The second quarter was kind to Pine Bluff-based Simmons First National Corp. and Conway-based Home BancShares Inc., with Simmons posting results that beat estimates and Home BancShares – the parent company of Centennial Bank – setting a new quarterly income record.

Simmons First reported better-than-expected second quarter earnings before the opening bell on Thursday (July 17), propelled upward by the Pine Bluff bank's continued shopping spree for strategic out-of-state assets and foreclosed FDIC properties.

For the period ended June 30, the Arkansas regional bank posted second quarter net income of 60 cents, or $9.9 million per share, up 53.8% from 39 cents a year ago. Analysts surveyed by MarketWatch had expected Simmons First to post second quarter earnings of 54 cents per share on revenue of $53.6 million.

“The second quarter was a landmark quarter for Simmons. We announced two acquisitions totaling approximately $3 billion in assets and reported record core earnings and record core earnings per share for the quarter,” George Makris Jr., chairman and CEO, said in a statement.

Overall, Simmons posted record core earnings of $9.2 million for the second quarter of 2014, an increase of $2.7 million, or 42.8%, compared to the same quarter last year. Diluted core earnings per share were a record $0.56, an increase of $0.17, or 43.6%. Core earnings exclude $755,000 in net after-tax earnings.

During the second quarter, Simmons announced two out-of-state acquisitions that will add nearly $3 billion in assets to the holding bank’s financial books. In late May, Simmons announced it planned to acquire all of the outstanding common stock of Springfield-based Liberty Bancshares Inc. in an all-stock transaction valued at nearly $207 million.

Earlier in the same month, Simmons entered into a similar agreement to buyout Community First Bancshares of Union City, Tenn., in a stock-deal value at more than $243 million. Both deals are expected to close by end of the year.

Here are other highlights of Simmons quarterly earnings report:
• Total loans, including those acquired, of $2.4 billion, increased by $512 million, or 27.3%, compared to a year ago.

• Total deposits jumped nearly 30% to $3.6 billion, an increase of $829 million from a year ago. Total non-time deposits totaled $2.6 billion, up 72%.

• Net interest income of $40.4 million, an increase of $10.8 million, or 36.7%, from the same period of 2013. This increase was driven by growth in the legacy loan portfolio and assets acquired through Simmons’ $53.6 million takeover of Metropolitan National Bank of Little Rock in late 2013, the bank said.

Simmons’s shares (NASDAQ: SFNC) closed Thursday at $37.63, down $1.79 in an overall market decline brought about by international incidents. During the past 52 weeks the share price has ranged from a $43.22 high to a $24.06 low.

HOME BANCSHARES
Home BancShares reported record second quarter earnings, easily beating a year ago profits and matching Wall Street expectations to the penny.

For the period ended June 30, the bank posted quarterly profit of $28.4 million, or 43 cents per share, up nearly 60.5%, or $10.8 million, from $17.7 million and 31 cents a year ago. A survey of analysts polled by MarketWatch had expected the fast-growing Arkansas bank to report earnings of 43 cents per share.

Excluding after tax items, Home Bancshares reported second quarter earnings of 44 cents per share versus 32 cents a share a year ago. Company Chairman John Allison said he was pleased with the record quarterly results and is looking to continue to grow in the future.

“During the upcoming quarters, we recognize there is a need for organic loan growth,” Allison said. “We are encouraged by the opportunities we have in front of us because we currently have the largest unfunded loan pipeline in our history.”

During the second quarter, Home BancShares said it closed or merged four Arkansas and two Florida locations. In late April, Home BancShares purchased Traditions Bank of Florida in a stock deal worth $43 million. That transaction closed on Thursday (July 17). Following that deal, the Arkansas bank said it had $7.1 billion in total assets, $5.6 billion in deposits, $4.6 billion in loans and 156 branches across Arkansas, Florida and South Alabama.

Additional highlights of Home BancShares second quarter results include:
• Net interest income for the second quarter of 2014 increased 74% to $78 million from $44.8 million during the second quarter of 2013.

• Total non-covered loans were $4.13 billion at June 30, 2014. Total covered loans came in at $263.2 million for the same period.

• Stockholders’ equity was $897.2 million at June 30, 2014 compared to $841 million at December 31, 2013, an increase of $56.3 million.

Home BancShares (NASDAQ: HOMB) closed Thursday at $30, down $1.08 in the overall market decline. During the past 52 weeks the share price has ranged from a $38.98 high to a $24.83 low.

Arkansas’ jobless rate fell to 6.2% in June, with the number of employed virtually flat compared to June 2013 and the labor force size shrinking by almost 20,000 in the year-over-year period. However, the monthly estimate showed a gain of 3,200 jobs year-over-year in the state’s troubled manufacturing sector.

The June rate of 6.2% was below the May rate of 6.4% and below the June 2013 rate of 7.6%, according to the report issued Friday (July 18) by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The June figures are subject to revision.

Arkansas’ labor force was an estimated 1.305 million in June, below the 1.315 million in May, and down 1.46% compared to 1.325 million in June 2013. The year-over-year comparison shows an estimated 19,465 fewer Arkansans in the labor force. There are 53,545 fewer Arkansans in the labor force compared to June 2007, a decline of almost 3.93%.

The number of employed in Arkansas during June was 1.224 million, below May employment of 1.231 million, and just 196 estimated jobs fewer compared to levels in June 2013. The number of unemployed was an estimated 81,609 during June, down from the 84,199 in May, and well below the 100,825 in June 2013.

Arkansas’ annual average jobless rate fell from 7.9% during 2011 to a revised 7.5% during 2012. The initial annual average jobless rate for Arkansas during 2013 is 7.5%.

Year-over-year, the Leisure and Hospitality (tourism) sector was up 3,800 jobs, manufacturing was up 3,200 jobs, Education and Health Services jobs rose by 3,000, and the construction sector was up 2,300 jobs.

ARKANSAS SECTOR NUMBERS
In the Trade, Transportation and Utilities sector — Arkansas’ largest job sector — employment during June was an estimated 241,700, down from 243,100 in May and ahead of the 240,300 during June 2013. Employment in the sector hit a high of 251,800 in March 2007.

Manufacturing jobs in Arkansas during June totaled 155,200, up compared to 153,500 in May and above the 152,000 in June 2013. Employment in the manufacturing sector fell in 2013 to levels not seen since early 1968. Peak employment in the sector was 247,300 in February 1995.

Government job employment during June was 214,600, down from 214,800 in May and below the 215,500 during June 2013.

The state’s Education and Health Services sector during June had 174,600 jobs, down from the 176,000 during May and up from 171,600 during June 2013. Employment in the sector is up more than 22% compared to June 2004.

Arkansas’ tourism sector (leisure & hospitality) employed 108,700 during June, down from 108,800 during May, and above the 104,900 during June 2013. Employment in this sector reached a high of 109,100 in March.

The construction sector employed an estimated 47,300 in June, up from 47,000 in May and above the 45,000 in June 2013. The sector is off the employment high of 57,600 reached in March 2007.

NATIONAL, REGIONAL DATA
The BLS report also noted that 49 states had unemployment rate decreases from a year earlier, and one state had and increase. The national jobless rate during June was 6.1%, and was down from the 7.5% in June 2013.

Rhode Island and Mississippi had the highest unemployment rate among the states in June at 7.9%. North Dakota again had the lowest jobless rate at 2.7%.

The June jobless rate in Oklahoma was 4.5%, down from 4.6% in May and down from 5.5% in June 2013.

Missouri’s jobless rate during June was 6.5%, down from 6.6% in May and down from 6.8% in June 2013.

A recently released feature from National Geographic Magazine titled, “The New Face of Hunger,” documents hunger programs in Iowa, New York and Texas and also includes a four-minute video of efforts by Charolette Tidwell to help provide food to seniors in the Fort Smith area.

“By whatever name, the number of people going hungry has grown dramatically in the U.S., increasing to 48 million by 2012 — a fivefold jump since the late 1960s, including an increase of 57 percent since the late 1990s,” notes a segment from the feature on the National Geographic website. (The video of Tidwell may be viewed at the end of this story.)

The report notes that in 1980 there were a few hundred emergency food programs in the U.S., but that has grown to an estimated 50,000.

“Finding food has become a central worry for millions of Americans. One in six reports running out of food at least once a year. In many European countries, by contrast, the number is closer to one in 20,” according to the report.

TIDWELL’S EFFORTS
Tidwell, who founded the Antioch Consolidated District Association for Youth and Family about 13 years ago with her late husband, organizes food deliveries once a week to poor seniors and families in Fort Smith. The National Geographic feature also includes interviews with Ken Kupchick, director of marketing and development for the River Valley Regional Food Bank.

Tidwell worked at Sparks for 33 years having worked her way up from a nurse to director of nursing. She then worked 10 years for Fort Smith-based Beverly Enterprises (now Golden Living) in nutrition services. According to Kupchick, Tidwell has now devoted her retirement years to getting adequate nutrition to our youth and elderly.
 
At last count, Tidwell and more than 15 volunteers coordinate with food banks and other food providers to help 1,474 elderly and disabled in Fort Smith on a monthly basis. 
 
“Most of the funding for what she does comes out of her own pocket,” Kupchick said in an e-mail note to The City Wire.
 
Tidwell and volunteers deliver approximately 140 bags of groceries to the elderly in places like Nelson Homes, Coleman Commons, West Apartments, Gorman Tower, the McGill Center and Allied Gardens. Kupchick said she also includes a bouquet of flowers, compliments of Walmart, when available.

“I turn no one away. No one,” Tidwell says at the end of the video.
 
The video of Tidwell’s efforts in Fort Smith was produced by Shannon Sanders, a videographer from Piggot, a small town in northeast Arkansas.

Kupchick played a key role in recruiting National Geographic. Magazine editors initially did not want to highlight hunger in Arkansas because the state “was too easy a go-to story,” Kupchick said in a December 2013 interview about the process.

Kupchick pressed the editors and requested they at least use Arkansas to highlight the issue of senior hunger. His persistence paid off. Although the editors opted to exclude Arkansas from the printed piece, they did decide to make a video for their website focusing specifically on the growing threat of senior hunger.

HUNGER STATISTICS
According to Feeding America, 54% of Americans have used a food pantry for at least six months or more during the past year. The report also found that seniors are hardest hit when it comes to food insecurity, with one in three “recurrent” food bank clients being 60-years of age or older.

Following are more hunger statistics from Feeding America and other sources.
• More than one third of all people visiting food pantries (36%) report having used a food pantry at least every month within the past year, and on average use a food pantry for more than 28 consecutive months.

• Among the elderly, well more than half (56%) are long term recurrent pantry users, suggesting that the fixed incomes of elderly may be insufficient to provide for basic needs.

• In 2012, 2.8 million (8.8%) households with seniors experienced food insecurity. 1.1 million (9.1%) households composed of seniors living alone experience food insecurity. The number of food insecure seniors is projected to increase by 50% when the youngest of the Baby Boom Generation reaches age 60 in 2025.

• Seniors are more likely to be food insecure if they: Live in a southern state; Live with a grandchild; Are African American; or Are Hispanic.

• Food insecurity sometimes isn’t about money for the elderly. They may have enough money to purchase food but do not have the resources to access or prepare food because of lack of transportation, functional limitations, or health problems.

• Elderly households are much less likely to receive help through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) than non-elderly households, even when expected benefits are roughly the same. Only 34% receive SNAP benefits who would otherwise qualify.

The Weekly Standard founder, publisher and editor Bill Kristol says Arkansas is “almost” a must-win for Republicans if they are to take back the U.S. Senate.

Appearing on this week’s Talk Business & Politics TV program, Kristol said the Mark Pryor-Tom Cotton U.S. Senate battle is high on national political watch lists and that a Cotton victory is crucial to GOP ambitions.

“If Republicans want to win the Senate in November, this one is almost a must-win,” said Kristol, who was in Arkansas as a keynote speaker at the Arkansas GOP’s Reagan-Rockefeller dinner.

Kristol said he expects a close race this fall in the high-profile match-up and that there are two reasons why the contest is so tight.

“Incumbents are hard to beat and, I gather from my friends in Arkansas, that a Pryor is hard to beat,” Kristol said. He added that outside Democratic group attacks have been effective in tainting Cotton, although he disagrees with their accuracy.

Kristol offered his take on why Arkansas has not shifted into a Republican stronghold like other Southern states such as Mississippi, Alabama or Texas. One reason, he said, is the political power of Bill Clinton whom he described as a “very different kind of Democrat” as governor and as president. Clinton “tacked to the center” often unlike President Barack Obama.

“Barack Obama is not the kind of Democrat that traditional Arkansas Democrats are interested in supporting,” Kristol said, citing Clinton’s bipartisan budget deals, welfare reforms, and foreign policy efforts.

ARKANSAS IMPORTANCE
Kristol also said that Arkansas has always carried much sway in U.S. politics owing to its larger-than-life, influential state politicians who’ve made big impacts on the national stage.

“Arkansas has always been a state of outsized interest and importance nationally,” he said. Kristol grew up studying Sen. J. William Fulbright, and he’s long watched the careers of other politicians like Bill Clinton and Mike Huckabee.

“For a small state, it has always produced nationally significant politicians. I think people in Washington kind of remember that,” said Kristol.

While 2014 will be a monumental election year, it’s hard not to think about 2016. Kristol said it’s too early to predict the GOP Presidential nominee, but he sees a reversal of fortunes in what he describes as a “wide-open” Republican field.

“Republicans used to nominate the next in line, the second place finisher from four or eight years before. Democrats usually have interesting wide-open races,” he said. “It looks like this time, the Democrats are nominating the next in line — the person who ran second in 2008, Hillary Clinton. Republicans are having more of what looks like a classic Democratic primary — governors, senators, former candidates. A lot of them young, a lot of them untested nationally. As a Republican, I like that.”

While he voted for Dole, McCain and Romney, he said those Presidential nominees weren’t the best match-ups versus Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.

“The irony in 2016 is the Republicans will have the younger, fresher face and the Democrats will be nominating someone whose been around for awhile,” he said.

Retail giant Wal-Mart might claim to be a constant low cost leader and match other retailers’ sale prices, but it does not match its online prices and makes no apologies for that policy.

The retailer outlines its policy on its website: “The merchandise and prices on our website do not reflect the merchandise and prices available in our stores. Our stores will not match prices with our online store (or other online prices) because we do not consider them to be in competition with our retail stores. Currently, we do not have access to store inventory lists or price lists at this website.”

Clark Howard, a nationally syndicated consumer advice writer, finds it hard to understand that a retailer claiming to “bridge the intersection of physical and digital” refused to give him the lower online price for a Lego set he recently tried to purchase for his son. The Atlanta Journal Constitution published his report about the experience.

Retail experts from across country have weighed in on this policy at RetailWire, most finding Wal-Mart ‘s actions toward Howard to be a step-back and a poor lesson in customer service.

“Retailers may have their reasons for not matching their own online prices, but to consumers those reasons don't make any sense. Whether it's Walmart, Gap, Target or other stores, all these policies serve to do is make consumers mad. Retailers should do a better job of explaining the practice or drop it,” according to Max Goldberg, president of Max Goldberg Associates.

Other experts like Frank Riso note that Wal-Mart will have to learn that it cannot manage its inventory with two different price models using their stores as pick-up and return centers.

“The consumer knows only Wal-Mart and not Wal-Mart Stores versus Walmart.com. It has taken at least 10 years for retailers to realize that the consumer only knows the brand and not the channel. Wal-Mart will learn, just give them time to reflect on it,” Riso added. He is the principal of Riso & Associates.

Jason Goldberg, vice president of at Razorfish, said the dual pricing policy is “horrible” because with a customer “it's all Wal-Mart.” The differences in overhead costs in the distinct channels are irrelevant to the consumer, Goldberg added. He said it’s out-of-character for the “Always Low Prices” retailer.

“In this world of perfect information and complete pricing transparency, consumers will know they aren't getting the best price from Wal-Mart and will always have to fear that they should be getting a better price — exactly what Walmart doesn't want,” Goldberg said.

Ironically, Wal-Mart has invested millions in advertising campaigns that promote its low in-store prices and recently vowed to roll out its “Savings Catcher” program and expand it to include general merchandise and produce. Wal-Mart has said its Savings Catcher program is about reassuring consumers that they are getting the lowest price when they shop at Wal-Mart’s physical stores. Goldberg notes that consumers may not buy the story given that store prices aren’t even Walmart’s best prices.

Other experts believe Wal-Mart has no choice but to try and match Amazon pricing online, which are apt to change throughout the day. The constant price changes in-store would be problematic. That said, when a consumer asks for the lower online price while in-store and that item will be filled from that supercenter, most believe the correct policy for Wal-Mart is to give that customer the lower price immediately.

“We're definitely seeing some growing pains as new models emerge for retailers to figure out how to do omnichannel. The problem here is that positioning the stores as being in competition with the website seems entirely bizarre, and that message will likely change,” said Matt Schmitt, president of Reflect.

Bikes, Blues and BBQ, an event that began in 2000 with around 300 motorcycle riders, is expanding to include a motorcycle rally at Arvest Ballpark in Springdale that will include a car show, cooking contest and live music.

The event that sprung up in Fayetteville and now has an estimated attendance of 400,000 is set for Sept. 24-27, with Dickson Street and adjacent surroundings in Fayetteville as the center of activities. Other events include the Jack Daniels Charity VIP Ride, the Cherokee Casino VIP Ride and Concert and the Miss BBB contest.

Event and Springdale officials said Monday (July 21) that the “major expansion” of the event to Arvest Ballpark was made possible because of the $23 million Don Tyson Parkway Interchange on Interstate 49. The new road with several access points will allow for the expected high attendance numbers.
 
“We are thrilled to host these popular Bikes Blues and BBQ events in Springdale and at Arvest Ballpark,” Springdale Mayor Doug Sprouse said in a statement. “The thousands of fans who help make this one of the nation’s top rallies now have another great venue for these showcase events. We look forward to rolling out the red carpet to everyone this September.”
 
More than 350 vehicles are expected for the 3rd Bikes Blues and BBQ Car Show which will be held in the Arvest Ballpark parking lot. An additional 100 motorcycles produced prior to 1984 will also be showcased onsite at the Ozark Vintage Motorcycle Association Vintage Bike Show. A veteran’s ride is also planned during the two-day Springdale event.
 
“Springdale and Arvest Ballpark will be a tremendous venue for this expansion of Bikes Blues and BBQ,” said Joe Giles, BBB executive director. “We’ve worked closely with the Mayor, the Chamber and the Springdale A&P Commission in timing this expansion with the opening of the new interchange. Our board believes this will be a home run for the thousands of Bikes Blues and BBQ fans that converge on Northwest Arkansas each fall.”

Perry Webb, president of the Springdale Chamber of Commerce and newest member of the BBB Board of Directors, praised the move.
 
“Arvest Ballpark is an ideal venue for a major event like this. We’re proud our state-of-the-art venue can help this rally continue to grow,” Webb said in a statement.
 
The NWA Steak Cooking Championship, a preliminary contest to the World Steak Cooking Championship, will also be held during the two-day event. Attendees will have the opportunity to sample contestants’ product and purchase a steak dinner from their favorite chef after judging.
 
Springdale will also be home base for activities sponsored by The Ride of the Brotherhood, an organization dedicated to veterans, veterans’ charities and children’s programs, and the Soldier’s Wish Project, an organization that helps meet the needs of wounded or convalescing vets. Arvest Ballpark will also host a Soldier’s Wish Area that will feature live music and some of the region’s best vocalists at the 3rd annual BBB Karaoke Contest.

Link here for the 2014 Bikes, Blues and BBQ event schedule.

Wal-Mart Stores is offering teachers across the country 10% savings on classroom supplies. The retail giant kicked off the campaign in its hometown of Bentonville on Monday (July 21) by presenting the local school district with a $1,000 gift card and surprised each Bentonville teacher with a $25 gift card and a basket of school supplies.

Wal-Mart’s research indicates that 53% of teachers received less in funding last year, which was the catalyst for this year’s event. The retail giant has donated more than $20 million to U.S. educators in the last five years.

Teachers who shop at Walmart stores during its Teacher Appreciation Week (July 25 to 31) are eligible to receive a Walmart eGift Card for 10% back on nearly 15,000 products.

“On average, teachers around the country spend about $1,000 readying their classrooms, and half of that comes from reaching into their own wallets to make sure students have what they need,” said Steve Bratspies, executive vice president, general merchandise for Walmart U.S. “We’ve had a commitment to supporting teachers in the communities we serve for many years. This program is one more way we’re helping lessen the cost, increase support and set teachers up for success.”

The program allows teachers who shop for supplies between July 25 and July 31 to register their receipts online by Aug. 15. By entering the teacher’s school information and receipt transaction code, the retailer can calculate the savings on eligible items and deliver an e-gift card within 14 days of submitting the receipt online.

BIG BUCKS
What’s in it for Walmart? A lot. The National Retail Federation reports that consumers will spend $26.5 billion on back-to-school items this summer. The average family with children in grades K-12 will spend $669.28 on apparel, shoes, supplies and electronics, up 5% from $634.78 last year, according to the NRF release.

“Slow improvements in the economy may have contributed to the growth in confidence among back-to-school shoppers, and while we are encouraged by the overall tone of the results and expect to see continued improvement in consumer spending through the year, we know Americans are still grappling with their purchase decisions every day,” NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said in a statement.

He said spending has fluctuated based on family needs each year, and this summer, parents are expected to spend cautiously, as they make decisions for their family budget that is a balance between what their children want and what they need.  

Retailers look forward to this event as it’s one of the biggest spending occasions of the year. The survey found parents ready to spend more on what’s needed. Overall, every category will see an increase in spending. According to the survey, back-to-school shoppers will spend an average of $212.35 on electronic items, up 7% from $199.05 last year. 

SPENDING PATTERNS
High school students and their families specifically will spend an average of $229.88 on electronic items. As school districts’ requests for classroom supply contribution rise, spending on school supplies will increase 12% to an average of $101.18, compared to $90.49 last year. 

Households will also spend an average of $231.30 on clothes, up from $230.85, and $124.46 on shoes, up from $114.39 in 2013.

Department stores, discount stores, drug stores and electronics stores are all expecting more sales this year. According to the NRF survey, 64.4% of consumers will visit discount stores, 59.1% will shop at their favorite department store, 38.2% will shop online, 27.5% will shop at electronics stores, and 20.5% will shop at drug stores.

For the first time, NRF asked school shoppers about their plans to shop at local, small businesses for their needs, and 17.4% said they plan to support local, small retailer to buy school items.

A proposed millage increase to be voted on next month would net the Fort Smith Public Library an additional $2.8 million in revenue, allowing the library to expand offerings and upgrade technologies to meet customer expectations.

That was the message library executive director Jennifer Goodson shared when interviewed about the millage increase Monday (July 21), the first increase the library has sought since 1957's increase from a half-mill to one-mill.

Goodson said the current one-mill of property taxes accounts of about $1.4 million of the library's annual operating budget. Additional funding comes from the countywide sales tax, of which the library receives 6% of the city's share of revenue. The amount totaled $921,239 in 2013 and was budgeted at $925,572 this year.

Another revenue source for the library includes $100,000 in fines and fees collections. The library also receives some state funding and grants. The library's 2014 budget was set at $2.7 million.

Should voters approve the two-mill hike on Aug. 12, Goodson said the additional $2.8 million would slightly double the library's budget and allow the largest library system in Sebastian County to expand its offerings.

She said the plan presented to the public through a series of civic presentations, town hall meetings and online at LibrariesChangeLives.us was developed in coordination with the library's staff, board of directors, endowment and other community stakeholders and offers services of some sort for all Fort Smith residents, not just children or adults.

"Part of the intention of creating this plan for the library's future was to come up with a future for the library that impacted every single person in the community. So we didn't want something that just impacted children, although that's certainly important. We didn't want something that just impacted techies, although that's important, too. And so the plan really has something, or I say in many cases multiple somethings, that benefit every single person in the community."

Following are specific areas where the funding will be spent, according to the library's campaign website promoting the millage increase:
• Offer more books, audiobooks, and DVDs;
• Expand special collections such as Spanish language, Vietnamese language, large print, and Genealogy;
• Lease copies of bestsellers to better meet customer demand;
• Offer more digital magazine titles through Zinio;
• Offer more eBooks and downloadable audiobooks through Library2Go;
• Expand the resources available through TumbleBook Library;
• Add new eBook offerings such as Disney Digital, Sesame Street books online, BookFlix, and Safari computer/technology books online;
• Offer Netflix-style streaming video through hoopla, Freegal Movies, and/or other services;
• Update, upgrade, and expand current technology;
• Add computers for children, teens, and adults;
• Upgrade Internet speed, improve WiFi;
• Update and add software for library users;
• Upgrade and redesign the Fort Smith Public Library website;
• Add the ability to accept online payments of fines and fees;
• Develop a mobile app to better direct library users to digital resources;
• Upgrade the Main Library Community Room audio/visual system;
• Microfilm-to-digital conversion project for newspapers and other historical materials;
• Print-to-digital archives conversion project for one-of-a-kind print materials such as photographs and funeral home records;
• Replace digital signage systems inside the libraries; and
• Checkout Kindles/iPads/laptops to cardholders for in-library or outside library use.

Goodson said the decision to add to and improve so many items should the millage pass was made in an effort to serve "every single person in the community."

"And we recognize that not everybody in the community uses every resource and service that we offer and that's part of serving a community the size of Fort Smith. And we also recognize that on a day-to-day or a year-to-year basis, what people need and look for out of the public library will change. Someone with little children is going to use the library very differently than someone whose children are grown and out of the house or who may not have children at all. So that sort of goes back to what I was saying about the plan — we recognize that not everyone in the community will be excited and enthusiastic about every part of what we offer with expanded funding, but we've got several things in the plan that will appeal to folks no matter how they use the library."

While each individual improvement or addition to the library cannot be detailed in each and every presentation, Goodson did point out the need to improve technology at all library locations and not just by increasing the inventory of iPads and computers.

She said the library plans to install RFID (radio frequency identification) at the library's branches in order to improve inventory control and customer service. The technology would not only allow the library to locate mis-shelved books or be notified of books being taken from the premises without first being checked out, but it would also allow for the eventual implementation of self-checkout of books.

"It's one of those infrastructure things that will improve the quality of people's experience when they come into the library when they really don't know what all is going on in the background," Goodson said.

The library's main branch will also feature a "maker space," which she said would allow individuals to use technology such as 3-D printers and video editing equipment for personal projects or possible small business needs such as a training video.

The maker space is not intended to serve as a business incubator, Goodson said, adding that the goal was simply to offer specific technologies to the public.

"In the library world, the philosophy behind a maker space is being able to offer technology to the public that they may not be able to get their hands on another way. And so technology in the maker space environment is very broadly defined. A 3-D printer is one of the most common things that appears in a library maker space and that's something that a lot of people really don't have access to any other way. So this would be an opportunity for people to utilize a 3-D printer that they might now have access to."

The date of the special election, Aug. 12, was selected in order to focus the conversation on library needs instead of being drowned out by other statewide races taking place in November, according to Goodson.

She added that if approved, the two-mill increase to three-mills would cost Fort Smith homeowners (with a median home price of $100,000) about $60 per year, or $5 per month. The current one-mill accounts for $20 per year in property taxes, or about $1.66 per month.

And if approved Goodson said she hopes it is another 57 years before another millage increase is requested.

"But at any rate, we expect the additional two-mills to position the (branch) libraries well into the future. We have very strong facilities, we just now need the funding for what goes on inside the facilities to be as wonderful and as strong and supportive as the facilities, the buildings are."

The Crawford County Quorum Court will look for additional funding for the Crawford County Election Commission after the commission ran out of money following the recent primary runoff election in May.

According to Election Commissioner Bill Taylor, the problem came about not as a result of how the commission spent its budget, but at how the Quorum Court funded the commission.

"They cut the Election Commission's budget," he said, referring to the Quorum Court's attempts at the end of 2013 to balance its budget.

In doing so, the budget for the Election Commission was reduced from an average during gubernatorial and presidential election years of $140,000 to $150,000 down to $90,000.

Any reimbursements the county receives from the Secretary of State's office for conducting elections now instead of going back to the Election Commission instead goes to the county's general fund.

"They anticipated revenue from the state," Taylor said. "It's not been anticipated revenue until this year. Now it comes back to county general. They did it this year to balance the budget."

He said an appropriations ordinance was needed to move funds for Election Commission use to make it through the upcoming school board elections, general election and potential general runoff election. The appropriations ordinance may come to the Court before the Secretary of State's office in Little Rock remits reimbursements to the county for the most recent elections.

Taylor said the county would submit reimbursements to the Secretary of State's office tied to the primary election for about $50,000 in costs. The state has already reimbursed the county for nearly $20,000 in election costs, meaning there would be about another $30,000 waiting to be returned to the county’s general fund. Taylor said the $30,000 could arrive back to the county by September, though he was unsure of an exact date and said it could always change.

County Judge John Hall told the Court that while the funding may come out of county general before reimbursement arrives, "it all comes out of the same pot."

No action was taken on the specific appropriations request from the Election Commission, though Taylor said the funding would need to be in place in time for the remaining elections later this year.

In other business, the Court approved a resolution authorizing Hall to apply for a grant to support the Rural Fire District One in the amount of $48,325. The grant would fund the purchase of new extrication equipment at the fire department under the GIF Fire Protection Grant.

The Court also approved an an appropriations ordinance that amended the FY 2014 Budget for the county, reflecting several contracts tied to construction of the new county jail approved by voters in May. Sales tax revenues have not yet started flowing for the project and Hall said the county was not allowed to incur debt until August.

The new jail will be constructed on Alma Highway/U.S. Highway 64 just outside of Van Buren at a cost of $20 million. It will house the jail, the sheriff's office, 911 center and a courtroom. No date has yet been set for completion, though a representative of Stephens Inc – the financial services company handling the issuance of construction bonds for the project – said the project should be complete by September 2017.

Some reports of the closely watched U.S. freight industry suggest the economy performed well in the first half of 2014, with the only hiccup being a 0.8% decline in the June truck tonnage index reported by the American Trucking Associations’.

The ATA Truck Tonnage Index was down in June after a revised 0.9% gain in May. For the first half of 2014, tonnage is up 2.8% compared to the same period in 2013, according to the ATA index.

The not-seasonally adjusted index, which represents the real change in tonnage hauled by the fleets, fell 0.5% below the previous month.

“June was one of those months where the data doesn’t quite match up with the anecdotal reports from fleets,” ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello said in the report. “We had heard the freight volumes were good.”

‘THINGS ARE NOT BAD’
Brad Delco, a transportation industry analyst with Little Rock-based Stephens Inc., agrees that the ATA report for June does not match what he sees and hears from the trucking companies he follows. Delco said April and May numbers were strong, with the strength partially a function of demand returning after weather delays earlier in the year.

“June was a very strong month in terms of the carriers I’m talking to. ... I’m not hearing of any material weakening in the freight market,” Delco told The City Wire, adding that “things are not bad in the trucking world right now.”

Delco did say the industry is seeing a “governor” on activity related to capacity issues and driver shortages. He also said the capacity shortage in the truckload industry is pushing some business to less-than-truckload (LTL) carriers like Fort Smith-based ABF Freight System. According to the Stephens LTL Yield Index for the first quarter of 2014, LTL tonnage was 12.692 million, ahead of the 11.831 million in the first quarter of 2013.

In his report, Costello said tonnage had increased for four consecutive months prior to June totaling 4.4%.

“Despite the small reprieve in June, the second quarter was much better than the first quarter. Tonnage increased 2.3% from the first quarter, which was the largest quarter to quarter gain since the first quarter in 2013. Compared with the second quarter in 2013, tonnage increased 3.2%, a percentage point better than the first quarter year-over-year increase,” Costello explained.

Trucking serves as a barometer of the U.S. economy, representing 68.5% of tonnage carried by all modes of domestic freight transportation, including manufactured and retail goods, according to the ATA. Trucks hauled 9.4 billion tons of freight in 2012. Motor carriers collected $642.1 billion, or 80.7% of total revenue earned by all transport modes.

The equity markets are betting on positive trends in the back half of 2014. For example, shares of Lowell-based J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ: JBHT) were recently upgraded by Credit Suisse and Sanford Bernstein. The shares have traded recently at or near the 52-week high, with late Tuesday afternoon trades at $78.95 reflecting a more than 1.1% increase. During the past 52 weeks, the share price has ranged from a $79.89 high to a $69.33 low.

Also on Tuesday, the company announced a quarterly dividend of 20 cents per share payable Aug. 15 to shareholders of record as of Aug. 1.

The Dow Jones Transportation Index was up more than 1% in Tuesday afternoon trading, and at 8,445.10, was trading near the 52-week high of 8,468.89. The 52 week low is 6,212.54.

THE CASS REPORT
The Cass Freight Index for June showed shipments up 2.4% and freight spending up 4.2% – a difference that shows the rise in prices related to the combination of increased demand and tightening capacity.

“June shipment volumes increased 2.4 percent to the highest level since November 2007, just before the recession. Volumes were 6.0 percent higher than a year ago and are up 15.8 percent since the beginning of 2014. Construction and manufacturing activities – both drivers of demand for transportation services – have been rising for several months,” Rosalyn Wilson, a supply chain expert and senior business analyst with Vienna, Va.-based Delcan Corp., noted in the Cass report.

Cass uses data from $22 billion in annual freight transactions processed by its information processing division to create the index. The data comes from a Cass client base of 350 large shippers.

Wilson, who authors the Cass report, said the outlook is good for the trucking and shipping sectors because “current growth sectors in the economy depend on transportation services.”

Wilson also said recent GDP reports do not necessarily bode ill for the transportation sector. The federal Bureau of Economic analysis reported June 25 that the first quarter GDP fell at an annual rate of 2.9%, following a GDP rise of 2.6% in the fourth quarter of 2013. The contraction was the most severe in five years.

“Despite some talk that the slowing and then contracting economy could signal another recession, the foundation and building blocks for a growing economy are stabilizing and growing,” Wilson noted. “Sales of both new and existing homes are increasing, industrial and government construction have been up for the last several months, and manufacturing has been largely growing for close to a year. Retail sales have yet to show signs of significant growth, but they are not shrinking either, and consumer confidence levels have surpassed pre‐recession levels.”

The City of Fort Smith has already begun preparations of the fiscal year 2015 budget and members of the city's Board of Directors had their first public opportunity to weigh in on the process Tuesday (July 22) at the group's noon study session at the Fort Smith Public Library.

In a memo to the Board regarding the work underway for 2015's budget, City Administrator Ray Gosack told city directors that the city's financial situation appeared to be improving compared to the previous year.

"Our 2014-15 financial outlook has improved compared to our 2013 outlook," he wrote. "The local unemployment rate is currently at 6.3% compared to 7.8% at the same time last year (a 19% reduction). Inflation is approximately 2%. Revenues are meeting budget projections for the most part, and we've not had to consider service or spending cuts as we did last year. For 2015, we're projecting most major revenue sources to grow slightly or remain flat. These include sales tax, property tax, franchise fees, water and sewer sales, street operations revenues, and sanitation revenues as outlined below. No rate, tax, or fee increases are included in these assumptions."

The city's sales taxes (1% for streets and 1% combined for water and sewer projects and fire and parks and recreation) collected $3.005 million in the May report, 7.4% lower than budgeted.

Overall for the first five months of the year, revenues from the city's sales tax collections are 1.08% below last year's totals for the same period. Collections so far in the 2014 reporting period of the two taxes were $16.363 million, where the same period in 2013 saw collections of $16.542 million. The same period in 2012 saw $16.769 million.

POSSIBLE RATE INCREASES
Even though no rate increases were included in the assumptions outlined by Gosack, he did acknowledge that sewer rates increases "will likely be necessary in order to begin implementation of the consent decree requirements for wet weather sanitary sewer system improvements."

Sales taxes are projected to grow 1%, while property tax and franchise fees are expected to grow by 2%, he said. Sanitation is not expected to have any growth in revenue, while street maintenance is expected to show "normal growth of 0.7%."
The assumption, without taking into account possible rate increases, for water and sewer stands at "normal growth of 1.8%," Gosack wrote.

City Director Keith Lau asked whether the consent decree requirements would necessitate additional spending in the 2015 budget or whether it would hold off until 2016.

"I think we'll probably have to spend starting in 2015," Gosack replied. "It may not be at the beginning of the year, but sometime in 2015 we'll … I think right now, we'll begin implementation of those requirements because otherwise we'll fall behind."

Gosack added that the city was in the process of quantifying how much the city would have to spend to be in compliance with the consent decree and said another round of meetings with the U.S. Department of Justice and the Environmental Protection Agency in coming months as the city works to no longer be in violation of the Clean Water Act.

Work is already underway on two wastewater overflow storage tanks near Zero Street and Jenny Lind, as well as a pump station on Navy Road. The Jenny Lind project has cost taxpayers more than $18 million, while the Navy Road project cost nearly $13 million.

FUTURE PENSION LIABILITY COSTS
To be added to the budget later in the year are goals and items included in the city's update to the comprehensive plan, which City Planning Director Wally Bailey said would likely be complete and ready for adoption by the Board sometime in October.

Gosack said work on the budget could include just "generic information" tied to the comprehensive plan update until the final version of the plan is adopted by the Board. While not an immediate problem, one issue addressed during the budget discussions was the upcoming pension liabilities, which City Finance Director Kara Bushkuhl said would be in a deficit in approximately 2018.

"The impact to the city's budget will come when there are insufficient funds to make the required contributions for the police and fire," she said. "And we're projecting that to be after 2018. ... That's when it will affect the budget, but as far as the financial statements, they will show a huge liability for those and they've always been reported."

Gosack said Fort Smith is not alone with the problem of unfunded pension liabilities. It is for that reason that Mayor Sandy Sanders said Fort Smith administration and elected officials were working with the Fort Smith delegation to the Arkansas General Assembly seeking a solution to the problem that will bubble over in 2018. Bushkuhl said the solution developed by the legislature could result in local tax increases to cover the liabilities.

"What has been discussed is either allowing individual cities to increase their millage. Another suggestion has been a specific sales tax for the police and fire pension. Just the legislature is going to have to give us a funding option to take care of this because like Ray said, it's not just Fort Smith."

Some Republican candidates in Arkansas are jumping on the opportunity to comment on Tuesday’s (July 22) rulings by two federal appeals courts that affect the nation’s healthcare law.

The rulings came within hours of each other. A divided court panel in Washington ruled that the subsidies that help millions of low- and middle-income people pay their premiums can only be paid in states that have set up their own insurance exchanges. But in Virginia, another appeals panel unanimously came to the opposite conclusion.

U.S. Rep. Tom Cotton, R-Dardanelle, said in a statement about the first ruling: “Today’s ruling is just the latest example of why we must start over on healthcare reform.”

Cotton has made his opposition to the federal healthcare law a cornerstone of his campaign against U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., who supports the law.

Pryor responded to the ruling too, taking after Cotton.

“Congressman Cotton isn’t leveling with Arkansans, and that’s because he has no solutions except kicking 180,000 working Arkansans off of their private health care plans, raising taxes on nearly 40,000 more, and returning to the days where insurance companies denied coverage to Arkansans with pre-existing conditions,” Pryor said.

Republican and State Representative Bruce Westerman – who is running for Cotton’s congressional seat – said in a statement that both rulings “highlight the fact that Obamacare was a poorly-written takeover of people’s healthcare and an ill-conceived law.” Westerman faces Democrat James Lee Witt in November.

The White House says policyholders will keep getting financial aid as the administration sorts out the legal implications. The Department of Justice said Tuesday that the Obama administration will push for a review by the full 11-judge panel.

The department issued this statement: "We believe that this decision is incorrect, inconsistent with Congressional intent, different from previous rulings, and at odds with the goal of the law: to make health care affordable no matter where people live. The government will therefore immediately seek further review of the court's decision. In the meantime, to be clear, people getting premium tax credits should know that nothing has changed, tax credits remain available."

Some legal experts say that if the two appeals courts remain in conflict, the issue may find resolution by the U.S. Supreme Court.

ALCOHOL SALES
A Friday firm lawyer representing a group opposed to a proposed constitutional amendment that would allow the legal sale of alcohol in all 75 Arkansas counties has asked Secretary of State Mark Martin to stop accepting petitions for the measure.

The Arkansas Beverage Retailer’s Association is behind a push to keep a proposal to legalize alcohol sales statewide off the November ballot. The association has formed a group called “Let Local Communities Decide For Themselves.”

Attorney Betsy Murray, representing Let Local Communities Decide For Themselves, said the petitions were submitted in violation of state law. Citing Amendment 7 of the Arkansas Constitution, Murray said the deadline for statewide petitions to be submitted should have been July 4, not July 7, as was scheduled by Martin.

Amendment 7 says that “initiative petitions for statewide measures should be filed with the Secretary of State not less than four (4) months before the election in which they are to be voted upon.”

The general election is slated for Nov. 4, 2014. Murray said state law mandates that the petitions were turned in after what should have been a “specified deadline.”

A Secretary of State spokeswoman says it’s standard practice to roll the deadline to the following business day if the deadline falls on a holiday. She says the Secretary of State’s office is researching the matter in order to present the appropriate response. They said they are anticipating litigation and couldn’t comment any further about what their response will be.

The group pushing for expanded sales of alcohol, Let Arkansas Decide!, has been given permission to collect more signatures for its proposal under a 30-day “cure” period. It needs to submit more than 78,133 valid voter signatures to qualify for the ballot.

Give Arkansas A Raise Now, which is pushing to raise the state’s minimum wage to $8.50, is also collecting additional signatures after submitting its initial collection to the Secretary of State on July 7.

Regional business and civic leaders who responded to an informal survey by The City Wire do not share the pessimism exhibited in a recent Rasmussen Poll in which only 29% said America’s best days like ahead.

A closely watched Rasmussen poll recently reported that just 29% of likely voters surveyed believe the country’s best days lie ahead, down four percentage points from April and the lowest point during the eight-year history of the survey.

The question asked in the poll was: “When you think about our nation in the context of history, are America’s Best Days in the future or in the past?” The national telephone survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted by Rasmussen Reports on July 7-8, 2014. The margin of sampling error for the survey is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.

Results showed that 52% said the country’s best days are behind us, up from 48% in April. This ties October’s recent high and is one of the few times this figure has passed the 50% mark. Also, 18% said they are not sure.

Ed Clifford, president and CEO of the Jones Trust and the head of the Bentonville/Bella Vista Chamber of Commerce for more than 11 years, said it’s not about better days being ahead, but that simpler days are in the past.

“I think that much simpler days are behind us, and that our national leaders haven’t figured out how to operate effectively in this new, very complex environment, either nationally or internationally. Until they do, we’re at the very least going to tread water, and this leads to trouble as time goes on,” Clifford said.

“Fundamentally optimistic” is Kathy Deck, director of the Center for Business & Economic Research at the Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas. She added a caveat that her optimism is continually evaluated by keeping an eye on “day-to-day realities.”
 
“My optimism is based on a long view. While it is clear that over the short term, we face what seem like intractable political problems, what is true is that we have the fundamental capability to make good decisions,” Deck explained in an e-mail note. “I think that the proliferation of information is both the reason behind our pessimism (negative messaging hits us at every turn) and the key to our future success (good information is the key to making the best of what we’ve got.)”

Rod Coleman, chairman and CEO of Fort Smith-based Benefit Bank, which also is active in Northwest Arkansas, is “very optimistic.”

“We are seeing great growth already in our business and see potential that we have not seen in the past 6 years. Particularly in NWA,” Coleman wrote, adding that Federal Reserve actions to increase interest rates would hurt the economy.

Also in the optimistic camp is Kelly Johnson, director of the Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport Authority,

“I am a bit optimistic. I believe we are going to continue for a while to see a downturn but I think our nation will rally; so no, I don’t believe our best has come and gone,” Johnson said.

Her optimism is in part based on the brains of the next generation.

“There is a lot of innovation that has yet to occur and there are a bunch of really smart young people out there who are committed to innovate or die!” Johnson noted.

On that theme, Greg Kaza, director of the Little Rock-based Arkansas Policy Foundation, had a simple response when asked if he was optimistic: “America will always be a beacon for entrepreneurs.”

The poll also found that 58% of the likely voters polled believe American society is “fair and decent,” and that those who immigrate to the country should adopt U.S. language, culture and heritage.

The transition from fire protection provided by what is now known as the 188th Wing to an airport-run fire department has hit some speed bumps, the Fort Smith Airport Commission were told during its monthly meeting Tuesday (July 22).

According to Fort Smith Regional Airport Executive Director John Parker, "lack of movement" on the part of the National Guard Bureau in Washington, D.C., has called into question whether the initial agreement announced by Parker to allow the airport to use vehicles and equipment already on-site at the 188th Wing's fire station once the National Guard ends its firefighting mission at the airport. The National Guard unit has transitioned from a manned flying mission to an unmanned flying mission, therefore eliminating the necessity of its own fire protection which also provided protection for the airport as a whole.

The Federal Aviation Administration requires airports to have varying levels of on-hand firefighting personnel and capabilities. According to Parker, Fort Smith will meet FAA standards by employing four full-time employees with an estimated two additional part-time employees and possible on-call, as needed staff to cover shifts.


On Tuesday, Parker provided to The City Wire an e-mail from Program Manager Kathy Franklin of the Federal Aviation Administration in Fort Worth, Texas. Franklin's e-mail recalled the a meeting between Parker and the National Guard Bureau at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport in which Air Force Col. Peter Sartori made commitments to Parker regarding use of equipment and vehicles.

"During the meeting, Col. Sartori announced that the ANG Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting (ARFF) equipment and facility can be jointly used by the airport past the end of the fiscal year, until Ft. Smith Regional can secure their own ARFF equipment and facility. Therefore, two new joint use agreements between the airport and the ANG need to be written," Franklin wrote.

In a memo to the Airport Commission distributed at Tuesday's meeting, Parker said the Fort Smith Regional Airport has complied with requirements from the FAA that it place a new air response firefighting truck (ARFF) in its Fiscal Year 2017 plan and a letter to the National Guard Bureau seeking to renegotiate the land lease where the current National Guard fire station sits on airport land.

He noted that the FAA and the National Guard Bureau met in Washington following the April 4 meeting at Dallas/Fort Worth, ultimately resulting in a directive from the FAA that the Fort Smith Regional Airport move up the purchase of an ARFF truck to FY 2015, which Parker said has been done.

"We are now 10 weeks away from taking the responsibility for ARFF on ourselves without the NGB (National Guard Bureau) / US Air Force being full engaged on their verbal contract," Parker wrote. "I have asked the Chairman for permission to advertise for a complete ARFF service contract through a request for proposal and Chairman McGhee approved this action. Without the equipment offered by the NGB, we will have to contract for use which will be far more costly than the original plan."

Parker told commissioners during Tuesday's meeting that some movement had taken place with the National Guard Bureau and the U.S. Air Force regarding the ARFF situation, but he said the request for an ARFF service contract was still needed as a backup should the military not have a deal in place or back out before ARFF services end by the National Guard on Oct. 1.

Once the airport receives requests for proposals on the ARFF service, Parker said he would have a definite answer regarding costs though he noted that planning figures now allocate $750,000 for ARFF protection "which would be one third of our current revenues annually."

Parker told commissioners that the airport had already advertised for and received applications for its own fire department and he hoped to be able to fulfill the commission's original intent to hire its own department versus contracting services to an outside vendor.

"NGB officials made contact with the airport this week and I have answered a number of questions on the phone and through email from officers who did not have previous connection to our agreement from April, but I am willing to talk to anyone who might have the ability to honor the promises made to us," he wrote. "We are in the unenviable position of having to track every option available to us with equal effort, as the NGB has waited so long to finally answer our requests for information. We will continue to prepare for every option and seek to present the most cost effective method of ARFF services meeting the requirements of FAA."

Tonnage shipped along the Arkansas River is down for the first half of 2014, but it is not necessarily bad news according to a Fort Smith-area river operator.

According to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, January through June tonnage on the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System totaled 5.782 million tons, down 3% from the same period in 2013.

Tonnage shipped into the Arkansas River system totaled 2.449 million tons and tonnage shipped out totaled 2.152 million tons during the first six months of 2014. The inbound figure represents a 6% increase in traffic while outbound saw a decline of 14%. Internal shipping stood out, with a 12% increase representing 1.181 million tons over the same six-month period in 2013.

Marty Shell, president of Van Buren-based Five Rivers Distribution, said the overall 3% decline (which includes inbound, outbound and internal combined) did not necessarily mean the economy was slipping. In fact, he said just the opposite.

He said some food-based items are being held longer by farmers before selling and shipping, which is keeping figures for that shipping sector either flat or slightly down.

"The outbound is probably going to be comparable for grain movements," he said. "All the corn that's grown in this region all goes to the chicken farmers. The only stuff that really moves out is wheat and soybeans. What's happening is these farmers are holding onto it. You'll see the increase in a couple of months when the soybeans are ready to cut. They'll dump the wheat (at that time)."

Overall, wheat tonnage along the river is down 9% at 602,100 tons while food/farm products are unchanged at 334,150 for the first six months of the year. Soybeans are up 69% to 415,100 and could increase further as more is harvested, Shell said. He added that it would take a few months for the wheat tonnage to rebound, depending on how much longer farmers hold their wheat for sell and shipment.

"The farmers are holding onto it to get the very best price on it. You'll see the outbound number increase."

Bryan Day, executive director of the Little Rock Port Authority, said while the grains and other food-based tonnage may be flat or down, one bright spot is building materials. The minerals and building materials category increased its tonnage by 23% to 254,980 tons while increasing its sand, gravel and rock tonnage by 18%, to 1.461 million tons. Iron and steel also increased by 5% to 832,325 tons.

"I think what you could say is the manufacturing sector is on the increase," Day said of the totals.

Shell said the increases, especially in sand and gravel, show construction could be on the increase, as well. But he said the one area dragging down the tonnage reports is coal, which is down 51% over the same six-month period last year, only totaling 221,400 tons shipped along the river.

"It costs more to get it out of the ground than what you can sell it for," Shell said. "The export market for it is weak and until it corrects itself, it will drag everything down."

And even though a big drop like what coal experienced is driving down the overall numbers, Shell said being down only 3% is not a bad place to be. He said a move up or down 3% from last year's total is fairly normal and to be expected.

As for what the rest of the year holds, he said it looks to be steady but still a long way off from the boom years before the Great Recession of 2008.

"I would say the economy is better off than where we were a year ago right now. I still just don't have that warm fuzzy feeling just yet. But we are in a better position than a year ago. Now, we're not making leaps and bounds like we were back in 2006, '07 and '08. We're just inching forward. But we're better off than we were."

As long as the weather holds and the Corps is able to handle potential weather hazards that could impact river flow downstream, Shell expects the final tonnage report for the year to turn out solid numbers.

"We're not knocking home runs, but getting singles and doubles," he said.

A recent study by the website Wallet Hub lists Arkansas as among the nation's most inexpensive states when it comes to energy consumption, but an official with a local electric cooperative said that could change if proposed federal environmental policies are fully enacted.

The study ranked Arkansas as the eighth-least expensive state when it comes to energy costs, being beat by only Colorado, Washington State, Montana, Rhode Island, Nebraska, the District of Columbia and Pennsylvania.

The study said a typical Arkansan spends on average $319 per month on energy, with breaks down to $101 for home electricity, $36 for natural gas and $182 for automobile fuel. While the rating might appear good for Arkansas, the different components that made up the rating have both extreme highs and lows when ranked against other states.

One example is in the electricity consumption per consumer, where Arkansas ranks 44 out of 51, while the state's rank on price of electricity ranks 3rd least expensive in the nation and on price of fuel, the state ranks 5th least expensive in the nation.

THE WALLET HUB METRICS
Wallet Hub's John Kiernan explained in more detail how the rankings were compiled.

"We used six key metrics to examine the various factors — from the price and consumption of residential electricity to the price of fuel at the pump and number of miles driven — that affect energy costs in the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia," he wrote on the site.

He added that the following equation used to calculate the average monthly energy bill in each state using data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the Federal Highway Administration, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the AAA’s Daily Fuel Gauge Report.

"(Average Monthly Consumption of Electricity x Average Retail Price of Electricity) + (Average Monthly Consumption of Natural Gas x Average Natural Gas Residential Prices) + [Average Fuel Price * (Average Monthly Vehicle Miles Traveled / Average Car Consumption / Number of Drivers)] = Average Monthly Energy Bill Consumers Pay in Each State"

COAL SUPPORT
Greg Davis of Arkansas Valley Electric Cooperative said there is a simple reason why Arkansas' energy costs are low.

"There's a one word answer for that — coal," he said.

According to Davis, about half of the state's energy consumed during non-peak hours is generated by coal power plants.

"Coal is cheap because one, it's a domestic fuel source. We have (about a 250-year supply) of coal. We could be generating at current levels with coal and we have enough for another 250 years to do that,” he explained.

Part of the cost savings seen with coal deal with transportation, he said.

"It's domestic. Our coal (Arkansas Valley Electric Cooperatives) comes from Wyoming. The only transport costs are the rail charge to get it to the facility," he said.

A recent report by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers could back up Davis' assertion about coal's inexpensiveness, as it showed coal shipments down along the Arkansas River, with one local port operator noting that it costs more to get coal out of the ground than it would sell for on the open market.


NUCLEAR POWER
Davis said another 25% of the state's energy is provided by Arkansas Nuclear One near Russellville, which he said also contributes to the low costs for energy in the state.

"It is safe to assume the facility construction was paid for a long time ago and provides very low cost electricity. It certainly plays a role in the states’ lower than average electric rates," he said of nuclear power delivered by the Pope County facility.

Even though Arkansas Nuclear One has been a big driver in Arkansas' energy needs for decades (construction began in 1969 and the plant went online in 1974) and is likely to for decades to come, Davis said the same cannot be said of coal because of proposed new regulations by the Environmental Protection Agency. He said new EPA regulations aimed at reducing CO2 levels nationwide are going to have an adverse affect on Arkansas, increasing energy costs as coal is eventually phased out. The move, he said, is likely to impact everything from home energy prices to jobs.

"With the new EPA regulations, Arkansas will be tasked with a 44% reduction in CO2 emissions. So Arkansas won't have coal plants by 2030. We'll probably have some of the highest energy rates and that's an absolute fact," he said. "Manufacturing is attracted to where you have low energy rates. … So our rates will go up and it will certainly have a serious adverse affect on all economic activity."

He pointed to steel production as being a manufacturing sector that specifically came to Arkansas for its low energy costs, saying that could impact future manufacturer's decisions to relocate to the Natural State.

"Businesses look at a lot when look to build or relocate and energy costs are huge. The two biggest (energy) loads in Arkansas are steel mills. They use a ton of energy. Their decision to locate in Arkansas was based in large part on our overall energy costs."

MORE EFFICIENCY NEEDED
But Michele Halsell, director of the Applied Sustainability Center at the Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, said costs do not necessarily have to go up for consumers just because the price of electricity is likely to increase. She pointed to an American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy study that showed Arkansas at 37th in the nation for energy efficiency.

"They say the typical Arkansas household could save 37% on average on residential energy bills. We're using way more energy than we should be. We use 25% more than the national average in terms of kilowatt hours," she said.

Halsell said by taking measures now to make your home more energy efficient through their energy providers, as well as state and local governments, Arkansans can prepare for the inevitable rise in energy costs.

"People who have been participating in those programs have seen their energy bills cut dramatically," she said. "The price of electricity, the price of a kilowatt hour is important, especially when you live in a leaky house. But when you live in an energy efficient home, that doesn't matter as much. So we need to get our homes, our multi-family apartment buildings, everyplace as energy efficient as we can because there's a difference in the price of a kilowatt and the bill."

MOVE TO NATURAL GAS
As for how energy companies like Arkansas Valley are preparing for the eventual switch in just more than 15 years to no coal, Davis said his company was making use of all sorts of different energy generation methods. Of hydro-electric, he said it helps but there are downsides.

"The hydro-electric power helps a little bit, but that's not base load. If we don't have enough rain fall, then hydro is not helping us whatsoever. But when we have a lot of rain, it helps out."

He said the Electric Cooperative of Arkansas has also invested in a gas facility in anticipation of the switch from coal power to other alternatives, but he said the switch over is going to impact just about every sector of the economy, again possibly bringing Arkansas off the top of the least expensive list.

"Of course, we're buying more wind and we've made some other preparations. But gas is more expensive and when everyone's generating with gas, supply and demand says that gas will get even more expensive."

Joint events in Fort Smith and Washington, D.C., Wednesday (July 23) unveiled the design of a U.S. Marshals commemorative coin to be minted later this year.

The official unveiling of the coin was held at the U.S. Department of Justice office in Washington with U.S. Sens. John Boozman, R-Ark., and Mark Pryor, D-Ark., in attendance, as well as U.S. Rep. Steve Womack and President Jim Dunn of the U.S. Marshals Museum, which will be built along the banks of the Arkansas River in Fort Smith.

Also in attendance were U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, U.S. Marshals Service Director Stacia Hylton and U.S. Mint Deputy Director Richard Peterson.

Unveiled Wednesday was a $5 gold coin that features the U.S. Marshals Service's badge that is now in use, as well as the words "225 Years of Sacrifice." The other side of the coin features an eagle with a shield on its chest that reads "U.S. Marshal." The coin is meant to memorialize fallen U.S. Marshals.

A $1 silver coin was also unveiled that honors the agency's "frontier history," according to the U.S. Mint. The coin features a "historic badge and deputy U.S. Marshals on horseback. The reverse features a frontier U.S. Marshal holding a wanted poster that reads “Wanted in Fort Smith.” A half-dollar coin will also be minted, featuring missions from the agency's 225-year history.

"The obverse features a present-day female deputy U.S. Marshal and an old west U.S. Marshal in the background.  The reverse depicts Lady Justice holding scales in one hand and a U.S. Marshal's badge in the other.  Other elements symbolize U.S. Marshals' involvement during the Nation's changing times, including public school integration," the U.S. Mint said on its website.

"We are extremely proud that two of our own inspectors, Scott Sanders and Oscar Blythe, conceived this idea several years ago, working diligently with the help of several organizations to mark this special occasion," said Hylton, the first female director of the U.S. Marshals Service. "The artists' work depicts our rich history which is reflected in these designs. The coins represent the work of all the men and women behind the badge who have served our country throughout the decades, risking their lives to secure our judicial process and protect our communities and children from violent offenders."

POSSIBLE MUSEUM FUNDING SUPPORT
The U.S. Marshals Museum is counting on the commemorative coin to assist in its fundraising efforts. Dunn said in mid-August 2013 that the museum effort needs between $10 million and $15 million more to reach the “threshold” of between $30 million and $35 million needed to break ground on Sept. 24 — the 225th anniversary of the U.S. Marshals Service — and begin construction. Dunn is also banking on new market tax credits for partial funding of the museum, which he said should bring in nearly $10 million.

He has said an additional $4 million to $5 million could come from sales of a U.S. Marshals Service commemorative coin, with a U.S. Marshals Service press release Monday (July 21) said was scheduled to be minted by Sept. 24.

Money from the coin that go to the museum are restricted to fund “the preservation, maintenance, and display of artifacts and documents” at the Marshals Museum. Revenue from coin sales will also go to the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, the National Law Enforcement Museum, and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Dunn has said previously that about 98% of all coin sales happen through marketing and efforts of the U.S. Mint. Generating the most revenue from coin sales will require the Marshals Museum aggressively pursuing the remaining 2%. He said in August 2013 that meetings with U.S. Mint officials had been positive. The U.S. Mint will accept orders for the coins beginning in early 2015, its website said.

TROUBLED COIN SALE HISTORY
The hopes for potentially millions of dollars in proceeds from the coins may prove to be difficult, website Coin Week reported in January. According to the website, a commemorative coin for the Girl Scouts of America failed to produce any proceeds for the organization after lackluster sales.

"The reason is that sales of the coins, which only reached about a third of the congressionally-authorized maximum mintage, or 123,814 out of 350,000 (as of January 5 unaudited data), were insufficient to cover program costs. By the law organizations cannot receive funds from the sales of commemoratives unless all costs associated with the coin program are first covered. In this case, that meant forfeiting $1.23 million dollars as each proof and uncirculated coin comes with a $10 surcharge. This was the first time that has happened."

The article's author, Louis Golino, noted that the Girl Scouts employed marketing efforts to ensure sales of its coins much as other groups — including the Marshals Museum — have done.

"As Anna Maria Chavez, the CEO of the GSUSA explained in her interview with me, her organization worked to promote the coin through its web site and other venues such as local Girl Scout council partners, who sold the coins in Girl Scout shops. And yet that was not enough."

CONGRESSIONAL PRAISE
While other organizations may have had struggles with sales, Womack said demand for the Marshals coin was high.

"I’m delighted by the designs for the U.S. Marshals Service commemorative coins.  These coins highlight the Marshals’ long history of justice, integrity, and service, and their sale will be driven by high demand and help fund the U.S. Marshals Museum in Fort Smith – a world class museum and permanent tribute to one of America’s greatest law enforcement institutions.”

Boozman noted how the coins were a tribute to the work done by Marshals across the nation and in Fort Smith during the service's long history.

“These great designs highlight the dedication and commitment of the men and women who serve in the U.S. Marshals Service as well as Fort Smith’s role in the history of this law enforcement agency," he said. "These coins are a great tribute to those who sacrifice their lives for law and order. I’m proud to have played a role in accomplishing this commemoration and celebrating Fort Smith’s storied history with the Marshals Service."

Pryor spoke of the work done by the Arkansas congressional delegation to get the bill authorizing the commemorative coins through Congress.

"Our state is deeply rooted in the heritage of the U.S. Marshals Service. It was an honor to join Jim Dunn, Senator Boozman, and Congressman Womack at the unveiling of the U.S. Marshals Museum 225th anniversary commemorative coins," Pryor said. "I was proud to work with the Fort Smith community and the Arkansas delegation to pass this bill and help honor the U.S. Marshals Service. I can’t wait to purchase the coins and visit the U.S. Marshals Museum when it opens in Fort Smith.”

Walmart U.S. CEO Bill Simon is stepping down after more than four years in the job and eight years with Wal-Mart. Greg Foran, 53, was named the new Walmart U.S. CEO and the transition is effective Aug. 9.

A company statement issued early Thursday (July 24) credited Simon with leading a turnaround that “reinvigorated the company’s focus on everyday low costs, everyday low prices and an increased product assortment.” Simon was also a leader in the effort by Wal-Mart to hire more veterans and to buy more goods made in America.

“During Bill’s eight years of service to Walmart, his passion for our mission, dedication to our associates and our customers, and innovative thinking pushed us forward,” Wal-Mart Stores CEO Doug McMillon said in the statement. “From the very beginning, his vision led us to lower the cost of health care through our $4 prescription offering. And, most recently, he put us on a path to future growth with small formats and efforts that integrate digital and physical retail.”

Simon and McMillon, 47, were the top choices for succession prior to Mike Duke stepping down as Wal-Mart CEO on Feb. 1. McMillon was eventually selected to lead the global retail operation based in Bentonville. Simon will remain as a consultant for six months to "ensure a seamless transition," according to Wal-Mart.

Wal-Mart spokesman David Tovar told the media on Thursday (July 24) that it was a mutual decision, and said Simon "is leaving on good terms."

“When someone else gets (the job) out of two candidates, it's not unexpected when the other person leaves to go do something else," said Tovar.

He said McMillon had "a number of conversations" with Simon about “the right time to leave," as he wanted to stay on through a transition period, which will give him time to "figure out his next challenge.”

“It’s been an honor to work for Walmart over the past eight years, and this felt like the right time to move on and focus on my next opportunity,” Simon said in the statement. “I look forward to helping the company as much as I can over the next six months.”

Simon leaves with a retirement package worth roughly $9 million in compensation and stock awards, including a $4.5 million payment to be paid in installments through July 2016. He will earn about $300,000 as a consultant through the holiday season. Wal-Mart has a strict noncompete agreement that should keep Simon from seeking work with a competitor for two years.

NOTES ON FORAN
Foran joined the company in October 2011 and became President and CEO of Walmart China in March 2012. Prior to Walmart, Foran held a number of roles with Woolworths, the leading retailer in Australia and New Zealand. He served as the managing director of supermarkets, liquor and petrol with responsibility for more than $40 billion in sales at that time. Foran also served as general manager of Big W, Woolworth’s industry leading discount store business and as general manager of Dick Smith Electronics. He has 35 years of retail experience.

“I’ve worked closely with Greg for the past few years and I’ve seen firsthand his passion for retail. I’m confident that Greg’s strong leadership skills and alignment with our culture will serve our customers and associates well,” McMillon said.

Foran said he is eager to address the changing nature of the retail business.

“Being asked to lead the Walmart U.S. business is a privilege that I don’t take lightly,” said Foran. “I am excited to get started. The needs of our customers are changing dramatically and we have an enormous opportunity to serve them in new and different ways. We must be fierce advocates for our customers, work meticulously to exceed their expectations and earn their trust every day.”

Foran will receive a salary of $950,000, along with a bonus incentive plan earning him as much as 300% of that pay, or about $2.9 million. He also is eligible for an annual equity award with a target value of about $4.9 million, plus $1.63 million in restricted shares, and a $500,000 one-time cash payment, according a contract filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

MARKET REACTION
While it may not be a surprise Simon is leaving, the timing and the naming of Greg Foran as his replacement have some analysts scratching their heads. Belus Capital Advisors’ Brian Sozzi calls the timing of Wal-Mart’s move “odd.” 

“The move to replace Bill Simon as Walmart U.S. President and CEO comes at a very, very odd time. However, if one is good at putting puzzles together, then the reasons why the change is happening two weeks before earnings are obvious,” Sozzi noted.

Sozzi said the recent earnings warning that Simon disclosed on July 9 in a Reuters interview may not have been a popular action within the company and with institutional investors.

“That is a no-no, perhaps a final straw in light of poor management of the business during his tenure,” he noted, adding that same-store sales have fallen for five consecutive quarters and inventories are building.

He said the decision to replace a high-ranking leader of a major retailer before back-to-school and ahead of the holidays is no laughing matter. Sozzi also said the timing “speaks volumes as to the current trends in the U.S. business.”

Simon is credited with the company’s small-store expansion which began late last year in an attempt to grow U.S. sales that had been lost Dollar General and other convenience formats. Analysts applauded the retailer’s focus on small formats but often questioned Wal-Mart about over-saturation possibilities, to which Wal-Mart said it is not concerned.

Gene Hoffman, president of of Corporate Strategies International, said Foran must now transform a stale operation.

“Walmart's U.S. operation's appeal has aged. Its pricing is no longer overwhelming. New ideas and breakthrough concepts are needed,” Hoffman wrote. “Greg Foran has been handed staleness, which I believe is the greatest challenge facing him as the new leader. And his greatest opportunities lie creating new beginnings just as Sam Walton did in 1962.”

Jason Long, CEO of Shift Marketing Group, said his initial thought on the transition was that Simon’s recent signal regarding next quarter’s earnings being soft may have sealed his fate. 

“Doug McMillon’s on the clock to turn comp sales around and he can’t do it without a growing U.S. market. He needs to act with a sense of urgency and this could have been a step in that direction,” Long said.

David Stasser, a retail analyst with Janney Capital Markets, said Foran is “a strong leader with retail expertise to take control of this U.S. business,” but expressed concern about his lack of U.S. experience while at Walmart.

POSITIVE MOVE
Other experts see no problem with the timing or change in leadership at Walmart U.S.

“It’s no shock Bill Simon is leaving after not getting the lead role when Mike Duke stepped down as Walmart CEO last year,” noted Sandy Skrovan, U.S. research director at Planet Retail. “This move demonstrates that Walmart will not rest on its laurels and is definitely open to bringing in fresh blood and new thinking.”

Carol Spieckerman, CEO of NewMarketBuilders, said the timing of the transition makes sense on a number of levels.

“Walmart’s lagging U.S. sales would seem to present an obvious justification for a changing of the guard, but I see it more as a positive, future-seeking move. Walmart is aggressively rolling out small formats and fine-tuning its next-stage, digitally-integrated supply chain efficiencies. Thanks to its aggressive approach to acquisitions, it is also in an exciting and continuous test-and-learn cycle on the digital side of the business,” Spieckerman told The City Wire.

She said the move also combines the global retail experiences of Foran and McMillon. McMillon was head of international operations at Wal-Mart prior to being named corporate CEO.

“Mr. Foran is a terrific choice at this point since so many of these new initiatives either borrow from international markets or are critical to the success of Walmart’s global omnichannel ecosystem. His understanding of global retail dynamics is right for the times and his ascension, along with Doug McMillon’s, speaks to the importance of having a global perspective in today’s retail world,” Spieckerman added.
 
Spieckerman also said Simon’s six-month consulting role at Walmart, paired with the non-compete agreement, ensures he won’t land at a competing retailer in the near future – an important factor consider the number of executive level openings in retail.
 
Spieckerman said given the pace of retail change, it will be fascinating to see where and if Simon resurfaces, or if he will parlay his experience into a non-retail opportunity in the meantime. 

Long, with Shift Marketing, also said Walmart may not be the end of Simon’s retail career.

“He’s only 54 years old and leaves with his reputation largely intact. He’ll get a nice severance package, and after his reported two-year non-compete is up, can resurface for the next chapter in his retail career,” Long said.

A move by an Oklahoma state representative could potentially limit any future growth of strip clubs and other adult oriented businesses in the eastern Oklahoma areas near the Fort Smith and Northwest Arkansas regions.

Rep. Ben Sherrer, D-Chouteau, earlier this month urged Gov. Mary Fallin, R-Okla., to call a special session to limit where adult-oriented businesses could open in rural, non-incorporated sections of the state.

According to Sherrer, construction of a commercial building in rural Mayes County — what he described as the heart of Oklahoma Amish country — lead to his request of the first-term governor. There has been no confirmation of what the building will be used for, though KOKI-TV 23 in Tulsa confirmed that the owner of the land is Hai Ying, who the television station reported owned three adult-themed businesses in other states.

Sherrer told The City Wire his goal was to introduce a solution for his constituents at a statewide level to keep an adult business from opening since the county does not have zoning to keep a strip club or adult oriented businesses from opening.

"The request from my constituents was to find a solution at the statewide level to set up a regulatory scheme, if you will, for adult sex-oriented businesses (establishing clear boundaries) between such businesses and property that is used for residential or church purposes."

He has proposed legislation that would limit adult-themed businesses from being closer than 1,000 feet from a home or church in unincorporated areas. The law, he said, would be based around ordinances already in affect in Rogers and Washington Counties in Oklahoma.

But Sherrer's call for the governor to hold a special session appears to be dead on arrival. Reached for comment, a spokesman for Fallin referenced comments by her communications director, Alex Weintz, to KOKI in which he made clear a session would not occur since she believes the issues raised by Sherrer could be addressed locally. Her office also noted the cost of a special session potentially running hundreds of thousands of dollars per day.

Sherrer said even though Fallin will not call the special session he requested in early July, the issue is not dead. The Oklahoma legislature is scheduled to return for its next regular session in February, Sherrer said, meaning he will have an opportunity to introduce the legislation and see whether his colleagues in the House and Senate are willing to take up the issue.

So far, no organized efforts by any adult entertainment lobby have risen to oppose Sherrer's proposal. In fact, the owner of Cheyenne Gentlemen's Club just west of downtown Fort Smith in Sequoyah County told The City Wire he did not think the proposed regulations would hurt businesses at all.

"I think there's a place for them and it needs to be (away from neighborhoods)," said owner Preston Cloud, who has owned the only strip club on either side of the border in the Fort Smith-area for 23 years and owns others in Tulsa County.

"In Tulsa, they do (have zoning laws). Tulsa is limited to the licensed areas, the zoned areas. We don't have a problem with that. We know where the zoning is and that's where we do business," he said, adding that it would be easy to comply with Sherrer's proposed law should it gain traction during next year's legislative session.

But gaining traction is going to be tough, the Chouteau Democrat said, calling the legislation "dicey."

"What I'm finding is when a Democrat comes off and does something like this, he's big government and anti-business and anti-property rights. When a Republican does this, it is a stand for family values," he said. "Depending on the level of spin you want to put on it, it's kind of dicey because you have the folks. ... what I'm experiencing is the exact same population that was wanting me as a state representative to get something done is the exact demographic of people who oppose more regulation and bureaucracy."

In spite of the accusations that the legislation he plans to introduce could be considered "big government," Sherrer said he would introduce it anyway.

"Constituents asked for me to do what I could and I tried to call the special session to do something immediately," he said. "I told those folks I would file legislation and I intend to keep my word on that."

As for Cloud, the strip club owner serving the Fort Smith market, he said he had no complaints about the proposed law.

"The law works for me, you know?"

Fort Smith and Northwest Arkansas areas do not sit on or near regularly active fault lines, but residents in the regions should pay attention to a new hazard map issued by the United States Geological Survey.

The reason, notes Geologist Scott Ausbrooks of the Arkansas Geological Survey, is because if the big one hits in northeast Arkansas — along the New Madrid Fault Line in what the USGS classified as being in the nation's highest hazard — impacts will be felt across the state and region.

"The effects of a 7.0 magnitude or greater along the New Madrid, especially on the southern extension from Blytheville (in Mississippi County, Ark.) to Marked Tree, will have a profound impact not just locally but regionally," he said. "The other impacts will be felt nationally."

For one, Ausbrooks said, an earthquake of that magnitude would be felt in cities like Fayetteville, Fort Smith and Rogers. He said it could be enough to make items fall off shelves, though he said heavy structural damage as far away as the northwest region of Arkansas would be unlikely.

Even though severe structural damage would be unlikely, infrastructure problems are likely to present themselves.

"You guys probably wouldn't have any damage, but it could impact power and communication that far out, especially if the grid is impacted. And just imagine Interstate 40 becoming a parking lot getting goods to the east. It would have some major impacts. Again, not directly where you're at, but indirectly there would be impacts."

But while it may seem far-fetched to some that an earthquake would even strike in Arkansas, Ausbrooks points to history as a guide and specifically pointing to the earthquakes along the New Madrid in 1811 and 1812 that many seismologists estimate registered as high as 9.0 magnitude and caused church bells to ring in Boston and resulted in damage hundreds of miles from the epicenter of New Madrid, Mo.

And the new maps released by the USGS rank the highest risk not simply based on the likelihood of another earthquake, but when the earthquake is likely to strike.

"While all states have some potential for earthquakes, 42 of the 50 states have a reasonable chance of experiencing damaging ground shaking from an earthquake in 50 years — the typical lifetime of a building," the USGS said in a press release.

In the 243-page study released with the updated maps, the USGS noted that more than 100 years of global earthquake observations were included in the map update process, which includes Arkansas as one of the 16 states with the highest risk of a major earthquake during the next half-century.


But the risks are coming from more than just the New Madrid, the map shows, with Oklahoma's earthquake risk rising, as well. It is that risk that Ausbrooks said could pose a greater threat to the Fort Smith and Northwest Arkansas regions, as the quakes in Oklahoma in recent years have tended to be more shallow and therefore felt more broadly and in some cases, more violently.

And while the New Madrid shows the highest risk, recent memory will remind locals in western Arkansas that Oklahoma's earthquakes — which have led to a rarely issued earthquake warning being issued for the state — are a closer threat. Ausbrooks notes that a 2011 earthquake centered near Prague, Okla., registered a 5.6 magnitude. The quake destroyed several homes in the area and shook items off shelves as far away as Arkansas, he noted.


"In fact, that (5.6) magnitude in Prague actually knocked pictures and stuff off the walls in Fort Smith. There was an impact that far away," Ausbrooks said, before noting that should a 6.0 or higher strike in central Oklahoma, the border region would likely see more of those impacts on a wider scale.

The bottom line, he said, is to take the USGS hazard map seriously and be prepared for the impacts of an earthquake just as you would a tornado or a flood.

"Have a basic flashlight and a call list. Non-perishable goods, batteries, things like that. And just have a plan of action. If something happens, where do you go? What do you do? Basic stuff like that will go a long way in preparedness," Ausbrooks said.