Friends, 

I want to express my sincere thanks and appreciation to all of you who attended our community meetings in August or reached out to me or Board members directly to offer feedback about the proposed one-penny sales tax increase.

I personally love going out into Little Rock neighborhoods to learn how we at City Hall can better respond to your needs, and these town-hall sessions were both energizing and important to me as we ask voters to consider a tax increase.

We heard clearly that it’s not an “if,” but a “when” for an election to re-invest in our City and its residents. I join all of you in my commitment to making Little Rock’s streets safer and our neighborhoods stronger. We need the additional sales tax revenue to support public safety, infrastructure and the quality-of-life amenities that residents expect and deserve.

While it would have been possible for us to hold a sales tax election in November of this year, we listened to your input and determined we should take more time for voter education and additional informational meetings and listening sessions. Under state law, we may place tax measures before voters on two dates in 2024, those dates being the times of the primary and general elections in March and November, respecrtively. I believe November 2024 is the best time to ask voters to decide on a tax. Since it would coincide with a general election, it maximizes the opportunity for all voices to be heard. 

We’ll be spending the weeks and months leading up to next year’s election to continue taking feedback from Board members and talking to voters across our City about the transformational proposals included in the tax plan.

I encourage you to visit www.LittleRock.gov to learn more about the proposal. We’ve included a Frequently Asked Questions guide to help you better understand the initiative. 

You can click here to read my full statement about the decision to proceed with an election in November 2024.

I know that Little Rock can unlock its full potential with a sales tax plan that funds our ongoing needs and positions us for the future. Let’s continue the productive and instructive dialogue as we move toward an election next year.

The City collected more than $600,000 from individual and corporate donors following the tornado. Every penny will be directed to Little Rock residents or nonprofit organizations that assisted in emergency response within the City. 

If you were impacted and you haven’t already completed the simple, online application, please visit www.heartaruw.org to apply. If you weren’t impacted but you know someone who was, please remind them before Friday to apply for assistance. 

I’m grateful to the Heart of Arkansas United Way, which is serving as the third-party administrator for the individual assistance dollars, as well as the volunteer committees that will review applications and make needs-based allocations. Grant recipients should expect to receive funds by the end of the year. 

To donate to the Little Rock Cares fund, go to www.LittleRock.gov/LRCares.

• The Little Rock Board of Directors will meet Tuesday, Sept. 12 at 4 p.m. at The Centre at University Park, 6401 W. 12th St., to set the agenda for its next regular meeting. All board meetings are livestreamed on the City of Little Rock Facebook and YouTube pages. To view the agenda, click here.
• The Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance hosts "Addressing Food Access in Arkansas: Solutions to Food Deserts," a food desert summit, on Wednesday, Sept. 13, at The Centre at University Park. The event begins at 8:30 a.m. For information and tickets, visit www.ArHungerAlliance.org/fooddesert.
• The Little Rock Parks and Recreation Commission meets Wednesday, Sept. 13, at noon at the Willie L. Hinton Neighborhood Resource Center, 3805 W. 12th St . The Parks and Recreation Commission advises the City of Little Rock on parks and recreation matters.
• On Thursday, Sept. 14, at 4 p.m., the Little Rock Planning Commission meets at The Centre at University Park. The Planning Commission considers rezoning requests and hears other matters related to planning, development and zoning. 
• The Central Arkansas Re-Entry Coalition and the City will host “Rights After Wrongs” on Saturday, Sept. 16, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the LRSD Professional Development Training Center, 401 John Barrow Road. This annual event is an opportunity to learn about criminal record sealing, leniency court, jobs and other services for formerly incarcerated individuals. 
• The quarterly Little Rock Recycles Day is Saturday, Sept. 16, from 9 a.m. to noon at the Little Rock Zoo’s east parking lot. Residents can safely dispose of electronic waste, glass, plastic bags and documents for shredding at the event hosted by the Little Rock Sustainability Office, the Little Rock Zoo and Keep Little Rock Beautiful.