Noel E. Oman
Stories by Noel E.
Informant says $6,700 in cash given to Shoffner campaign
posted: 05/21/2013 4:34 a.m. Discuss
In the criminal complaint filed Monday against state Treasurer Martha Shoffner, a confidential informant told federal investigators that one of two cash campaign contributions “he or she” made to Shoffner’s 2010 re-election campaign was $4,700 to be used to cover the cost of a campaign watch party.
Warplane’s future up in the air
posted: 05/20/2013 4:11 a.m. Discuss
Depending on whom you ask, the aging cargo plane parked on the ramp at the North Little Rock Municipal Airport for more than a half-dozen years is either a dangerous eyesore or a flying legend.
FBI arrests Shoffner; hearing set
posted: 05/19/2013 4:53 a.m. Comments 4
Arkansas Treasurer Martha Shoffner was being held in the Pulaski County jail late Saturday after being arrested earlier in the day by the FBI.
Airport audit finds ledger in a muddle
posted: 05/18/2013 5:17 a.m. Discuss
The state’s largest airport continues to struggle to modernize its financial system.
LR airport staff recommends law firm
posted: 05/16/2013 5:03 a.m. Comments 2
The private law firm that has been working for the state’s largest airport since 2007 will remain under contract for up to an additional six years if the airport staff has its way.
Urging raises, sheriff says low pay drains ranks
posted: 05/15/2013 5:15 a.m. Comments 2
The trickle of Pulaski County sheriff ’s deputies leaving for more lucrative jobs at other law enforcement agencies threatens to become a flood if the county doesn’t boost their pay, the county’s top lawman said Tuesday.
Fliers for fun have new options
posted: 05/13/2013 1:59 a.m. Discuss
The limited liability protection Arkansas landowners enjoy against someone who hunts or fishes on their property now includes people who might land on their property in an airplane.
2 state airports’ towers stay open
posted: 05/11/2013 5:02 a.m. Discuss
The U.S. Department of Transportation announced Friday that all 149 privately operated air traffic control towers at small airports in the United States, including two in Arkansas, will remain open until Sept. 30, the end of the federal fiscal year.
Rockefeller Institute CEO resigning
posted: 05/10/2013 5:03 a.m. Discuss
Christy Carpenter announced her resignation as chief executive officer of the Winthrop Rockefeller Institute on Thursday after two years heading an organization that focuses on regional, national and international issues through seminars, lectures and conferences.
I-40 overpass damaged in crash nearly repaired
posted: 05/09/2013 4:56 a.m. Discuss
State highway crews have all but wrapped up the repair of an Interstate 40 overpass in North Little Rock that was heavily damaged two months ago by a fiery heavy-truck crash that claimed the life of the truck driver.
Cuts threaten weather vigils
posted: 05/06/2013 12:48 a.m. Comment 1
Weather observers, who have been a fixture at the state’s largest airport since at least the end of World War II, loom as the next aviation casualty of federal budget cuts.
Clintons stop at LR airport to mark face-lift, renaming
posted: 05/04/2013 4:45 a.m. Discuss
Bill and Hillary Clinton, in a rare visit to Arkansas as a couple, attended the formal dedication Friday of the $67 million terminal renovation at the state’s largest airport, which is now named in their honor.
Interchange work requires detour along I-430 in LR
posted: 05/04/2013 4:40 a.m. Discuss
Another overnight detour for some traffic through the Interstate 430/ Interstate 630 interchange will begin Sunday night and last through Friday morning, the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department said.
Ex-parole officer for state gives guilty plea
posted: 05/01/2013 4:28 a.m. Discuss
A former state probation and parole officer reluctantly pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court in Little Rock to a single corruption charge as part of a plea agreement with the U.S. attorney’s office.
Nighttime detours set for I-430/I-630 work
posted: 05/01/2013 12:30 a.m. Discuss
A detour for some traffic in the Interstate 430/Interstate 630 interchange will be in place overnight today and Thursday, the first of several nighttime detours that will be in place over the next five weeks, the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department said.
Public’s input on new bridge shows divide
posted: 04/29/2013 12:15 a.m. Comments 2
Opinions on the latest rendering of what a new Broadway bridge would look like are all over the map, according to a review of the final round of comments state highway officials solicited from the general public.
JPs approve 1-year watershed-use delay
posted: 04/24/2013 3:04 a.m. Discuss
The Pulaski County Quorum Court suspended its rules Tuesday night and voted to place a one-year moratorium on most development in the Lake Maumelle watershed to give an independent task force time to further examine and amend proposed zoning regulations.
New historian’s experience in Missouri rankles critics
posted: 04/23/2013 3:51 a.m. Comments 2
Lisa K. Speer, director of special collections and archives at Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau, Mo., is the new director of the Arkansas History Commission and state historian.
Legislators near their 100th day
posted: 04/20/2013 5:02 a.m. Discuss
If the 89th regular meeting of the Arkansas General Assembly comes to an end, as expected, Tuesday, it will go down in history as the longest since the Great Depression.
2 stalled bills get 2nd shot, Senate’s OK
posted: 04/19/2013 12:46 a.m. Comments 2
Two proposed constitutional amendments, left for dead only earlier this week, were revived in committee Thursday and then, just as quickly, sailed through the Senate.
In campaign report, $7,000 listed as stolen
posted: 04/18/2013 midnight Discuss
A former worker in Attorney General Dustin McDaniel’s aborted gubernatorial campaign who was arrested in February and accused of stealing furniture and other items is under investigation in connection with unauthorized campaign expenditures and payments.
License ‘quirk’ fix is aim of House bill
posted: 04/17/2013 3:35 a.m. Discuss
A “quirk” in Arkansas law can leave the spouse or children of an international student without a driver’s license once the student gets an Arkansas job in his field of study.
Proposals on constitution hit roadblock
posted: 04/16/2013 12:58 a.m. Discuss
Two proposed constitutional amendments appeared to die Monday in a joint legislative committee when neither won a recommendation from the members.
Home-schoolers’ team path in bill
posted: 04/13/2013 5:08 a.m. Discuss
A proposal to codify regulations that govern the participation of home-school students in interscholastic activities at public schools was endorsed Friday by the Senate Education Committee House Bill 1789 by state Rep. Mark Lowery, R-Maumelle, is legislation that has been dubbed the “Tim Tebow Law,” a reference to the Heisman Trophy winning quarterback who was schooled at home but played sports at a public high school.
State funding boost for education advances
posted: 04/12/2013 5:08 a.m. Discuss
The House Education Committee on Thursday endorsed a proposal to boost minimum state funding for an adequate education for all K-12 students by 2 percent in each of the next two years.
Proposal to allow in-state tuition for illegal aliens fizzles
posted: 04/11/2013 5:11 a.m. Comments 53
A bill that would have allowed Arkansas colleges and universities to charge in-state tuition rates to students who reside in the state illegally failed to get out of a Senate committee Wednesday.
Panel backs 2 constitutional amendments
posted: 04/11/2013 12:04 a.m. Comment 1
A legislative committee Wednesday night recommended two proposed constitutional amendments for the Legislature to refer to the November 2014 general election ballot.
Panel passes ethics amendment
posted: 04/10/2013 4:01 a.m. Discuss
A proposed constitutional amendment that would more strictly regulate corporate and lobbyist giving cleared the House on Tuesday.
Senate panel backs cap on special license plates
posted: 04/09/2013 4:51 a.m. Comment 1
A Senate committee Monday endorsed legislation to put the brakes on the proliferation of specialty license plates.
Senate committee votes no on Bible-in-school bill
posted: 04/06/2013 5 a.m. Comment 1
A bill that would codify the ability of a school district to adopt curriculum standards for an academic course on the Bible failed Friday to get out of a Senate committee.
Money-in-politics ballot issue OK’d for full Assembly vote
posted: 04/06/2013 4:50 a.m. Discuss
A measure targeting money in politics became on Friday the first proposed constitutional amendment to be referred to the full Arkansas General Assembly for consideration.
Conflict-of-interest bill stalls after Farm Bureau weighs in
posted: 04/05/2013 4:37 a.m. Discuss
A bill spelling out pecuniary conflicts of interests for members of the state’s boards and commissions failed Thursday to get a recommendation from the House Rules Committee after the Arkansas Farm Bureau objected to it.
Panel OKs using state funds for teacher pay
posted: 04/05/2013 4:26 a.m. Discuss
A House committee Thursday endorsed legislation that would allow school districts to use Educational Excellence Trust Fund money to pay for step increases in salary for educators with advanced degrees and experience.
School districts’ losses under bill put in millions
posted: 04/04/2013 5:10 a.m. Discuss
Dozens of school districts in Arkansas face the loss of millions of dollars if the Legislature approves a new funding formula championed by Senate Education Committee Chairman Johnny Key.
Bill would place ban on closing schools
posted: 04/03/2013 3:49 a.m. Discuss
A House committee on Tuesday endorsed a bill that would place a moratorium on shuttering school districts when they have fewer than 350 students.
Bills on bike helmets, car seats slide to halt
posted: 03/29/2013 5:28 a.m. Comments 19
A House committee Thursday voted to table a bill that would require children younger than 14 to wear helmets while riding bicycles and impose a $2 fine on those who break the law.
Panels advise per-pupil aid bumps of 2%
posted: 03/29/2013 12:23 a.m. Discuss
Minimum funding required for an adequate education for all public K-12 students in Arkansas should increase 2 percent in each of the next two fiscal years, the state Senate and House education committees decided in a joint meeting Thursday, setting policy goals for school funding.
School-choice bill clears Senate panel
posted: 03/28/2013 3:26 a.m. Discuss
The Arkansas General Assembly should enact a new school-choice law with a 2015 expiration date, which would allow lawmakers in two years to incorporate, if necessary, a pending federal appeals court ruling on a challenge to the current law, the Republican chairman of the Senate Education Committee said Wednesday.
Rule pulls out proposed-amendment stops
posted: 03/28/2013 3:25 a.m. Discuss
For as long as legislative staff members can remember, the House and Senate State Agencies and Governmental Affairs committees have separately reviewed dozens of proposed constitutional amendments submitted by each chamber, discarding most and forwarding the rest. Then the two committees would meet jointly, review the finalists and pick a few to forward to the voters — recommendations the Legislature frequently agreed with.
Bucking veto, Senate votes for photo IDs
posted: 03/28/2013 12:46 a.m. Comments 2
In a party-line vote, the Arkansas Senate voted to override Democratic Gov. Mike Beebe’s veto of legislation requiring people to provide photo identification to vote.
Hutchinson cites rules, keeps tort measure alive
posted: 03/27/2013 5:40 a.m. Discuss
Competing proposed constitutional amendments to overhaul Arkansas’ tort laws, along with all other amendments proposed by state senators, will be considered by a joint House and Senate committee when it decides which amendments to refer to voters in the 2014 general election, if a Senate committee’s ruling stands.
Police beat
posted: 03/26/2013 4:29 a.m. Discuss
Mugger with knife robs hotel worker A 47-year-old man was robbed at knife point on his way to work Monday morning in downtown Little Rock, police said.
Man caught in LR search an ex-con, records show
posted: 03/25/2013 4:40 a.m. Discuss
A man police shot at and caught after a three-hour search Thursday in a west Little Rock neighborhood has a string of prior arrests and convictions on drug and theft charges dating back a dozen years, according to court documents and authorities.
2 cities in state told air-control towers to close
posted: 03/23/2013 4:48 a.m. Comments 18
The air traffic control towers at airports in Fayetteville and Texarkana are among 149 nationwide that will close beginning next month because of federal budget cuts, the Federal Aviation Administration announced Friday.
Blaze damages law firm’s offices
posted: 03/23/2013 4:09 a.m. Discuss
A fire of undetermined origin heavily damaged a law office on Cantrell Road close to downtown Little Rock and tied up traffic for several hours Friday afternoon.
Plan to divert general revenue to roads stalls
posted: 03/22/2013 4:55 a.m. Discuss
A proposal to devote some future growth in state general revenue to highway maintenance narrowly failed Thursday in a House committee.
LR airport to buy cheaper seats
posted: 03/20/2013 12:10 a.m. Discuss
The commission governing the state’s largest airport has eliminated first-class travel for airport employees and will review other spending practices such as using public funds to pay for holiday gift baskets, catering retirement lunches and funding employee participation in the Susan B. Komen Race for the Cure.
Villines gives up: It’s white for span
posted: 03/19/2013 12:44 a.m. Comments 3
The cost of maintaining the proposed color scheme of the new Broadway Bridge if it’s painted red, white and blue remains too much of an unknown to move forward with the proposal, Pulaski County Judge Buddy Villines said Monday.
Cable-barrier project aims for safer roads
posted: 03/18/2013 1:26 a.m. Discuss
The installation of more than 400 miles of cable barriers on interstate medians over the next three years is part of a new initiative to reduce fatalities from head-on collisions and other crashes in which vehicles drive off the roadway.
Timex pays $2.5 million to LR airport
posted: 03/16/2013 5:03 a.m. Discuss
Timex Corp. has paid the state’s largest airport more than $2.5 million to settle a dispute over contamination of a 9-acre site on the airport property that once was used to manufacture the company’s watches, clocks and other items.
