31 Reasons to Defeat Broadway for Lt. Governor

(Broadway Is A Democrat Running for Lt Governor against Republican Mark Darr)

(1) Senator Broadway voted for Sales Tax Increase that raised sales tax to 6% - 2003 Second Extraordinary Session HB1030.

(2) Sponsored the bill (SB7) that provided the $10 million dollar study to determine the amount of money needed to provide adequate school facilities. The study came back recommending from $2.3 billion to $4.5 billion for school buildings, and that study became one of the biggest boondoggles ever experienced in Arkansas.

Senator Broadway was responsible for hiring Randall Fischer, former Facilities Director and crook from Ohio who pled guilty to ethics charges in Ohio (as noted in several newspaper articles) as one of the main subcontractors on this facilities study. And there were numerous errors in the study. Agriculture barns on some campuses were evaluated as school buildings and repairs or replacement costs were estimated high enough to buy a barn and a farm. Then there were numerous estimates for specific repairs that superintendents and journalists pointed out such as the 110 doorknobs that needed to be replaced at Brookland where the replacement cost was, according to these experts, $439 apiece. The superintendent found them for $75 each. – Second Extraordinary Session SB7 by Broadway.

3. Broadway was the architect behind the State take-over of all school facilities in Arkansas in 2004 and voted for HB1009, an act to create the division of public school academic facilities. Schools can no longer build or remodel without permission of the state and according to state regulations. Seven new positions in the Arkansas Facilities Division have been approved by the Facilities commission. Ohio's Facilities Division started with one position and now has 50. Act 90 (HB1009 by Pickett Second Extraordinary Session of 2003.

The following figures are documented in newspapers. During the 2005 legislative session, $114 million was funded for facilities from the state revenue. During the April special session another $50 million was appropriated, Broadway said. The state's share of public school construction costs increased from the $265 million reported in June to $277 million in 2006 and $631 million in 07. ($631 million needed to fix school facilities by Seth Blomeley, March 7, 2007. This article quoted Broadway as saying, "the state must fund the needed projects regardless of cost to meet the court's directive."

Following is another quote on the facilities division: "Springdale school chief calls new rules wasteful" Sept 28, 2007 in Dem Gaz by Laura Kellams: " School administrators warned lawmakers Thursday that facility standards intended to create equity statewide will end up costing the state millions of dollars in unnecessary building space."

(5) Voted for tax on cigarettes and tobacco products - 2009 Regular Session HB1204 by Reep The tobacco tax is to be used for the ARKIDS First health insurance program. "The threshold for the ARKids First health insurance program moved from 200 percent over federal poverty to 250 percent. This means taxpayers will soon begin subsidizing the health insurance for children from families of four (two children) earning $55,000 annually — $64,000 (three), $73,000 (four), $82,000 (five) and $91,000 (six). Most lawmakers - especially those in the House - had no idea that their vote would essentially put the state in the business of providing middle class and upper-middle class families with a new health care entitlement. [Raising the income bracket for ARKids, Feb 2009 by David Sanders http://arkansasnews.com/?p=26712]

(6) Voted for tax on beer, 2005 Regular Session, HB1691

(7) Voted for tax on security & Alarm Services, 2003 Second Extraordinary Session, HB1030

(8) Co-sponsored and voted for tax on Mixed Drinks, 2005 Regular Session, HB2633

(9) Voted for tax on Fishing Guides Service, 2007 Regular Session HB2719

(10) Voted for tax Natural Gas Tax, 2008 First Extraordinary Session SB1

(11) Voted for Tax on Dry Cleaning and Laundry Services, 2003 Second Extraordinary Session, HB1030

(12) Voted on Tax on Mini warehouse and self storage rental services, 2003 Second Extraordinary Session, HB1030

(13) Voted on Tax on Pest Control Service, 2003 Second Extraordinary Session, HB1030

(14) Voted on tax on Boat Storage and Docking, 2003 Second Extraordinary Session, HB1030

(15) Voted on tax on Pet Grooming and Kennel Services, 2003 Second Extraordinary Session, HB1030

(16) Voted for tax on Locksmith services, 2003 Second Extraordinary Session, HB1030

(17) Voted for tax on Wrecker and towing services, 2003 Second Extraordinary Session, HB1030

(18) Voted for tax on Collection and Disposal of solid wastes, 2003 Second Extraordinary Session, HB1030

(19) Voted for tax on Cleaning parking lots and gutters, 2003 Second Extraordinary Session, HB1030

(20) Voted for tax on Industrial laundry services. 2003 Second Extraordinary Session, HB1030

(21) Voted for the Omnibus bill that implemented a government controlled curriculum in every school in Arkansas that has resulted in numerous additional state department employees to oversee and control the implementation of that curriculum in the local schools. By 2006, 61 schools had been put on probation for some minor infraction that allowed the State Department to consolidate the school, take over the administration and suspend or even oust local school board members. 2003 Regular Session, (HB2697)

(About 12,000 new education employees have been hired from 2000 to 2009. It takes a massive bureaucracy to control our schools to develop the curriculum and thousands of tests, to monitor teachers to make sure the state's curriculum is being taught in every classroom, and to make sure all the ADE rules are followed. Newspaper article, "Activist group blasts growth in state's hires" by Bill Simmons.)

(22) Voted to give $107 million dollars to Arkansas Department of Education for 32 new employees, etc. They supposedly consolidated the schools to save money by hiring fewer superintendents. $22 million paid the salary for every superintendent in the state in 2003, but this $107 million gift to ADE would pay for 1,070 superintendents at $100,000 for a year. SB91 (Act 98), 2nd extraordinary session, 2003.

(23) Voted for the bill that sent $456 million to facilities in 2007 from the surplus fund (this is like a hidden tax-taking money from the surplus that could be used for other things people will be taxed on later.). SB833, 2007 House Bill 2501 and Senate Bill 833. $104 million was appropriated for facilities in 2005 and the state's share of facilities was $277 million in 2006.

(24) Voted for every consolidation bill that went through the Senate, for closing schools with enrollment of 500 (which didn't pass); with enrollment of 350 (which did pass and closed 45 campuses by 2006); for closing isolated districts (legislators voted for the 350 enrollment the year before based on the promise they would not close isolated districts) He also voted for countywide school districts (supposedly would administratively consolidate only but the wording in the bill clearly gives authority for countywide school districts) SB132 of 2005 (This bill did not get out of committee in the House)

The consolidation resulted in more centralized government. Even though consolidation was supposed to save money by eliminating extra teachers in small districts and administrators, almost 12,000 new education employees have been hired from 2000 to 2009. Newspaper article, "Activist group blasts growth in state's hires" by Bill Simmons.

(25) Supported and voted for all the following bills: The most powerful liberal Democrat Senator Argue (Senate Education Chair for several years) gloated over the amount of money raised and spent, writing the following in a guest article in the Democrat Gazette May 15, 2005. "In the current school year we've added $380 million to the school system. Next year we'll add $170 million, and then in the 2006/07 school year, we will add another $98 million. In addition to these new operating funds, we've appropriated $104 million to begin our new school facilities program. This totals $752 million of new spending in our school system in the current and next two school years. Total K-12 spending is now 53 percent of total state general and dedicated revenues, an all time high."

Compare that 53 percent in Arkansas to Colorado "K-12 funding now accounts for 40 percent of the Colorado general fund budget." http://www.ncsl.org/programs/fiscal/tels2005.htm

For the state of education in Arkansas, since these bills passed, see red bulleted points in article at this link: http://www.wpaag.org/Test%20Score%20Scam%202009.htm

(26) Voted for SB 430 in 2005 providing for a statewide election on issuing tax revenue bonds (Referred Question NO. 1) This bill if approved by voters would have left "Arkansas in debt for decades to come," according to newspaper articles. Citizens soon learned that because of veiled language in the bill, the Highway Commission would have had power to re-issue bonds for maintenance of highways up to the $575 million cap as many times as it wanted without further voter approval. This veiled language was a slick move to get around the wording of Amendment 20 to the Arkansas Constitution that guarantees the voters a right to vote on any state indebtedness. The amount of interest and bonding fees would have been $217 million or 37%. Fortunately citizens were educated through the work of dedicated opponents and voted it down 68% to 32%, even though the bond issue was supported by the political establishment . 2005 Regular Session, SB 430

(27) Voted for Betty Pickett's alcohol bill that has allowed the ABC Board to grant liquor licenses to numerous so called private clubs in dry counties in Arkansas and circumvent the voters in those counties. There have been approximately 133 liquor licenses issued to so called private clubs, mostly restaurants, since this bill passed. 2003 Regular Session, HB2749

(28) Senator Broadway was designated by the liberal Arkansas Citizens' First Congress as one of the nine key legislators that sponsored their priority bills. Information taken from this link, page 41. For other liberal member organizations of this group, see page 45 http://citizensfirst.org/resources/2009%20Vote%20Guide.pdf

(29) In 2005 legislative session Broadway received a 40% rating (putting him in the bottom 9 senators) from the conservative American Family Association of Arkansas; 30% was the lowest score any senator received.

(30) Voted to "TO ALLOW PUBLIC DRINKING OF ALCOHOL IN ENTERTAINMENT DISTRICTS." 2005 Regular Session, SB1174 Failed in House

(31) Voted To allow Additional Forms of Electronic Gambling, 2005 SB999

Also see these two links for further information on Broadway Voting Record: "Obama and Broadways Net Zero Energy Dream House" http://www.wpaag.org/Broadway's%20zero%20energy%20home.htm

and "Research on Broadway's Sustainable (Green) Building Design Legislation (And Opinion) Broadway's Voting Record #3" http://www.wpaag.org/Broadway%20voting%20record%203%20Research.htm