In the News

Tyson's showcase of items canceled Womack attains subpanel position Bond.Ai CEO talks at caucus session

Arkansas-Democrat Gazette
10/11/2020

Third District U.S. Rep. Steve Womack, who serves on the powerful Appropriations Committee, is now ranking member of its Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee.

The spot came open because of the resignation of U.S. Rep. Tom Graves, R-Ga.

Womack, a Republican from Rogers, already serves as ranking member on the House Budget Committee.

In a written statement, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said Womack would provide "experienced and principled leadership," praising his "track record as an appropriator and [his] distinguished career."

"I know Steve will make sure his top priority is to ensure we focus on being good stewards of hard-earned taxpayer dollars," McCarthy added.

The subcommittee's jurisdiction includes the U.S. Treasury Department, the judiciary, the District of Columbia, a host of government agencies and the U.S. Postal Service.

"It's an extremely influential position on a very important subcommittee to all of Arkansas," Womack said. "It covers a large number of bureaucracies, of agencies, that have a true impact on the American economy and I'm very honored and fortunate to be in a situation to be the senior Republican on that committee."

Tyson's showcase

of items canceled

WASHINGTON -- The White House canceled last week's Made in America Showcase after President Donald Trump contracted covid-19 and was hospitalized.

Tyson Foods had been selected to represent Arkansas at last Monday's event, which highlights one business from each of the 50 states.

The president announced his positive test early on the morning of Oct. 2.

"The President extends his sincere appreciation to the companies that planned to attend this year's event at the White House today," press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said in a written statement. "He is incredibly proud of their grit, ingenuity, and use of American labor to manufacture exceptional products on the homeland."

The event features a wide variety of items and is attended by top administration officials.

"Our product display was going to highlight packaging from our Tyson family of brands including Tyson, Hillshire Farm and Jimmy Dean," a company spokesman said.

"We always appreciate the opportunity to highlight the hard work of our team members and our American-made products," he added.

This would have been the fourth annual showcase. Past Arkansas participants included Jonesboro's Hytrol Conveyor Co. in 2017, Flippin's Ranger Boats in 2018 and Stuttgart's Rich-N-Tone Duck Calls in 2019.

Bond.Ai CEO talks

at caucus session

The House Entrepreneurship Caucus heard Wednesday from Uday Akkaruju, chief executive officer of Bond.Ai.

The company, which describes itself as "the most advanced financial intelligence platform for banks and consumers," was founded in 2016. Originally based in New York City, it later moved its headquarters to Little Rock.

Second Congressional District U.S. Rep. French Hill, a Republican from Little Rock, invited Akkaruju to participate in the caucus's virtual round-table talks.

Hill is co-chairman of the bipartisan caucus, which was launched last year. He hosted Wednesday's event, along with U.S. Rep. David Schweikert, R-Ariz., and U.S. Rep. Bill Foster, D-Ill.

For these lawmakers, entrepreneurship isn't an abstraction, Hill noted.

"All three of us have personally begun startups and personally backed startups," Hill noted.

Before being elected to Congress, Hill was Delta Trust & Banking Corp.'s founder, chairman and chief executive officer. The company was acquired in 2014 by Simmons First National Corp.

Participants Wednesday described the challenges businesses face as a result of the covid-19 public health emergency as well as the importance of the federal Paycheck Protection Program.

Despite the economic downturn, "we, as a company, have been doing well," Akkaruju said.

Plenty of other businesses are struggling, he noted, encouraging lawmakers to provide flexibility in future assistance programs.

Planning to visit the nation's capital? Know something happening in Washington, D.C.? Please contact Frank Lockwood at (202) 662-7690 or flockwood@arkansasonline.com. Want the latest from the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette's Washington bureau? It's available on Twitter, @LockwoodFrank.