[applause]

[applause] [applause] >> thank you. critics governor sanders are recognized. quick thinking mr. speaker. good speaker. good afternoon. we have one on the front row. speaker shepherd, president

hester, constitutional officers, members of the supreme court, distinguished members of the general assembly, my family, and my fellow arkansans. it is an honor to join you for my first state of the state address. it is just over a year since i took office and what an incredible year it has been. compared to the inaugural address, today is more low-key. what today lacks in fanfare we make up for in substance. last year i made promises. this year i am reporting results. i didn't do any of it alone. it was the partnership and the work of this body that helped us bring about transformational

change and it wasn't always easy, but it is something we can certainly all be proud of. even on the hard days, one thing we could count on were the people of arkansas. one of the most difficult days since i took office was march 31st of last year, the day tornadoes tore through central arkansas and when i was there 2 days after meeting with students, families and seeing the damage to the town's businesses and the high school. one of the stories i heard about that day was about a group of high schoolers, who came after the storm passed, they showed up to see their school and the damage and unlike everything else, the flagpole was still standing.

but the flags that normally hung there were gone. they searched their town, tracked down there flags and mounted it back on that flagpole. it is the flagpole that is standing in front of that school today and not broken. in government. it's easy to forget the bigger picture, let us lose sight of the people we serve and let us never forget why they elected us to be here in the first place. i came into this office as arkansas's first woman governor and the youngest governor in the country but those are not the data points that matter to me. the ones that i cared about for starting future pay.

the highest tax burden, in the highest in the nation. we were not going to solve those problems with the same failed policies that got us here in the first place so we charted a new course and that meant change. sometimes a lot of it. that made people uncomfortable. it was a safer, stronger arkansas. in fact, our work is making arkansas a model for the nation. our priorities are reflected in the budget that we put before us. hard as it may be i made a promise to the people of

arkansas that we would work to slow the growth of government. with the help of my cabinet, we have kept it. this year's budget increases spending by only 1.76%, far below the year over year average we've had in recent years. if you send me a budget that funds critical services for arkansans while slowing growth of government, i will sign it. [applause] >> that's because as revenues climb and costs slow, we will have room to cut taxes. we've done so by $300 million. i am committed to responsibly phasing out our state income

tax and letting every arkansan take more of their hard-earned money. [applause] >> tax cuts are just some of the bipartisan legislation we have come together to pass. we and acted the protect act, death by delivery, universal licensing reform, social media protections for kids, and much much more. all with support from both sides of the aisle. there are people outside of this chamber and even a few inside who want to distract us from these commonsense reforms. i beg of you do not let them. there is a lot of wisdom in the marble halls of the capital. i have learned even more from spending time with people from

magnolia to benton, which is why i traveled more than 16,000 miles in arkansas last year and hosted more than 250 events. i remember holding a town hall, i was taking questions and i was surprised when half of the crowd sounded like they had come from the sopranos central casting. i thought to people from the northeast just have a way of talking over everyone or do we have our own little italy on the shores? turns out the answer is yes and yes. as i mingled with the crowd "after words" i figured out the reason. these newcomers love our freedom loving state and our great people and they are not just in here. i've met transplants from everywhere i have gone. we are even getting a former

kentucky wildcat in fayetteville as i speak. welcome to arkansas. [applause] >> we have added 21,000 new arkansans last year alone. these newcomers are joined by companies from all over the country and all over the world. i traveled to europe and asia to pitch businesses on arkansas and i'm here to report they liked what they heard. companies proposed $1 billion in new investments last year. companies like lockheed martin are turning arkansas into the arsenal of freedom, supplying israel's iron dome. america's marine corps and service members across the

globe. they are adding 800 new jobs right here in little rock and mississippi county is now the top steel producing county in america. [applause] >> you can tell where the northeast arkansas crew is. walter arms is helping us defend our rights with the expansion in port smith. companies are making investments left and right in south arkansas. our national economy is dragging. blue states are shrinking. .. states are shrinking. but arkansas is roaring ahead. that starts with education which was my top priority since taking office. i work with this body, this group to pass arkansas learns.

and launch the largest transformation of arkansas education and modern history. and the largest single investment in our public schools than ever before. [applause] before this year, our teachers were some of the worst-paid in the country. y in many districts, there wasn't a single educator making $50,000. learns raised starting teacher pay from $36,000 to $50,000 and gave every teacher at least a a $2,000 raise. [applause]

arkansas went from 48th in the country to top five overnight. before this year, only a third a of arkansas third graders could read at grade level. learns deployed 120 literacy coaches to public schools across the state, targeting at-risk students with the attention ours kids need and deserve. before this year, arkansas families had no choice where to send their kids to school. learns expanded education freedom to more than five thousand students in just one year. 50 percent of those students have learning disabilities. we have a few efa families with us today, including colonel chad bridges from the arkansas national guard's 39th infantry brigade combat team, his wife kari, and

their two kids. i met chad and some other arkansas guardsmen during my trade mission to germany last year. while there, chad brought up the learns act and mentioned that his family was taking advantage of the program to help them send their son, carsten, who has down syndrome, to compass academy in conway. now, nearly nine months into the school year, carsten couldn't be doing better. he's never been the type of kid who let his differences get in the way of doing what he knows he is capable of doing. at compass academy, he's surrounded by supportive staff who believe in him just as much as he does. we ask a lot of the moms and dads who protect our communities

and freedoms and keep us safe. it's important that we recognize their service and their sacrifice and we stand up and show them our support. carson is her with us today. are you up there? i would love to get a wave. [applause] let that be a reminder to this group. carsten is the person that we are serving. carsten is a person that we are helping. and carsten is a face that we're fighting for every single day. year one of the learns act

targeted the most at-risk students in our state. but education freedom is for everyone, and soon, education freedom accounts will be too. i had the opportunity to visit harvest time accounted for -- academy in fort smith last week to announce that dfa applications for next year are now open to more families, the children first responders, law enforcement, veterans, and any student attending a belated school. in just that first day of the application period, we got more than 1,800 new sign-ups. new students looking for an opportunity, and those numbers have only climb since, and i have to report that 25% of those applicants are the children of

active-duty military personnel and our state veterans. they deserve to know thatt we ae cheering and rooting for them. [applause] educational freedom is the least we can do for those who put everything on the line for our freedom. this time next year, we will have universal education freedom for the first time in arkansas history. [applause] send me a budget that continues to fully fund the learns act, and i will sign it. [applause]

education was my first priority, but it was far from my only one. for too many arkansans, the thought of taking your kids to the park or stopping at a gas station at night is a scary one. the reason is simple, some of our leaders think it's compassionate to coddle criminals. frankly, they need a reality check. i've been to the southern border and seen how joe biden's compassion lets the cartels traffic millions of people and deadly drugs into our country. just last week, arkansas state police seized half a pound of fentanyl in a routine traffic stop. that's enough to kill a town of 100,000 people, a town bigger than the size of fort smith.

and we've all read far too many reports here in arkansas about violent, repeat offenders who are sentenced to decades in prison, let out early, and then the want to commit other crimes. this isn't compassion. it's cruelty. and we've all had enough. last week, i thanked 40 arkansas guardsmen before they headed out for a mission to the southern border. b they know the gravity of the security and humanitarian crisis we are facing and every single one of themhe volunteered to gon that mission, many for their second time. last year, the legislature passed, and i signed death by delivery, which charges fentanyl dealers with murder if the drugs they traffic cause a fatal overdose.

and we came together again to pass the protect act. no more catch and release of violent repeat offenders. in arkansas, we will keep the most dangerous criminals off ous streets.s. [applause] we're paving the way to build a new, 3,000-bed prison. and in the meantime, we've opened up 1,000 beds in our existing capacity to take pressure off local jails. [applause] arkansas state police are on the front lines of that effort. that's why i allocated $3.8 million in my budget to replenish their ranks.

when we think of state troopers, we often think of them chasing down criminals or launching drug busts. that's certainly part of the job, but it's not all magnum p.i. late one night this january, trooper brandon bird was on patrol on i-40. he came across an older man, sitting in his vehicle and out of gas. h bird sat with the man as hehe called a family member, who couldn't come pick the gentleman up until the next morning. so trooper bird drove the man to the nearest hotel. when they got there, bird found out that the elder gentlemanly had no money so we paid $100 out of his own pocket for the man to other warm room for the night. brandon felt like he was just

doing his job. but the reality of the situation soon sunk in. it was dark and cold. the man had no gas.k if bird hadn't been there, the man could have frozen to death. trooper bird is with us today and i want to thank him and all of our law enforcement for their service to our state. [applause] brandon's story is remarkable, but not uncommon for the exceptional men and women of

the arkansas state police. when the left calls to defund the police, remember that these are the troopers they want to get rid of. remember that we doo not need less of trooper d bird. we need a lot more like him. [applause] that's why we have increased state police ranks by more than 17% 17% in just one year since i've taken office. and it's why i'm working to grow the force by more than 100 additional officers. send me a budget that funds our police, and i will sign it. [applause]

public safety and education, when we crack those problems, a low cost of living won't be the only thing bringing newcomers to arkansas. and they're hardly our only accomplishments. i was the first governor in the country with the help of those in the a show to kick a chinese state-owned company off of our farmland and out of our state. [applause] we launched a comprehensive workforce strategy to get arkansans back in the job market. arkansas learns plays a big role in that, growing career andd technical education and ending the lie that if you don't go to college, you are somehow less-than. we're making progress on our maternal health crisis. each year, 1,100 women in our state never even see a doctor i

until they're in labor. i signed an executive order to help women access the healthcare they need, because we know healthier women mean healthier babies. study after study shows that too much social media exposure leaves our kids anxious and depressed. suicide rates for young teens have tripled since 2007. depression among teenagers is up 150%. 30% of all teenage girls now seriously consider suicide. we were one of the first states to pass legislation protecting kids from dangerous and addictive social media. but we can't stop there. it's time to start a conversation and make this issue one of our next big priorities.

experts suggest goals like no smartphones before high school, no social media before 16, phone-free schools, and more outdoor play and childhood independence. big tech, just like joe camel, says it's kids' right to use their addictive products. i disagree. and arkansas will lead on education, we will lead on this. because we have to. [applause] and i fully expect that big tech will take us to court, but we will fight them. because our children's future depends on it. we banned indoctrination in our schools, we got rid of nonsense

words like birthing person, and men in women sports. we focus on improving the quality of life. my husband brian which are with me and my three kids are spearheading the national state initiative to go out for recreation and tourism. already we're smashing tourism records left and right. tourism revenue in each month of 2023 set a new record, and 2024 is on track to break records again.n. we live in one of the most beautiful states in america. it's time the rest of the worlds finds out about it. [applause] amid all this progress, we had challenges too. we're just over a year past the march 31st tornadoes.

with us today is pastor eddie miller from jacksonville. i met pastor miller the day after his church was destroyed in the storm. when i visited, most of its entire structure and church was completely gone, but his faith stood strong. pastor miller led us deep into the sanctuary where the roof had caved in. miraculously, there was still one wall standing. and on that wall hung not one, not two but three wooden crosses. pastor miller, my husband, legislators put our arms around each other in that moment and we prayed. we prayed for strength.

we prayed for resilience. we pray that this community, though bent, would not break. a year later, by the grace of god and with the sweat of his congregation, pastor miller's church walls are back up.r pastor miller, you can be recognized. [applause] the rebuilding isn't done yet. but when it's finished, it'll be better than what stood there before, a testament to our grit and to god's eternal love.

the greatest privilege of this job is being with the people of arkansas, who no matter what will never be broken. we are humble and we are gracious. we work hard and we take care of one another. we put our trust in our families and our faith in god almighty. may we never forget who we are and who we serve. and let us never be afraid to charge boldly ahead. may god bless you and may god bless the great state of arkansas. thank you so much. let's get to work. [applause]

>> today on c-span, the house is ck at 10 a.m. eastern for legislative business. members are working on several bills from the natural resources coittee including a measure that would remove the gray wolf from the endangered spees list. at 10 a.m. o c-span2 education secretary miguel cardona is on cato hill to testify on president biden's 2025 budget request and answer questions about recent protest on college campuses a t rollout of the fafsa application process for hool financial aid. at 3 p.mhe senate returns to consider a judicial nomination for for a district court in northern illinois. at 10 a.m. on c-span3, nasa administrator bill nelson testifies before the house science, space and technology

committee about his agencies 2025 budget request. later at 2:30 p.m. senate p.m. a senate judiciary subcommittee amines concerns with replicas that areade to implicate a a voic o other like this to artificial intelligence. you c also watch our live coverage on the c-span l video app or online at c-span.org. >> c-span is unfiltered view of government. we are funded by these television companies and more including comcast. >> are you thinking this is just a community center? its way more than that. comcast is partnering with 1000 community centers to quit wi-fi enabled lift zones so students can get the tools they need to be ready for anything. >> comcast supports c-span is a public service along with these other television providers giving you a front row seat to democracy. >> the acting secretary for the department of housing and urban