy secretary under Obama, used “Section 1222” of the Congressionally-approved 2005 Energy Policy Act to green light the $2 billion, 720-mile transmission line that travels through three states to deliver wind-power generated electricity. ... Read more

U.S. Senators John Boozman (R-AR) and Tom Cotton (R-AR) and U.S. Representatives Rick Crawford (AR-01), French Hill (AR-02), Steve Womack (AR-03) and Bruce Westerman (AR-04) today will introduce legislation to restore the right of states to approve or disapprove of electric transmission projects before the federal government exercises its power to take private property. Read more

Members of the all-Republican Arkansas congressional delegation introduced legislation Monday that would effectively block construction of a new power line stretching from Oklahoma to Tennessee, potentially halting the $2 billion project. If approved, federal officials would need permission from state officials before they could approve the use of eminent domain to build an electric power transmission facility within the state. Approval would also be needed from American Indian tribes if the pro... Read more

S. Rep. French Hill was generally pleased with the tone and subject matter in President Donald Trump’s first State of the Union speech, but the second term Republican Congressman said he wants many more details before committing to specific programs. Hill, appearing on this week’s edition of Talk Business & Politics, said Trump’s proposals to reform immigration policy from family unification to merit-based is worth exploring. “When I think about merit-based, it’s both skilled and unskilled labor... Read more