Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders announced a plan to return Jefferson County to operation after a month-long business impasse.
Sanders stated that legislation introduced by Senator Ben Gilmore (R-Crossett) and Representative Glenn Barnes (D-Pine Bluff) would require a county that has not reached a budget agreement for the new year to continue operating on the previous year’s budget. This legislation is expected to be filed shortly after Sanders’ announcement on Monday.
Jefferson County has been unable to pay any of its employees or meet other obligations since January 1, due to a deadlock between County Judge Gerald Robinson and a majority of the quorum court justices. Robinson has pushed for funding cuts in sensitive areas, which has contributed to the budgetary stalemate.
Sanders expressed her support for the legislation, referencing feedback she had received from county residents and employees. In one instance, a deputy, whom Sanders did not name, shared that she was a single mother who had not been able to go to the grocery store in weeks. The deputy told the governor, “We are all on our last legs.”
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