By Joyce O. Ajayi and Joseph Johns On Friday, September 8, 2023, Governor Sarah Sanders announced that a special session would begin at the Arkansas Capitol on Monday, September 11. In her announcement of the special session, the Governor hinted at potential amendments to the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act (AFOIA). She specifically mentioned a […]
transparency
Shining the Light on COVID-19 Relief Funds for Arkansas
by Mavuto Kalulu, Assistant Professor of Economics According to the Pew Research Center article, “Public Trust in Government: 1958-2022,” published on June 6, 2022, only two in ten Americans trust the government in Washington to do what is right “just about always.” The seemingly good news for state governments is that people trust their state […]
How to Curb Corruption
By Caleb Taylor How can local governments discourage corruption among public officials? Create more systems that provide for checks and balances, says ACRE Policy Analyst Joyce Ajayi in “Curb temptation” published in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette on July 16. Ajayi writes: In his book “Principles of Fraud Examination,” Joseph Wells, the founder and chairman of the […]
Arkansas Policy Recommendations: Political Transparency
By Caleb Taylor How can Arkansas counties improve their political transparency? In their latest research, “Arkansas Policy Recommendations: Political Transparency,” ACRE Policy Analysts Joyce Ajayi and Dr. Mavuto Kalulu discuss how county elected officials can improve the transparency of their quorum court meetings. Ajayi and Kalulu begin by noting that some Arkansas counties still don’t […]
Arkansas Policy Recommendations: Procurement Transparency
By Caleb Taylor How can Arkansas counties and school districts improve their procurement transparency? In their latest research, “Arkansas Policy Recommendations: Procurement Transparency,” ACRE Policy Analysts Joyce Ajayi and Dr. Mavuto Kalulu discuss how counties and school districts can improve the web transparency of their finances. Ajayi and Kalulu begin by noting that “Arkansas has […]
Arkansas Policy Recommendations: Elected Officials’ Salaries Transparency
By Caleb Taylor How many county governments publish the salaries of their elected officials? In their latest research, “Elected Officials’ Salaries Transparency,” ACRE Policy Analysts Joyce Ajayi and Dr. Mavuto Kalulu discuss this and ways county governments can improve their online transparency. Ajayi and Kalulu begin by noting that only two counties in Arkansas publish […]
ACRE Expert Testifies on Transparency for Economic Development Incentives
By Caleb Taylor Should local public officials be able to meet in secret to discuss economic development projects? House Bill 1280 sponsored by State Rep. Delia Haak R-District 91 and State Sen. Lance Eads R-District 7 would amend Arkansas’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to allow for an executive session to be called by local […]
Brighter Lights in Faulkner County
By Mavuto Kalulu Kudos to the Faulkner County Quorum Court, the legislative body of Faulkner County government. Before the pandemic, on August 21, 2018, it enacted Ordinance 18-16 to enhance the transparency of its public meetings by posting recordings on the county website. This allows citizens to listen or watch what transpired in the quorum […]
Transparency: Everyone Has a Role to Play
By Joyce Ajayi A popular adage says, “Many hands make light work.” This means things are done quickly and efficiently when people work together. Transparency is a way to get more hands to lighten the work of making government accountable. Transparent governance creates platforms and initiatives for sharing information freely and openly. Many sets of […]
Greater Transparency in Faulkner & Other Arkansas Counties
By Caleb Taylor ACRE Policy Analysts Joyce Ajayi and Dr. Mavuto Kalulu spoke to the Faulkner County Tea Party on March 5 about their latest research on online transparency in Faulkner County and other county governments in Arkansas. Faulkner County climbed from the 8th most online-transparent county in 2018 to 6th in 2019. This comes […]