With a Sept. 30 deadline to avert a federal government shutdown, U.S. Rep. Steve Womack is urging Congress to pass a new government funding bill for the coming fiscal year. Republican leaders, however, have been backing a stopgap spending bill, which is what ultimately passed in the House.
Speaking with me on Arkansas Week, which aired Sept. 19 on Arkansas PBS, Womack (R-District 3), expressed frustration with the short-term fix which would only extend funding through mid-November. He’s a senior member of the House Appropriations Committee which in the previous week passed the 12 bills needed for a new funding plan. He had called on the full House to consider the bills
“I’m a bit at odds with my own leadership team on this subject because continuing resolutions are not the answer to America’s fiscal problems,” Womack said. “And once again, here we are at the very end, right on a cliff of a potential lapse in government funding and we don’t have a plan for how we’re going to fund today’s urgent priorities.”
The legislation moved to the Senate, but with Republicans and Democrats locked in a standoff and neither side showing a willingness to compromise, a government shutdown now looks likely. Republicans hold only a small margin in their majority and will need the support of at least a few Democrats to get the bill passed.
During the interview, Womack also spoke about the need for the federal government to help farmers facing their worst financial situation in decades. It’s estimated that about one-third of all farmers won’t survive to plant another crop next season. U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins visited Womack’s district earlier in the week, saying direct financial assistance was in the works and would soon be presented to Congress, though Womack said he didn’t know details of what was being planned. We also talked about legislation he sponsored to ensure veterans get continued access to telemedicine, which was passed last week by the House and now advances to the Senate.
In the second segment of the program, I was joined by Shannon Newton, president of the Arkansas Trucking Association. The industry — which is one of the largest in the state, employing about 100,000 people — is in the third year of a freight recession. Trucking companies had expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic to address problems with the nation’s supply chain, but as life returned to normal, they needed to scale back their operations.
Several important matters are pending in Congress, including negotiations for a new government funding bill and calls for the federal government to provide assistance to farmers who are facing their worst financial crisis in decades. Joining me on Friday’s “Arkansas Week” to discuss the latest was Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Washington Correspondent Alex Thomas.
With just over two weeks left in the federal fiscal year, a spending plan will need to be passed by that deadline to avoid a government shutdown or the need for a short-term fix. The White House is encouraging Congress to pass a stopgap spending bill to extend funding through the end of January. But U.S. Rep. Steve Womack (R-District 3) wants a spending plan to be passed this month.
He sits on the House Appropriations Committee, which on Wednesday voted to advance the 12 funding bills needed for the plan. In a statement later that day, Womack said, “It’s now time for the rest of Congress to finish the job, leave Biden-Harris funding levels in the past, and pass the FY26 appropriations bills that are attuned to the current needs of the American people. This Congress has already shown it can exceed expectations and meet tough deadlines. I strongly urge my colleagues to bring that same energy and commitment to funding the government through regular order.”
In the second segment of the program, Arkansas State Broadband Office Director Glen Howie spoke with me about the state’s application for a federal grant which aims to achieve universal high-speed internet service throughout the state. After years of work to develop the extensive proposal for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program, it was submitted on Sept. 4. He’s confident on the prospects for the proposal.
An amazing project to honor many Arkansas musicians who were influential across a broad range of genres is being planned for North Little Rock. Artist Kevin Kresse, best known for sculpting an eight-foot-tall bronze statue of Johnny Cash that was unveiled last year in the U.S. Capitol, is planning to make busts of 19 additional musicians, along with one of industry executive Al Bell.
The busts, which are scheduled to be completed in 2029, will be displayed in the ATG Pavilion in Argenta Plaza. They will be anchored by a full-size replica of the Cash statue, to be made using the same mold that created the statue for the Capitol. I discussed what’s being planned with Kresse and project Campaign Chair John Gaudin on “Arkansas Week,” which aired Friday, August 29 on Arkansas PBS.
In addition to the busts being placed in the pavilion, replica busts will be provided to the hometowns of each musician. Fans travel from around the world to see the places where Cash, Levon Helm, Sister Rosetta Tharpe and others grew up. This will help those communities honor their legacies.
Below is a complete list of the Arkansans being honored and the towns that will receive busts:
Johnny Cash — Kingsland
Louis Jordan — Brinkley
Al Green — Forrest City
Levon Helm — Marvell
Glen Campbell — Delight
Florence Price — Little Rock
Pharoah Sanders — North Little Rock
Lefty Frizzell — El Dorado
William Grant Still — Little Rock
Charlie Rich — Colt
Sonny Boy Williamson — Helena
Scott Joplin — Texarkana
Big Bill Broonzy — Pine Bluff
Jimmy Driftwood — Mountain View
Conway Twitty — Helena
Sister Rosetta Tharpe — Cotton Plant
Granny Almeda Riddle — Heber Springs
Al Bell — North Little Rock
Albert King — Osceola
Ronnie Hawkins — Fayetteville
Howlin Wolf — West Memphis
In the second segment of the program, I talked with Dr. Pearl McElfish, director of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Institute for Community Health Innovation about efforts to improve maternal health. She provided an assessment of postpartum care, which is especially dire in rural areas. The institute is working to reach new mothers through a combination of telemedicine, mobile clinics and remote monitoring, she said.
This is the online home of Michael Hibblen, managing editor of Newsroom Ventures, which publishes six Arkansas newspapers. I've worked as a reporter, editor and manager for newspapers, radio and TV stations for more than three decades, with this website telling the story of my career. Also featured are outside interests I've researched. The views expressed here are my own and might not reflect those of my employers.
Preserving the Rock Island Depot at Perry
Since 2017, I've been part of a group working to preserve the former Rock Island Depot at Perry, Arkansas. To keep it from being demolished, we raised money to move the depot to an adjacent lot, still alongside the tracks, which is now owned by the city. The building has since been listed on the National Register of Historic Places and our group has become a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE PRESERVATION OF THE DEPOT.
My Book
Released by Arcadia Publishing in 2017, Rock Island Railroad in Arkansas delves into the history of the railroad, which once had a huge footprint in Arkansas. The book features historic photos and tells the story of the Rock Island, which was shut down in March 1980. READ MORE ABOUT MY BOOK.
For 13 years, from May 2009 to December 2022, I worked for NPR station KUAR-FM 89.1 at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. That included 10 years as News Director while continuing to anchor and report. You can read and hear reports from that time on Little Rock Public Radio's website.
