A crisis is afoot in the four counties that reside along the Oklahoma border in Northwest Arkansas and the problem will only get worst, according to information from the River Valley Regional Food Bank in Fort Smith.

Ken Kupchick, director of marketing and development at the RVRF, points to statistics that show between 24% and nearly 30% of children in Benton, Crawford, Sebastian and Washington Counties are deemed to be "food insecure," with the four counties ranking among the top 10 in childhood food insecurity statewide.

Kupchick said the numbers typically come as a surprise to most who see them.

"That was one of the the things I wanted to stress," he said. "It could be at our own demise, but many people believe the hunger problem in Arkansas is a rural one and having this data shines light on the fact that there is a significant problem there. For us, the problem is more of a metropolitan one. If we are going to fight this thing, we need to understand exactly what the monster looks like that we're fighting."

He said while food insecurity in the four counties making up the Interstate 49 corridor might not seem like a problem, it really is when one considers that more than 20% of the state's food insecure children live in one of the four counties.

"What you're looking at is Little Rock plus (the Fort Smith region) and Northwest Arkansas, that's definitely a third of the problem in those top five counties," Kupchick said.

With such a large number of hungry children, not to mention hungry parents and caregivers, organizations like the River Valley Regional Food Bank are often overloaded with demand and as a result, struggle to provide foods that are part of a balanced diet. Kupchick said the foods donated to food banks often are non-perishables, including peanut butter or day-old bread. He said the food banks also receive "experimental" items, such as a new line of food products that do not sell well and have to be gotten rid of.

Where food banks face real hurdles, Kupchick said, is providing fruits and vegetables, which he said are often the most expensive.

"The food you want to feed is expensive and it's not a readily donated product," he said. "It has it's own inherit market in the retail market. It doesn't come into the food bank world."

Another challenge once food banks are able to get the foods needed for a balanced diet is having the proper equipment to store it.

To combat the challenges he and other food bank executives are battling, Kupchick said individuals with a desire to fight hunger in the communities of the Fort Smith and Northwest Arkansas regions needed to two two things — donate time and money.

"…To really feed kids on a day in and day out basis, it gets extremely expensive. Plus, logistically, it's back-breaking work to unload pickup trucks of 50 pound freight. The best solution is to buy your way out of it. Donate and we pay salaries and we hunt for food out there every day, working with food brokers and major food manufacturing (companies). We've got those wheels turning constantly. For us, it's connecting the dots, but we need money to do it."

Once food is purchased, someone must prepare it for distribution and he said that can be tough without a volunteer workforce to help ease the burden.

Kupchick said while the challenge is large and it involves more than just feeding children, overcoming childhood hunger was the surest way to give children living in poverty a fighting chance at a future that frees them from poverty.

"The empirical evidence is there. We have got to get nutrition into the hands of these children if we are going to break the cycle of poverty. That's why, to me, it should be the number one priority in this state. We're on the top of the list for all of the worst things for a reason. If we want off those lists, we need to create programs and policies to move us off the lists."

He said while some might be happy to just write a check or say a few nice words, it will take people at the highest points in government, business and society to overcome what he said is one of the largest challenges of this generation.

"This is something where we have to draw a line in the sand and say this is our top priority in the state — no kid goes hungry. It starts with that kind of commitment at the top echelons. You can't issue a press release and go to the next issue. This is my focus."

The small business sector has languished in the ongoing economic recovery well behind big business that has pushed Wall Street stocks to new highs this year. But a recent report by Wells Fargo indicates the tide is turning for small businesses. 

After jumping 21 points in the first quarter of this year, the Wells Fargo Small Business Index edged up an additional two points during the second quarter. All of the second quarter’s improvement came in the expectations series, which rose four points to 33. 

The only hitch in the report was that small business owners’ views on the present situation slipped two points during the quarter to 14. This drop may have been tied to the unusually harsh winter weather experienced in much of the country this year, which cut into sales and boosted expenses for many businesses, according to Mark Vitner, senior economist at Wells Fargo.

Despite the small drop, the overall index trended higher during the quarter and is now at its highest level in six years. More business owners see conditions improving this year than at any other time since the recession ended. The rise in optimism is also reflected in attitudes toward capital spending and hiring, which both improved during the quarter.

About one in three small businesses surveyed said revenues stayed essentially the same over the past year, which is the highest reading in the survey. Another 21% said revenues decreased a little over the past year and 11% said revenues decreased a lot. The proportion of businesses reporting that year-to-year revenues increased has remained fairly stable at around 36% for the six quarters, Vitner noted.

FURNITURE UPSWING
One of the small business sectors showing optimism is furniture and home furnishing companies. After several years of slow growth, furniture executives that finance consumer purchases are more optimistic about the future of their sector.

Mike Hudgens, an executive with CIT Commercial Services, a finance company that makes loans to small businesses and middle market companies, said a rebound in housing has furniture companies expecting growth this year."

“Our furniture sector clients are doing well and feel confident about the future,” said Hudgens. “Optimism is the highest we’ve seen in years, and it looks like the market should continue on an upward swing, though it may never comeback to the extent it was prior to the recession.”

With growth in the housing market and increased jobs numbers, many American consumers who postponed furniture purchases may replace their older furniture units. He said the merging of furniture with smartphones and tablet technology, are taking root to meet consumer demand. Furniture with these innovations are being sold through non-traditional channels and seeing solid success.

James Smith, founder of Springdale-based James+James, said his custom wood furniture business continues to grow as more consumers are willing to purchase furniture online. His e-commerce furniture manufacturing operation has grown from two to 15 people since 2011, and he’s selling and shipping furniture to consumers in 45 states, Bermuda and Canada. He plans to add a retail space for his furniture in the Dallas market later this year.

Smith built his company through social media (Facebook and Pinterest) and continues to glean new customers each week from shared posts of satisfied customers.

“It’s hard for me to gauge how much my company will grow this year, given the rapid run we have already experienced,” Smith said.

The company grossed about $250,000 in sales in 2012, before offering delivery. In 2013, sales revenue grew to $1 million and Smith’s best estimates for 2014 is $1.5 million. He attributes the growth to more people getting comfortable with online purchases of furniture and the desire for custom American made real wood products.

“The 30-somethings are just now starting to buy furniture outside of Walmart and Ikea and they are shopping online for custom pieces that are made in the U.S. by small businesses like us,” Smith said.

Smith said it’s good to see the small business sector responding positively because it’s important to the overall economic growth of the local region and beyond.

BUSINESS CONFIDENCE
The slow recovery of small business confidence as a whole continues to lag pace behind previous recoveries, Vitner said. The level of small business confidence is still about half of what it was prior to the recession. Small business confidence has recovered much less rapidly than CEO confidence, which likely reflects the greater ease and access that large companies have to the capital markets.

Vitner said it’s harder for small businesses to repair their balance sheets given that top-line revenue growth has been sluggish. Even with the slower recovery, Vitner said small businesses are spending more than last year, marking the first positive reading for this measure since the first quarter of 2008.

The rise in optimism also extends to capital spending and hiring, with more small business owners planning to increase capital spending and increase employment than any other time since the recession ended five years ago.

A special legislative session could be called to address rising school employee health insurance costs by the end of August, the chairman of a task force that is meeting about the issue said Tuesday.

Speaking to a joint conference of Arkansas administrators and school board members, Sen. Jim Hendren, R-Gravette, said he will present about 20 recommendations Wednesday to the State and Public School Life and Health Insurance Program Legislative Task Force. If the task force can agree on a package, a bill could be ready for review within a few days, and then support would have to be obtained by majorities in the House and Senate. A special session would have to be held by the end of August because school insurance operates on a calendar year.

“We’ll know tomorrow if the task force agrees on a path forward, and I don’t think there’s a lot of disagreement on most of the things that are necessary,” he said afterwards.

Matt DeCample, spokesman for Gov. Mike Beebe, said it’s too early to speculate on whether a special session will be called.

The task force was created after the Legislature met in a special session in October to address soaring school insurance rates. Legislators poured $43 million in one-time money into the plan and added another $36 million annually from other sources as a quick fix. They also created the task force to find more permanent solutions to the continuing problem. The task force will meet at 10 a.m. Wednesday.

Hendren said a primary reason for the rising costs is inappropriate pricing. Premiums for the lowest price bronze plan, which covers 19,000 employees, are only $11 a month for beneficiaries who are single. The price increased only $1 a month from the previous year because the Legislature had mandated increases of no more than 10 percent. Because the bronze plan is priced so cheaply, the 20,000 members on the zero-deductible gold plan are paying escalating prices, he said.

Hendren, who spoke alongside the task force’s vice chair, Rep. Harold Copenhaver, D-Jonesboro, expressed confidence that six recommendations have broad support. Those are:
• Ending coverage for the 4,000 part-time school employees currently being covered. Hendren said those employees are increasing costs for full-time employees. Moreover, part-time employees are being done a disservice because making them eligible for the school plans makes them ineligible for cheaper insurance on the insurance exchange created by the Affordable Care Act.

• Verifying more aggressively that dependents are actually eligible for coverage.

• A spousal exclusion policy that would not provide insurance to employees who can obtain it elsewhere.

• Ending the bariatric surgery benefit (gastric bypass, etc.) that last year cost $8 million.

• Changing the gold plan, which has a zero dollar deductible and is so generous that it will be subject to a tax under the Affordable Care Act.

• Raising the bronze plan premium to $60-$85 a month and then creating a health savings account for those employees.

Hendren said he did not sense support for increasing state funding for school employee health insurance, as was done in the previous special session. Doing nothing, however, is not an option.

“If we don’t do anything, you are looking at another 35 percent increase to keep the thing solvent,” he said.

The $150 million Dynamic Fuels plant in Geismar, La., jointly owned by Tyson Foods and Syntroleum Fuels came online in November 2010, but has failed to live up to its original production goals of 75 million gallons of renewable fuel per year.

The idea of turning low grade chicken fat into renewable fuel was heralded news by Tyson Foods and its partner Syntroleum in 2009. Now the clock is ticking for Syntroleum and its financial future hinges on a shareholder vote on June 3 to sell all of its assets, including its 50% interest in Dynamic Fuels to Renewable Energy Group. Without approval to merge with REG, Syntroleum noted in its recent proxy statement that it’s likely looking at bankruptcy liquidation given it has run through its cash while the Geismar plant sits idle.

The plant has been idle since November 2012, costing each partner $1 million per month to keep the facility in standby mode. Aside from the $1 million cash burn per month, Ron Stinebaugh, executive with Tulsa-based Syntroleum, estimated in December the plant had lost out on roughly $20 million in potential sales as the partners could not agree on the restart terms.

The venture, despite all its potential, has been a money pit for thinly capitalized Syntroleum. For the quarter ended Sept. 30, 2013, Syntroleum reported a loss from Dynamic Fuels of $3.5 million. This compares to a loss of $3.3 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2013, while the plant has been on standby mode. There is a three month lag in the Dynamic Fuels report compared to Syntroleum’s regular reporting.

Syntroleum notes that it had reported income of $6.7 million from Dynamic Fuels in the December quarter resulting from its portion of a reinstated $1 per gallon tax credit from 2012. This income was offset by losses of $5.9 million in the quarter ending Dec. 31. Syntroleum said the equity loss of Dynamic Fuels for the quarter ended Mar. 31, 2014 was $3.4 million. 

Tyson Foods had no comment on restart plans when asked recently during a May 5 earnings call with the media. In a previous call Tyson Foods CEO Donnie Smith told The City Wire the plant would stay idle while its partner was shopping for a buyer. He said Tyson would be willing work with another partner if Syntroleum’s interest was sold.

The partners said the cost to restart the plant is an estimated $20 million, based on feedstock prices. As of March 31, Syntroleum's available cash position was $7.8 million, down from $11.4 million at the end of 2013.

Dynamic Fuels was idled in November 2012 because of deteriorating market conditions. The partners anted up $7.3 million in the spring of 2013 to replace a catalyst in the facility that is supposed to increase production efficiency. That catalyst was installed on June 28 and the plant was not started on the scheduled date of July 30, 2013.

Syntroleum encourages its shareholders to approve the sale to REG, stating that it was the best offer on the table and provides the greatest potential for shareholders to see more value in their investment.

“If the asset sale or another similar transaction is not approved and consummated on a timely basis, the Geismar Facility does not return to operational status on a timely basis, and/or Syntroleum does not obtain substantial new debt or equity financing on a timely basis, Syntroleum would not likely have sufficient resources to continue operations and may be required to seek protection under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code or similar relief. In such an event, it is possible that there would not be significant assets, or any assets, available for distribution to Syntroleum’s stockholders,” Syntroleum noted in its recent proxy statement with the federal Securities and Exchange Commission.

Syntroleum investors are already voting with their feet, as the stock price tumbled nearly 2% to $3.36 on Tuesday, May 13. Shares (NASDAQ: SYNM) were trading as high as $7.55 last July on hope the Geismar plant would soon reopen. Shares were trading slightly higher at $3.38 in mid-day trading on Wednesday.

Syntroleum has a market cap of roughly $33.4 million with 10 million outstanding shares. Renewable Energy Group (NASDAQ: REGI) has a market cap of $395.64 million with 37 million shares outstanding. Shares closed Tuesday, May 13 at $10.20 up 7 cents. Shares were trading down to $10.13 in mid-day trading on Wednesday.

Analysts with Raymond James & Associates said the deal between Syntroleum and Renewable Energy Group is a rare instance of corporate M&A in the U.S. biofuel industry. Buying individual plants and strategic partnerships have been far more common.

Analysts at Cannacord Genuity called the deal “positive, but risky.” The all-stock deal would diversify Renewable Energy into the “next generation” of renewable diesel. They noted the joint venture with Tyson, has been hampered by feedstock, catalyst and equipment failures.

Big Data feeds analytics well beyond point of sales data that used to be the be-all, end-all in retail forecasting. Today, retailers and suppliers are tapping “Big Data,” which encompasses market loyalty, store and site traffic, social media and mobile shopping in addition to point-of-sale and marketshare data.

Fred Baumann, vice president at JDA Software Group, recently spoke at the University of Arkansas Supply Chain Conference about how advanced analytics fed by Big Data are changing the supply chain. He said tapping smart analytics are the key to solving out-of-stock issues at retailers, because by leveraging information across social media more real-time demand can be accessed.

Baumann said category managers have the opportunity to integrate relevant real time data into their forecasting. He said advanced analytics also may improve assortments and space planning for the retail store. He said analytics within the supply chain have to be a connected collaborative framework between retailer and supplier.

“Manufacturers and retailers struggle to try and solve their problems themselves, when they both want the same thing — productive shelves,” Baumann said.

Forecasting inventory to the shelf is the future, according to Baumann.

“Planing shipments to the shelf creates a ton more data than shipping to the distribution center. It is very granular and requires an interconnected collaborative framework with total transparency,” he said.

REAL TIME DEMAND
Ryan Frazier, CEO of DataRank in Bentonville, is a Big Data analytic service firm for retailers and suppliers. He said many suppliers are using analytics gleaned from Big Data to better understand real time demand.

Frazier said the present system used in retail to track product from the warehouse to the shelf is largely managed by employees using a paper trail. He said companies like Movista have sprung up to offer better solutions by helping retailers and suppliers save money on implementing efficient data collection and delivery practices.

The Big Data evolution has three distinct stages at this point, according to Frazier. He said it’s a very broad term and analytics can help with visualization and grasping the relevant information. He said knowing what is occurring is step one. Next, he said Big Data is typically used in forecasting demand with predictive and proactive analytics. The final stage is working with different “levers” to manipulate and make changes in real time data to obtain desired results.

Frazier and Baumann agreed that it’s important to find the right partners to work with in the Big Data space because being able to make changes in real time requires fast analysis. Frazier said moving from step two to step three is cumbersome to do alone.

Going it alone can be cost prohibitive given the talent needed in terms of engineers and hardware servers to process the data. Frazier said as searches against the data are needed, high powered servers and tech savvy are essential.

TRANSFORMATIONAL CHANGES
Dhiraj Rajaram, CEO of Mu Sigma, also was one of the featured speakers at the recent supply chain conference. Rajaram said the information age requires one to think in terms of the decision supply chain, moving away from the physical supply chain.

Rajaram defined Big Data by saying it is data engineering, data science with applied technology and math then layered with business context to create a stack. 

“Big Data will both drive and require transformation from businesses,” he said.

Keith Mercier, global retail leader at IBM Watson, said the impact Big Data and social media are having on retail is transformational. He said Pinterest, a four-year old company that is a virtual bulletin board, has reshaped the fashion merchandising sector. A case in point is Nordstrom, he said.

“They know merchandising, as a 100 year-old company, and Nordstrom is modeling its own merchandising after a four-year social media site (Pinterest) with its Pinned Shoes campaign,” Mercier said.

Nordstrom features the shoes on its site in order of popularity noted by the number of pins or likes gleaned from crowd sourcing.

Chris Spear, the new chief of legislative affairs for the active American Trucking Associations’, has Arkansas connections and his former Arkansas boss says Spear “has the experience and the skills” to handle the “bigger-than-life personalities” in the trucking industry and in Washington, D.C.

He’ll need all the experience and skills he can muster. Ongoing work to draft a new federal highway bill, a push to adjust driver hours-of-service regulations and lobbying over other key issues for the trucking industry pushed Spear straight into the Capitol Hill legislative battles.

However, he’s not unfamiliar with the industry. Part of his trucking industry knowledge comes from his years lobbying for Arkansas issues, which included being aware of the governmental affairs positions of companies like Lowell-based J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Fort Smith-based ArcBest Corp. (formerly known as Arkansas Best Corp.), and Little Rock-based Maverick Transportation.

Spear, who has been with ATA for several weeks, served in 2000-2001 as legislative director for Arkansas issues with U.S. Sen. Tim Hutchinson, R-Ark.

Prior to joining the largest lobbying group that represents the U.S. trucking industry, Spear was VP of emerging markets and government relations for Honeywell. He also has worked as assistant Labor Secretary during the George W. Bush administration, and as a staffer for the U.S. Senate labor committee. He earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree from the University of Wyoming.

“Chris has a long career on Capitol Hill and in the federal government and we’re thrilled to have him as part of our advocacy team,” ATA President and CEO Bill Graves said in a statement. “Chris also brings a wealth of experience from the private sector which benefits our vital industry as we pursue our legislative priorities on Capitol Hill.”

Hutchinson told The City Wire he was not surprised Spear was hired for the high-profile job. In fact, he recommended to the ATA that Spear be hired.

“I lost a lot of good staffers to the Bush administration and Chris was one of the best,” Hutchinson said. “He’s got all the tools that I think you need for that position. He’s got Hill experience, obviously. ... He’s got relationships all over Congress. He’s well known and well respected.”

Hutchinson said he is confident Spear and “everyone at ATA certainly understands that Arkansas is pivotal” in the national trucking industry.

HOURS OF SERVICE ISSUE
Although the lobbying laundry list is long for Spear, his immediate priority is to help the industry convince Congress to adjust hours-of-service regulations implemented in June 2013.

“The goal of this rulemaking is to reduce excessively long work hours that increase both the risk of fatigue-related crashes and long-term health problems for drivers,” noted a statement from the federal Department of Transportation.

The rule reduces a driver’s average maximum allowable hours of work per week from 82 hours to 70 hours, a 15% reduction. The 15% reduction in the average maximum allowable hours of work based on the new rule results from the restrictions on the use of the restart period.” The DOT estimates that the new rule will boost annual trucking industry expenses by about $470 million, but said benefits from safety, driver health and other factors will produce an overall net economic gain of up to $280 million a year.

Officials in the trucking industry have said the rules do nothing to promote safety and instead merely drive up costs for the industry which are then passed on to consumers.

“The agency used logic that forcing break, rest, or driving periods at a particular time was a one size fits all proposition. Cardian rhythms and all types of fuzzy math were introduced by people that have never experienced being in a truck,” Greg Carman, president of Fort Smith-based Carman Inc. and a board member of the Arkansas Trucking Association, said in a December 2013 story on the issue.

Spear said the hours-of-service rules also are exacerbating a driver shortage in the industry.

“This is one our members want us to act on immediately,” Spear said of the rule, adding that “there are some unintended consequences with this rule. We’re not trying to roll back safety.”

One consequence is that the rules push drivers on the road at peak times instead of letting them drive at hours when the general public is not on the road, Spear said. He argues that is counter to the claim of federal regulators that safety is the focus. Spear said there is a “really receptive audience on the Hill” to modifying the rules, but he’s also realistic about Congressional action during a political season.

“This is a very dysfunctional environment in Washington and this is a mid-term election cycle, so there is not a lot that will get done,” Spear said.

FEDERAL HIGHWAY BILL
He also said the dysfunction is likely to stall approval of a new long-term federal highway bill. Approval of a new bill is critical for many reasons. The Department of Transportation estimates the highway account of the Highway Trust Fund will run out of money by the end of fiscal year 2014. Also, state governments may have to delay projects if they aren’t certain that federal highway dollars will be available to support project completion.

Also, proposed highway bill language includes changes in how the trucking industry may be taxed to support funding of national infrastructure improvements. Spear said the industry is open to user fee increases and other revenue possibilities, but would like to know specifics in order for the industry to have a better understanding of future expenses.

MAP-21, the highway legislation now used, was approved in June 2012 after almost three years of Congress approving short-term extensions of the previous law before enacting new authorization.

Spear said he is eager to return to Arkansas for a visit.

“I hope so,” Spear said when asked if he would soon have time to visit trucking industry officials in Arkansas. “I traveled all four corners and just really enjoyed the state. It’s very diverse and I really enjoyed the people. ... I want to talk directly (to industry leaders in Arkansas). That is the best way those of us in Washington can help the industry is to go to where they are.”

He's polling more than 30% above his opponent and many analysts believe the May 20 primary will be an easy victory for Arkansas House Majority Leader Bruce Westerman, who is fighting a challenge from political newcomer Tommy Moll in the Republican primary for 4th District congressman. But he is not taking anything for granted.

Westerman has criss-crossed the expansive district in recent weeks, most recently appearing at a candidate forum in Hot Springs Monday (May 12) before hitting the road and appearing at another candidate forum Tuesday (May 13) in Fort Smith – a region now on the edge of the newly-redrawn 4th District.

And for anyone who does not know Westerman, it does not take long for the Hot Springs native to explain his conservative values and Baptist beliefs. He shares his belief in limited government, low taxes, balanced budgets, limited government assistance and the evils of the Affordable Care Act.

Regarding the ACA, Westerman immediately took aim at his opponent for a television ad that asserts that Westerman supported Obamacare. According to a Moll campaign website, Westerman twice supported legislation that would have expanded Medicaid coverage in Arkansas.

Westerman said not only did he not support Obamacare during his time in the General Assembly, but he said many of his legislative colleagues have come to his defense, including House Minority Leader Greg Leding, D-Fayetteville, who defended Westerman in a recent Arkansas Democrat-Gazette article in spite of the fact that both men generally fall on opposite sides of the ideological spectrum.

"They started chirping about this last year, so we wrote a letter from my campaign that not only says I was opposed to Medicaid expansion and Obamacare, but I was the leading opponent of it in the legislature and I had 19 legislators — House and Senate — sign it and could have gotten 20 or 30 more if I wanted to spend the time going around trying to get them to sign it. Apparently the only people who believe I supported Obamacare are Tommy Moll and his campaign team."

In an e-mail, Peter Somerville, Moll's campaign manager, reasserted the campaign's position that Westerman had introduced legislation to implement Obamacare at the state level.

"The public record is clear: Bruce Westerman has sponsored two different bills that would implement ObamaCare in Arkansas. To this day, he has not withdrawn his support for a bill that would implement ObamaCare by adding about 250,000 Arkansans to government-subsidized health insurance (House Bill 1965). Only one candidate has always opposed ObamaCare: Tommy Moll."

Westerman also took time to discuss the May 9 ruling by Pulaski County Circuit Judge Chris Piazza that overturned Arkansas' ban on gay marriage, saying it was likely time for an amendment to the United States Constitution defining marriage as between one man and one woman, versus the invalidated Defense of Marriage Act passed during the Bush administration that the U.S. Supreme Court said was unconstitutional. He said a federal Constitutional amendment was the only way to limit a move of the U.S. Supreme Court, which could affirm Piazza's ruling or any of the other rulings across the United States that have overturned statewide gay marriage bans.

"Again, we've got an overreaching federal government that wants to take that out of control of the states…so I would support a federal marriage amendment. I wish the federal government would just stay out of it and just let each state decide that, but that's obviously not what's happening. We saw where one judge overturned the will of 75% of the voters in this state and it wasn't even a federal judge. So yeah, I would support a federal marriage amendment if we need to do that."

He said a firmed up marriage definition was necessary to prevent possible future attempts to expand marriage definitions in the eyes of the government and society.

"You're opening up Pandora's box when you start redefining marriage as anything you want to call it," Westerman said. "Is that two men? Two women? Is it three men and four women? I've been reading where people have been trying to marry their animals now. You know, marriage was ordained long before the United States government was established and we need to protect the sanctity of that, which also protects families in this country."

The Farm Bill is another issue Westerman touched on, saying U.S. Rep. Tom Cotton, R-Dardanelle — who is not seeking re-election in the 4th District in order to challenge U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., in his Senate re-election — was justified in voting against the final version of the bill that passed both houses of Congress and was signed into law by President Barack Obama.

"The problem with the current Farm Bill is it is a food stamp bill with a little bit of farm policy in it. And Tom was justified in saying we need to break the Farm Bill apart, vote on the food stamp program and vote on the ag policy separately."

Asked whether he would vote for the current version of the Farm Bill, Westerman declined to give specifics and instead said he would work to create a better Farm Bill should he win the general election in November.

"I want to work for solutions. Now I don't know what will be in the Farm Bill the first time I have to look at it, but I know I've got the courage to do what's right and vote on what's going to be best for the 4th District of Arkansas. And I can analyze the data and make an informed decision on what's in the Farm Bill at the time I'm presented with it."

The winner of Tuesday's (May 20) primary will face former Federal Emergency Management Director James Lee Witt in the November general election.

When Kyle Parker recently said progress was “moving quickly” on the establishment of a $58 million medical college in Fort Smith, he wasn’t kidding. The Arkansas Colleges of Health Education announced Wednesday (May 14) that Dr. Ken Heiles would be the dean of the college and that work to open the college for the first cohort of students could happen a year earlier than planned.

Parker, the president and CEO of the Fort Smith-based Arkansas Colleges of Health Education, said Heiles and wife Michelle are expected to be in Fort Smith on Thursday to look for homes. Heiles officially begins the job on June 1.

“I am very excited for the opportunity to help shape the future of the proposed College,” Heiles said in a statement from the ACHE. “This will be a tremendous asset to Western Arkansas and the entire state and make great strides in helping fill the need for medical professionals. My family and I look forward to becoming a part of the Fort Smith community.”

Heiles has been the associate dean of Graduate Medical Education at Lincoln Memorial University-DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine in Harrogate, Tenn. He is the current American College of Osteopathic Physicians Chair of the Committee on Education and Evaluation, past president of the Board of Governors, and also serves on the Bureau of Osteopathic Graduate Medical Education and Development. Prior to that, he served as the director of Medical Education of the Osteopathic Family Practice Residency Program, was responsible for the Family Practice Residency Program and a member of the full-time clinical faculty at the University Arkansas for Medical Sciences/AHEC in Pine Bluff, Ark.

“After interviewing multiple individuals from across the United States, we were able to get one of the most respected and influential deans at both the state and national levels. He’ll be instrumental in developing graduate medical education in and for both the state of Arkansas and the nation,” Parker said in the statement.

A fully operational osteopathic college is expected to serve about 600 students, and employ around 65 (full-time equivalent jobs) with an average salary of $103,000. That impact does not include adjunct professors that will be needed for the school. The school, to be located on Chaffee Crossing land (200 acres) donated by the Fort Chaffee Redevelopment Authority, was previously targeted to accept its first cohort of students in the fall of 2017. However, Parker said the hiring of Heiles and the planned submission in July of a feasibility study to the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation could result in construction beginning in early 2015 with the college opening in fall 2016.

“The key to that (opening early) is going to be hiring the faculty, and with the reputation of Ken Heiles, we feel very strongly that we can get that done,” Parker said.

Heiles’ hiring was praised by the regional medical community.

“Dr. Heiles’ hiring accelerates the process of setting up the curricula and the onboarding of faculty simultaneously with the construction of the building to start the College,” noted Dr. Cole Goodman, president of Mercy Clinic Fort Smith. “Dr. Heiles as Dean of the Osteopathic College is a major step in making the proposed COM a reality. Speaking as a physician and an administrator, we couldn't have asked for a better hire for the proposed College.”

In addition to Mercy Clinic, Fort Smith-based Cooper Clinic, Sparks Health System in Fort Smith and Summit Medical Center in Van Buren, will be some of the area medical facilities working with the college to provide residency opportunities.

There are 30 colleges of osteopathic medicine (COMs), offering instruction at 40 locations in 28 states. There is not an osteopathy school in Arkansas. Should the development of an osteopathic school in Fort Smith happen, it would be a private, non-profit institution and not dependent on continuous public funds from the state.

Heiles graduated from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine in 1984 and completed his internship and residency at hospitals in Pennsylvania. He received the Distinguished Service Award from the American College of Osteopathic Family Physicians in 2013. He was also named the Arkansas Family Physician of the Year in 1993 and the Physician of the Year by the Arkansas Osteopathic Association in 2010.

“The selection of Dr. Heiles as our dean is a key step toward the opening of the proposed Arkansas School of Osteopathic Medicine,” John Taylor, board chair of the Fort Smith Regional Healthcare Foundation, said in the statement. “Dr. Heiles credentials are second to none. He has practiced previously as a physician in a rural area of Arkansas and served at the top levels of medical training and education. We say welcome home to Dr. Heiles and we look forward to an exciting mission together.”

Heiles’ hiring was well received in the osteopathic community.

“It is with great Osteopathic pride that we celebrate the selection of Arkansas’ favorite son Ken Heiles, D.O. as Dean, Arkansas College of Osteopathic Medicine. He is one of our own who has practiced and help train physicians in our state prior to being selected for this esteemed position.”
– Jim Zini, D.O., American Osteopathic Association Past President

“The ACHE couldn't have found a better leader to foster Arkansas' future physician workforce. We, as an association, have full confidence that Dr. Heiles will give his medical students the tools they need to address our state's healthcare demands. Dr. Heiles has a proven track record of being on the forefront of educating osteopathic medical students and establishing high quality graduate medical education sites. We proudly welcome home a nationally recognized osteoapthic leader and native son.”
– James Baker, D.O., Arkansas Osteopathic Medical Association president

“The Arkansas Osteopathic Medical Association (AOMA) is thrilled with the ACHE's hire of Dr. Ken Heiles. The AOMA and the ACHE share a mission for advancing our state's dynamic health care needs through advancing osteopathic education and outreach. As a Past-President of the AOMA, we know that Dr. Heiles shares this same vision and will work towards establishing a school founded upon the highest standards of osteopathic education.  Our association continues to wholeheartedly support the ACHE's efforts as they continue to pursue excellence in education with the announcement of the new Dean.”
– Frazier Edwards, executive director, AOMA

An area of highly contaminated soil at the former Whirlpool manufacturing facility has the company's environmental consultants proposing not just chemical oxidation treatments, as previously approved by the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality, but removal of soil contaminated by potentially cancer-causing trichloroethylene (TCE).

And while the information is just coming to light, ADEQ said Whirlpool and its consultants knew about the contamination at Whirlpool’s former Fort Smith manufacturing operation even as it was presenting a remediation plan to the agency late last year and early this year.

In an April 24 memo, officials with ADEQ detail a telephone call with Project Manager Mike Ellis of ENVIRON, the firm Whirlpool hired to handle remediation efforts at its site following disclosure of TCE contamination, in which Ellis said his company had identified "an area of highly impacted soils to as deep as 25' - 30' have been located at the northwest corner of the Whirlpool building ... "

According to Ellis, ENVIRON believed the location was likely the source of groundwater contamination that has spread to the neighborhood north of the shuttered factory “and as such requires source removal,” he said. The process for removing the contaminated soil will require boring into the ground, Ellis told ADEQ, with the focus shifting from the chemical oxidation treatments approved in the company's remediation plan to "source removal."

"They want to focus on source removal and have bioremediation of groundwater become secondary until the source is removed," the memo read. "They are still planning to inject into the one injection point in Area 1."

Ellis also notified ADEQ that "a large quantity of contaminant mass (is) moving to the South." The memo also said drilling to remove the contamination "will generate high volumes of highly contaminated soil and groundwater that will require management."

In addition to the northwest corner of the Whirlpool building, the memo said contaminated soils were also found to the west and south corner of the closed factory, as well as areas under the manufacturing building.

It is unknown what impact the change will have on the remediation plan approved earlier this year, though the memo said, "In either case, the schedule for groundwater remediation in Area 1 will be impacted."

In discussing the revelations from Ellis, ADEQ said it would have to sign off on future actions taken at the site before such actions are taken.

"Although Whirlpool collected this MIP data 4-5 months ago, no discussion of the results or ramifications of this data was supplied to ADEQ," the memo continued. "MIP data is presented in real time. Whirlpool certainly knew that this area was impacted prior to submitting the final Remedial Plan at the end of February."

At a quarterly meeting between ADEQ and ENVIRON held via conference call Monday (May 12), ADEQ requested Whirlpool provide the following to speed up removal of impacted soils:
• Within 15 days, Whirlpool should submit a soil investigation work plan for the newly-discovered area of contamination;
• The work plan "should include proposed boring locations, depths, sampling protocol and a proposed analytical suite. A schedule should also be presented."
• Whirlpool should provide ADEQ with any information is receives "from the analytical laboratory."

In a letter to Whirlpool from Technical Branch Manager Jay Rich of the ADEQ Hazardous Waste Division, Rich said the company should propose an amended remedy for the contaminated area should lab analysis confirm the disclosed data discussed in April.

"Since a remedy for AOC 1 is already in the Remedial Action Decision Document (RADD), the RADD may need to be amended based on the findings of the investigation," he wrote.

Ken Nisch, chairman of JGA, has designed brick-and-mortar retail stores for nearly 40 years. He said digital is and will continue to transform the retail experience during the next three years as smart phone sales are expected to top three billion sold annually.

Gartner reports 1.8 billion smart phones were sold last year, with Apple and Samsung controlling half of the market.

Nisch said now it takes three year’s income for most Indian consumers to afford a smart phone. But with smart phone prices expected to fall to $35 in the next two or three years because of Chinese or low-end manufacturers, he said smart phone usage is expected to double.

Nisch was one of the featured speakers at the annual SHOP Retail Conference held at the University of Arkansas on Wednesday (May 14). The spring conference was presented by the Center for Retailing Excellence at the university in cooperation with this year’s sponsors, The Mars Agency, Walmart and Shopper Events.

CREATIVE RESPONSES NEEDED
The conference theme was “Growth through Creativity,” and Nisch said digital is prompting creative thinking among retailers and brands who want to move from being stuck in the middle out to the edges, where people are connected through high tech and “multiple touch points.”

“Digital is altering everything we do. Even jean makers have had to redesign pockets to allow for bigger smart phones. It’s where people go for information, scout for locations to shop, task their shopping lists. ... Consumers use phones to fill their idle time, engage in pre-shopping and social shopping,” Nisch said.

He said retailers must figure out how to engage a generation quite comfortable living on stage. 

“By the time they get to your store they have already decided what they want to buy and they expect you to help them find it quickly. They don’t want to browse, but there is an opportunity to sell up, for those who can engage these shoppers,” Nisch said.

David Shing, a “digital prophet” for AOL, and a speaker at Wednesday’s conference, said today’s shoppers have a “show me” culture as 85% of consumers watch videos from six-second Vine posts to YouTube. Shing said brands have to win over digital shoppers differently. They don’t conform to the traditional shopping patterns of past generations. 

“Consumers are creators, curators and critics rolled into one. They will recommend only 5 to 9 brands to their friends and family, so making that list is important,” he added.

Shing said the smart phone is the first screen in people’s lives. It’s not their big screen television or tablet. But he said mobile is often the last place brands get creative with their messages, content and advertising. 

“You should start with mobile, but for some reason it’s being treated as an infant when it comes to content marketing. I also believe that experimentation is absolutely necessary,” Shing said.

RETHINKING SHOPPING
Digital shoppers often want customization and edited choices, and this does not fit the traditional shopping warehouse model build around variety and one-stop shopping.

“The shopping ecosystem has to be rethought. There is really only two reasons to have a physical store, for the shopping experience or for the last mile logistics and instant gratification. Many retailers have built their models on embellished warehouses but that’s not the future,” Nisch said.

He recently attended a fashion retail conference in Spain and said the talk among several retailers from American Eagle to Aeropostale was to close underperforming stores and focus on fewer, more connected and experiential venues.

Nisch challenged those at the conference to think about ways they might make a physical presence an interesting experience. He said the Hershey store in Las Vegas has been a big hit as the brand seeks to engage shoppers with custom products they can create using a 3-D printer.

Before and after the shopping experience in the physical he said brands should also use digital to reinforce and engage those customers, like GAP and its experiment with Piperlime to start conversations with shoppers who are enroute to the store.

THE BRA STORY
Nisch said the new retail ecosystem is one that moves seamlessly between digital and physical. He said the physical may be a showroom, with various experience zones within it. The Jockey Bra store at the Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg, Ill., was one example he gave for a brand that has married digital and physical on a global scale with limited real estate.

He said Jockey focuses on the everyday bra, with just three colors and five styles that come in 55 sizes that are based on their own standard fitting guidelines. Shoppers can get the sizing kit and fit themselves at home with online assistance or come into the store for a personal fitting. But the store itself is designed like a showroom, with a spa feel. 

Jockey’s objective with their physical store was to create an innovative new bra shopping experience store. They accomplished this through direct consumer contact, online and brick & mortar. The store design allowed for individualized consultations and retail. It also provided a solution to the frustration associated with traditional bra shopping. 

Nisch said Jockey’s willingness to move toward to the edge with its store concept helped it create a “breakthrough moment” for the consumer. He said Jockey is able to expand its reach with a hub-and-spoke concept with pop-up stores that facilitate the one flagship store.

One observation by Jockey after opening the store last summer, was that many woman want to do the fitting in the privacy of their home, but then they talk a friend into coming to the store for a fitting and they tag along providing opportunities for another sale.

The Arkansas Supreme Court denied a state of Arkansas request for a stay in a ruling that struck down Arkansas’ ban on same-sex marriages, but the court’s order created more confusion.

Attorney General Dustin McDaniel requested a stay from the state’s high court after Pulaski County Circuit Judge Chris Piazza apparently struck down Arkansas’ ban on same-sex marriages last Friday.

The case challenges a statute passed in 1997 and a constitutional amendment to the Arkansas Constitution, approved by voters in 2004. Both exclude same-sex couples from marriage and forbid the state from recognizing same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions.

The case, Wright v. Arkansas, is one of several Arkansas cases and resembles suits in other states. Seventeen states and the District of Columbia allow for same-sex marriages, while 33 states currently prohibit the practice.

“Motion to dismiss appeal granted without prejudice; motion for emergency stay denied,” the Supreme Court said in a seven-page order.

Initial interpretation of the Supreme Court’s denial of stay suggested that counties may proceed issuing marriage licenses for same-sex couples while the court considers further legal action. However, legal experts contacted by Talk Business & Politics say the Supreme Court ruling claims that technically Judge Piazza never issued a final order in the case and did not address the state statute that prohibits county clerks from issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. That interpretation could mean that clerks never had the final court authority to issue same-sex marriage licenses after Piazza’s decision was handed down.

The Supreme Court may have invalidated all marriage licenses issued since this weekend was the consensus of two legal experts. A third expert indicated that all scenarios are still in play, but that Judge Piazza’s final ruling — which has not been issued — could help clarify technical legal issues for the court.

A fourth legal expert suggested the high court could be buying time to build more consensus among colleagues for a decision in the case. He noted that a stay is typically issued when there is a strong chance a legal body may overturn a decision. Corbin’s and Danielson’s concurrence opinions, in which they said they would have rejected the stay request, suggests that they may support upholding the Piazza decision.

VOTER ID RULE
The Arkansas Supreme Court also struck down a lower court ruling that the Arkansas voter ID law was unconstitutional. The controversial measure that requires voters to provide photo IDs in many instances was overturned as unconstitutional by Pulaski County Circuit Judge Tim Fox two weeks ago.

In the case considered, Fox had issued his ruling related to the handling of absentee ballots. But Fox went beyond that central point in the case by declaring the full law as unconstitutional.

The Supreme Court said Fox did not have the authority to consider the constitutionality of the voter ID law in his decision. However, Fox has also ruled the law unconstitutional in another case that came before him that did seek a determination on the law’s legal merits. An appeal of that case is still pending before the court.

JUDICIAL QUALIFICATIONS

In a separate case hoping to provide clarification on the qualifications of judicial candidates, Kelly v. Martin, the Arkansas Supreme Court ruled that candidates whose licenses were briefly suspended for late payments of annual dues are eligible for election. The case actually centered on Judge Tim Fox’s eligibility after he was late last year in paying his annual legal license dues. The plaintiffs argued that Fox — and potentially other delinquent payers — had not met a threshold of being a “licensed attorney” for six years prior to being elected.

In a divided court opinion, the majority said that the lower court ruling was invalid. The majority of justices relied on the interpretation of phrases such as “suspension,” “disbarment,” and “reinstatement” to render its finding.

“Accordingly, we conclude that, under amendment 80, even though Judge Fox failed to pay his annual license fee for forty-five days in 2013, he nevertheless remained a licensed attorney during the period of delinquency because his license was not terminated and his name was not removed from the list of licensed attorneys,” Justice Jospehine Hart wrote for the majority.

Another case, Chandler v. Martin, also addressed a similar situation involving Faulkner County Circuit Judge H.G. Foster, who was declared eligible for the ballot.

The foreclosure train is slowing across the Natural State, particularly in Benton County, that once led in the number of distressed homes. Irvine, Calif.,-based RealtyTrac reports 389 foreclosure filings in Arkansas during April, down 38.8% from a year ago. 

In Northwest Arkansas there were 39 new filings in Benton County and 19 new filings in Washington County, down 67% and 71%, respectively, when compared to the year-ago period.

The Fort Smith metro area had just 17 new foreclosure filings last month, 14 of those were in Sebastian County and three in Crawford County. Filings plunged 33% and 78%, respectively, in the two counties from the same month in 2013.

States like Arkansas continue work through the remnants of foreclosures left over from the recent housing crisis, according to Daren Blomquist, vice president of RealtyTrac. He said inventory levels are low and the foreclosures coming back into the pipeline will provide some much-wanted inventory for investors and buyers looking for rehab projects.

Vicki Briolat, agent with Crye-Leike Real Estate in Bentonville, said there are 153 foreclosure homes listed for sale in the local Multiple Listing Service among the four counties referenced in this report. The number of local foreclosure listings have declined from 273 in February and they are down from 322 in December. 

“We are seeing very few new foreclosures come into the market, and inventory is very low now. Homes in good shape are selling fast,” Briolat said.

A recent report by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York found that 3.7% of mortgages were at least 90 days delinquent in the first quarter of this year. This is down from 3.9% in the fourth quarter of 2013. 

About 145,000 individuals had new foreclosure notations added to their credit reports in the first quarter, 12,000 fewer than the previous quarter. At the same time new mortgage originations dropped by $120 million in the first quarter.  

Mortgage debt totaled $8.17 trillion in the first quarter, growing by $233 billion from the prior year.

Across the nation, RealtyTrac said 115,830 U.S. properties in April were in the process of foreclosure, down 1% from the previous month and 20% lower than in  April 2013. The report also shows one in every 1,137 U.S. housing units with a foreclosure filing during the month.

APRIL FORECLOSURE NUMBERS
Benton County: 39 filings, down from 118 in April 2013
Washington County: 13 filings, down from 19
Sebastian County: 14 filings, down from 8
Crawford County: 3 fiilngs, down from 8
Arkansas: 389 filings, down from 338

Officials with Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said bad weather and a currency exchange rate were partially to blame for a comparable decline in net income in the first fiscal quarter and total revenue that was just 0.8% higher than the same quarter in 2013.

The Bentonville-based retailer reported per share net income for the first fiscal quarter of $1.11, below the consensus estimate of $1.15. The company earned $1.10 per share from continuing operations. Total revenue of $114.96 billion was up slightly over the $114.07 billion in first quarter of 2013 and was below the consensus estimate of $116.27 billion.

"Walmart's first quarter net sales increased 0.8% over last year. Like other retailers in the United States, the unseasonably cold and disruptive weather negatively impacted U.S. sales and drove operating expenses higher than expected," Wal-Mart President and CEO Doug McMillon said in the earnings report released early Thursday (May 15).

Charles Holley, chief financial officer, said weather dinged net earnings some 3 cents per share in the quarter. Weather-related expenses included snow removal costs and the hiring of third party logistics services as a result of the major log jam in the supply chain from manufacturers to the distribution centers.

Bill Simon, CEO of Walmart U.S. said, the supply chain backlog created during several winter storms was the worst he has seen during his time at Wal-Mart. He said third party logistics were required to get the stores restocked quickly as there were delays from manufacturers. He said the 200 stores temporarily closed added to the weaker numbers.

The company said revenue took a $1.6 billion hit because of a currency exchange rate fluctuation. The company also paid $1.5 billion in the quarter to acquire “substantially all” of the outstanding shares in Walmart Chile.

Consolidated net income attributable to Wal-Mart was $3.6 billion, a decrease of 5%, related to higher core costs. Wal-Mart said it spent $53 million in compliance costs related to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Approximately $34 million of that was linked to ongoing inquiries and investigations, and approximately $19 million was related to the retailer’s global compliance program and organizational enhancements. 

WALMART U.S.
The flagship sector, Walmart U.S. continues to feel pressure from weaker U.S. comp traffic, down 1.4% in the quarter, despite a 1.3% uptick in the average shopper ticket. This marks the fifth consecutive quarter of negative to flat comparable sales, the benchmark metric used to measure retail performance.

Overall, net sales totaled $67.852 billion at Walmart U.S., up 2%, led by strong results in grocery.

“We feel good about the underlying business and are pleased with the performance of Neighborhood Markets which recorded comp sales of roughly 5% and traffic increases of 4% in quarter,” Simon said during a media call. "We saw strength across food and health & wellness, and we're particularly pleased with our overall traffic trend. April marked the 46th consecutive month of positive comps for Neighborhood Market.”

He said as inflation has risen in meat and dairy, Walmart has been able to hold prices steady which has helped it gain marketshare in these categories. Simon said ticket averages are rising at its supercenter format, while traffic is heavier at the smaller formats.

Wal-Mart plans to offer its gas savings rollback program next month, an initiative that typically runs throughout the summer for customers who pay for their fuel purchases with a Walmart giftcard or store credit card. 

Going forward, Simon said the retailer will continue working to bring its e-commerce and physical stores into sync to provide a more seamless process for shoppers. The first fully tethered Walmart Express came online in North Carolina this month. Simon said shoppers may now stop to buy fuel at a Neighborhood Market and pick up a bicycle ordered online a hour earlier.

He is also excited about the new online grocery format coming to Bentonville. Simon explained that this concept depot is similar to other formats in its ASDA banner in the U.K., but it’s different in that the Bentonville center will be a wholesale warehouse where items are picked and packaged on site. He said orders placed online can be picked up an hour or 90 minutes later. Construction is already underway on this new format which is slated to open later this year.

A bright spot in the earnings came from the retailer’s e-commerce segment which grew sales by 27% in the quarter. On a comparable basis online sales rose 0.3% from a year ago. 

Walmart said its seeing double-digit sales growth from nearly all of its e-commerce and mobile commerce businesses around the world. Brazil e-commerce and Yihaodian in China continue to experience strong demand.

"We have the opportunity to create transformative growth through stronger e-commerce capabilities," McMillon said in the statement. "Our investments are focused on improving customer experience and fulfillment capacity. We're working to deliver a relevant, personalized and seamless customer experience across all channels to further grow sales."

INTERNATIONAL IMPROVEMENT
Walmart’s diverse international division has been working to rein in operating costs over the past few quarters. In the first quarter Walmart International reported total revenue of  $32.424 billion, down 1.4% including currency fluctuations. On a constant currency basis revenue was $34 billion, up 3.4% from a year ago. Operating income in the segment rose 3.4% to $1.202 billion.

“Our teams are executing key strategic initiatives and driving sales growth, while serving customers wherever and however they want to shop," said David Cheesewright, president and CEO of Walmart International. "We delivered on our commitment to grow operating income at a rate greater than sales, both reported and excluding currency."

The segment’s total results were negatively impacted by restructuring taking place in China and Brazil, two of its larger international markets.

SAM’S DISAPPOINTS
Once the shining star of the Wal-Mart portfolio, Sam’s Club has lost some of its luster and reported comp sales down 0.2%, while the average ticket down 0.3%. Net sales were $13.891 billion at Sam’s Club (including fuel), up just 0.1%.

“The fiscal year started with several challenges for our core member, resulting in one of our more difficult quarters. The combination of severe weather and the reduction of public assistance represented an approximate 90 basis point impact to comp sales,” said Rosalind Brewer CEO of Sam’s Club.

While traffic and average ticket sales declined in the quarter, membership and other income grew 10.5%. This jump was related to the fee increase taken a year ago. Sam’s said new member signups were softer to start fiscal 2015.

To spur more spending Sam’s is rolling out a cash back rewards initiative next month. This new benefit provides $10 for every $500 spent on qualifying purchases. All members will continue to receive Instant Savings offers; however, the benefit of cash rewards will be exclusively for Plus members, the company said.

This cash rewards plan has been tested in the Texas market with positive results. It is now being rolled out nationwide.

FORWARD LOOK
The company expects second fiscal quarter financials to be similar to those in the same quarter of 2013.

"We expect second quarter fiscal year 2015 diluted earnings per share from continuing operations to be between $1.15 and $1.25. This compares to $1.24 last year," Holley said. "Our guidance assumes incremental investments in e-commerce, headwinds from higher health care costs in the U.S. and increased investments in Sam's Club membership programs. We continue to expect our full-year effective tax rate to range between 32 and 34 percent. We expect our effective tax rate to be at the high end of this guidance for the second quarter."

Jan Kniffen, CEO of J. Rogers Kniffen Worldwide CEO, said Wall Street knows the first quarter was bad, but what it is looking for from retailers reporting earnings today and tomorrow is that the first six weeks of this quarter has been better and they are expecting a strong half of the year.

That is not what Wal-Mart or Kohl’s projected in their Thursday announcements, with both gave cautious guidance. Simon said their shopper base is still struggling to overcome stagnant wages.

Street.com analyst Jim Cramer said it’s not that Wal-Mart has lost its way, and it’s also not that Wal-Mart is merely a play on the low-end consumer woes like food stamps and government stimulus, but it’s also a realization that consumers are shopping elsewhere.

Negative traffic despite the company's investments is “very reflective in how people are now shopping and the company not being able to fully play in that trend,” said Brian Sozzi, CEO of Bellus Capital Advisors. He also notes that five consecutive “earnings warning” is an indication Wal-Mart continues to face “deep” issues. 

Wal-Mart shares fell 2.5% in the morning session trading at $76.83, down $1.90 on the day. During the past 52 weeks the share price has ranged from an $81.37 high to a $71.51 low.

Seeking Alpha contributor Brian Gilmartin notes that Wal-Mart is fairly valued at $80, given its ability to generate cash which it’s returning to shareholders in dividends and stock buybacks.

He said Wal-Mart’s long-term challenge is to grow revenues at something more than "low single-digit" percentages in an environment where GDP grows 2% (maybe) per year, and inflation persists at 1% to 1.2% per year.

To paraphrase former President Gerald Ford, "Our long nightmare is (almost) over."

According to District 4 Engineer Chad Adams of the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department, the more than $70 million Interstate 540 rehabilitation project is nearing completion with anticipation of all north and southbound lanes expected to be open for traffic within four weeks.

Adams said there is still work to be done, but portions of now-closed lanes should begin to re-open as early as the next 10 days.

"They (the contractors) have a few items left for us to be able to call the job substantially complete," he said.

The items are far from large, with mostly guardrail, wire safety barriers and seeding still to be finished.

"It's all real minor, but it's stuff that we require them to get done before we call it substantially complete," he said. "Once that is all finished, which we expect is a week and a half — we thought we'd be done this week, but we've had some rain, so now we're looking at a week and a half from now — once that is complete, we'll begin removing barrels and opening to two lanes."

While portions of the lanes will re-open within 10 days, the slow down has turned out to be the Arkansas River bridge that separates Van Buren and Fort Smith.

Adams said since the rehabilitation project started on Jan. 28, 2013, the bridge has developed potholes which will need to be patched before all lanes along the eight-mile stretch of construction can be re-opened.

He said drivers will notice at least one lane closed in each direction from Interstate 40 to the end of the river bridge.

During the time that crews are working on the bridge's potholes, Adams said signs that stretch over the interstate at its interchange with I-40 will be corrected to no longer show I-540 continuing to Fayetteville. The signs will remove all references to I-540 North and Fayetteville, instead replacing the markings with a simple reference to I-40 East and listings for Little Rock and Memphis, he added.

Once all lanes are re-opened in the next month, Adams said drivers should not be surprised to see work crews continuing work on lights and other items along the interstate, he said, though any additional work should be able to be completed without closing anything more than the shoulder of the interstate.

Crawford County posted its first drop in real estate sales for the year, while Sebastian County posted its largest increase so far for the year. But according to one real estate agent, observers and analysts should not read too much into a single month's real estate sales.

For the month of April, Crawford County posted only $4.4629 million in sales on 44 homes, a 9.98% drop from the previous April's total of 50 homes at $5.142 million. Sebastian County, on the other hand, saw 120 homes sold at $14.158 million, posting a 25.76% increase over April 2013's sales of 96 homes for $11.258 million.

Kevin King, principal broker and owner of Weichert Realtors King Realty Group in Fort Smith, said analyzing a single month's numbers only tells a small part of the real estate story and said a review of a full quarter or a full year's numbers would give more insight into what was happening in the market.

For the first four months of 2014, Crawford County posted a 34.96% increase in sales over the same period in 2013, with 176 homes sold for $18.997 million in volume versus last year's sales of 136 homes for only $14.076 million. The same period saw Sebastian County with 376 homes sold at $48.610 million, a 7.28% increase over 2013's sale of 343 homes at $45.313 million in volume.

When it comes to the increase for both counties, King said it could be attributed to different factors. In the case of Crawford County, the driving force behind its growth continues to be the USDA's Rural Development Loan Program, which was at risk of expiring before Congress ultimately passed a Farm Bill that secured additional longer-term funding for the program.

He said rural development loans often drive people to Crawford County instead of rural parts of Sebastian County.

"For whatever reason, Van Buren is their first choice to do that RD loan," he said. "It's the next biggest city they can live in and use that rural development loan."

In addition to the rural development loans driving traffic in Crawford County, King said another factor in improving Sebastian County's sales could be the shift in seasons.

"The only thing I can think of from our perspective is we were slowed down the early part of the year because of the weather. There were several days where we couldn't even show."

With the weather improved, Sebastian County's numbers are on the rise.

As far as what types of homes are selling, King said the market has seen a large number of investors.

"About a third of our traffic is attributed to investors buying the lower-end housing," he said, adding that difficulty for individuals seeking mortgages is helping to drive more investors to gobble up available inventory.

"In a market where it's hard to get approved and rentals are in high demand, it helps (to have investors will to purchase)."

Even so, King said the market is still unbalanced with a lot of sellers, but very few buyers. But he said that should begin to change as the year advances.

"I think we're still a bit unbalanced with too much inventory and not enough buyers, but as we get more job announcements, I think that will help. The more balanced the market gets as far as buyers and sellers, it will help."

Home Sales Data (January - April)
• Crawford County
Unit Sales
2014: 176
2013: 136

Total Sales Volume
2014: $18.997 million
2013: $14.076 million

Median Sales Price
2014: $91,800
2013: $101,900

• Sebastian County
Unit Sales
2014: 376
2013: 343

Total Sales Volume
2014: $48.611 million
2013: $45.313 million

Median Sales Price
2014: $116,500
2013: $109,900

Pulaski County Circuit Judge Chris Piazza on Thursday (May 15) clarified his May 9 ruling that struck down Arkansas’ ban on same-sex marriage, and he also rejected a request by the Arkansas Attorney General to stay his ruling.

Arkansas voters in 2004 approved Amendment 83 which legally defined marriage as between one man and one woman. The language, which was approved by 74.9% of those voting in the 2004 general election, makes it unconstitutional for the state to recognize or perform same-sex marriages or civil unions. Legal status for unmarried persons which are identical or substantially similar to marital status shall not be valid or recognized in Arkansas, except that the legislature may recognize a common law marriage from another state between a man and a woman.

Piazza’s May 9 ruling also invalidated a 1997 Arkansas law restricting same-sex marriage rights.

“There is no evidence that Defendants, the State or its citizens were harmed by the entry of the Court's original order or that they will be harmed by the clarifications contained within the Final Order and Rule 54(b) certification,” Piazza noted in the ruling he issued Thursday afternoon. “However, the same cannot be said of the Plaintiffs and other same-sex couples who have not been afforded the same measure of human dignity, respect and recognition by this state as their similarly situated, opposite-sex counterparts. A stay would operate to further damage Arkansas families and deprive them of equal access to the rights associated with marriage status in this state.”

A Fox News report indicated that Pulaski County officials planned to issue same-sex marriage licenses after Piazza’s ruling. It is unclear if county clerks in the Northwest Arkansas and Fort Smith areas will do the same. Prior to Thursday and Piazza’s updated ruling, the clerks in Benton, Crawford and Sebastian counties were not issuing licenses.

"I have consulted with Daniel Shue, Sebastian County Prosecuting Attorney, who has advised me with regard to the legalities of this very important matter. The ruling from the Third Division Court of Pulaski County is not binding on my office, and I will await the decision of the Supreme Court of Arkansas,” Sebastian County Clerk Sharon Brooks recently said.

Piazza’s ruling Thursday was followed by a notice from the Arkansas Attorney General’s office to appeal Piazza’s ruling to the Arkansas Supreme Court.

Washington County, one of the named defendants in the case in which Piazza ruled, did begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples on May 12. On that Monday, Washington County issued 83 licenses, with 80 of those for same-sex couples.

The Human Rights Campaign, a group active in Arkansas to push for same-sex marriage rights, said Piazza’s ruling should remove any reasons to not issue licenses.

"No procedural obstacle should stand between committed and loving gay and lesbian couples in Arkansas and their constitutional right to marry,” Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin said in a statement. “I'm confident that as this case moves forward, the Arkansas Supreme Court will keep faith with the spirit of Judge Piazza's ruling and the fair-minded values that my home state holds dear."

UPDATED INFO:Sen. Jason Rapert, R-Conway, is pushing an interim legislative resolution that seeks to push back against Piazza’s ruling and encourage the Attorney General’s office to “vigorously defend” Amendment 83.

Of the 40 lawmakers who have signed on to the resolution, 15 are Republican State Senators, 20 are GOP House members and 5 are Democratic House members. Speaker-designate Rep. Jeremy Gillam, R-Judsonia, is one of the Republican House members in support of the resolution, according to this report at Talk Business & Politics.

Of those on the resolution filed by Rapert, 12 are House and Senate members from the Fort Smith and Northwest Arkansas areas. They are: Sen. Cecile Bledsoe, R-Rogers; Sen. Jake Files, R-Fort Smith; Sen. Jim Hendren, R-Gravette; Sen. Bart Hester, R-Cave Springs; Sen. Bruce Holland, R-Greenwood; Sen. Gary Stubblefield, R-Branch; Sen. Jon Woods, R-Springdale; Rep. Bob Ballinger, R-Hindsville; Rep. Jim Dotson, R-Bentonville; Rep. Charlotte Douglas, R-Alma; Rep. Jon Eubanks, Paris; Rep. Justin Harris, R-West Fork.

Rapert’s resolution asks the Arkansas Legislative Council to “explore legislative remedies to prevent the Arkansas Constitution and the will of the people of this state from being negated by judicial activism which violates the separation of powers ensured in our form of government.”

The resolution also notes that “marriage between one man and one woman is the building block upon which our society is based,” and that the “power to regulate marriage is a power reserved to the people that lies within the domain of state legislatures and not with the courts.”

As to Piazza, the resolution notes that his “decision is in direct contradiction to his oath to uphold the Arkansas Constitution and the overall right of the State of Arkansas to declare policy on such matters.”

Link here to see the resolution.

Also on Thursday, the University of Arkansas system said same-sex couples would be eligible for the system’s medical benefit plan. A memo, first published by Arkansas Times, noted: “... with respect to the University’s medical benefit plan, any same sex couple in Arkansas or married in another state recognizing same sex marriage shall be eligible for coverage under the plan unless the Circuit Court’s decision is stayed by the Arkansas Supreme Court. Same sex couples married in Arkansas before such stay shall be entitled to participate in the University’s plan unless the stay order addresses this issue to the contrary. Eligibility for the University’s other benefits depending upon marital status shall be examined on a case by case basis but it is likely that such benefits would be granted to a same sex married couple.”

Many large companies with operations in Arkansas, including Bentonville-based Wal-Mart Stores Inc., have already opened up their benefit structures to same-sex couples. In August 2013, Wal-Mart officially expanded the parameters of its company benefit package to include spouses of full-time employees and domestic partners. At the time, Wal-Mart Wal-Mart joined a long list of Fortune 500 companies including Costco, Ford, Home Depot and Best Buy to offer health care benefits to same-sex partners. The civil rights group, Human Rights Campaign, estimates 62% of Fortune 500 companies have already done so. HRC said inclusion efforts have increased from 34% in 2002.

Northwest Arkansas real estate agents report an active sales market but numbers from MountData.com indicate a slowing pace across the two-country area. There were 575 total transactions in Benton and Washington counties to start the spring selling season. Unit sales in April slid 6.35% from the 614 reported a year ago.

Paul Bynum, analyst with MountData.com, said sales are strong but the numbers are compared to highly robust year in 2013.

Benton County fared better than its neighbor with 382 sales, which was three more than sold a year ago. Total volume sales were flat at $73.253 million. Washington County sales totaled $33.361 million in volume, down 26% from a year ago. Unit sales fell 17.8% to 193 homes sold in the county.

Real estate veteran George Faucette told The City Wire that April has been his firm's strongest month this year. He said sales were mixed during the past four months with January sales higher and February sales lower year-over-year. He also noted that new written business, while moving up nicely year to date, was down when compared to 2013. Faucette is the co-owner and CEO of the local Coldwell Banker franchise, which is the largest agency in the region with 17.13% of the market sales through April.

"Our sales have been really strong through the first half of May, but we are not quite on par with last year. I think by mid-summer the market will catch up with the better 2013 numbers. One of my agents in Rogers told me today she has already sold more homes this year than she did in all of 2013. Some agents are doing quite well in this market," Faucette said.

Harold Crye, CEO of Crye-Leike Real Estate, said his firm’s NWA home sales totaled $38.5 million during April. Sales compared to $37.4 million a year ago. Through the first four months of 2014, Crye said his NWA agents have sold 745 properties valued at $112 million. This gives the firm roughly a 11.5% market share in terms of units sold.

MountData reports there have been 2,002 units sold during the first four months of this year with a total volume of roughly $357 million, down about 3% from a year ago. It took an average of 64 days to sell a home and the sales to list price ratio was 97.8%, which is an improvement for sellers.

CASH, QUICK CLOSINGS
Helen Dankser, an agent with Crye-Leike in Bella Vista, said she wrote nine contracts in April and that included one cash deal that closed within eight days of listing. 

“I showed the home the morning after it was listed the prior afternoon. There were five other appointments that same day. My buyers offered $1,000 over asking price with a clean cash deal and the sellers took it immediately. They didn’t entertain any other offers,” Dansker said.

She also is working on another cash deal now in Bella Vista, which is set to close May 20. Dansker said the home was on the market about one week. While inventory is a little tighter than in past years, Dankser said there are plenty of homes for buyers to chose from in most price categories. She said inventory is tight enough where multiple offers are prompting buyers to pay more than asking price.

“I have a closing toward this end of this month. My seller got two offers, one for $5,000 over asking and one for $500 over asking. The seller took the $500 over deal because it  did not have contingencies like the other deal,” she said.

Through four months of sales in 2014 the median asking price is $144,400 in Benton County, down 3% from a year ago. Prices were lower in Washington County with a median reading of $126,506 through April, down 6% from a year ago, according to MountData.com.

Pricing per square foot moved up from $80 to $82 in Benton County through April. In Washington County the median price per square foot was $85.5, up slightly from a year ago.

Vicki Briolat, an agent with Crye-Leike in Bentonville, said she closed nearly $1 million in sales last month. Those included a couple relocating here from Benton, a couple moving to a larger home in Fayetteville after selling their home in Elkins and a seller relocating outside the region.

“Our office is busy, not frantic, but it’s a nice pace we can live with,” Briolat said.

HOME SALES (January through April)
Benton County
Sales Volume
2014:  $230.943 million
2013:  $233.089 million
-0.90%

Units Sold
2014: 1,281
2013: 1,291
-0.85%

Median Sales Price
2014: $144,400
2013: $148,975
-3.07%

Washington County
Sales Volume
2014: $126.506 million
2013: $134.750 million
-6.11%

Units Sold
2014: 721
2013: 781
-7.68%

Median Sales Price
2014: $145,725
2013: $145,000
0.5%

Arkansas’ jobless rate during April fell to 6.6% thanks to an estimated increase of 7,762 employed Arkansans and a more than 12% decline in the number of unemployed. However, the state’s labor force size continues to decline and remains well below pre-recession levels.

The April rate of 6.6% was below the March rate of 6.9% and below the April 2013 rate of 7.5%, according to the report issued Friday (May 16) by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The April figures are subject to revision.

Year-over-year, the state’s tourism sector gained an estimated 3,200 jobs, the Trade, Transportation and Utilities sector was up 1,400 jobs, the Education and Health Services sector was up 1,500 jobs, and the construction sector was up 1,900 jobs.

Arkansas’ labor force was an estimated 1.322 million in April, below the 1.33 million in March, and down 0.33% compared to 1.367 million in April 2013. The year-over-year comparison shows an estimated 4,474 fewer Arkansans in the labor force. There are 39,959 fewer Arkansans in the labor force compared to April 2007, a decline of almost 3%.

Greg Kaza, director of the Arkansas Policy Foundation and an economic researcher, welcomed the job growth, but said ongoing shrinkage in the labor force is a problem.

“Arkansas' unemployment rate continues to fall as the U.S. expansion enters its sixth year next month (June). The civilian labor force's decline is troubling for this stage of the business cycle, and should be a subject for further inquiry,” Kaza said in a statement.

The number of employed in Arkansas during April was 1.235 million, below March employment of 1.238 million, and up an estimated 7.762 jobs compared to the 1.227 million in April 2013.

The number of unemployed was an estimated 86,726 during April, down from the 91,773 in March, and well below the 98,962 in April 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%.

ARKANSAS SECTOR NUMBERS
In the Trade, Transportation and Utilities sector — Arkansas’ largest job sector — employment during April was an estimated 242,700, down from 243,600 in March and ahead of the 241,300 during April 2013. Employment in the sector hit a high of 251,800 in March 2007.

Manufacturing jobs in Arkansas during April totaled 154,500, up compared to 153,900 in March and above the 152,500 in April 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 April was 215,800, up from 215,300 in March and below the 215,900 during April 2013.

The state’s Education and Health Services sector during April had 173,500 jobs, down from the 173,800 during March and up from 172,000 during April 2013. Employment in the sector is up more than 22% compared to April 2004.

Arkansas’ tourism sector (leisure & hospitality) employed 107,800 during April, down from 109,100 during March, and above the 104,600 during April 2013. The March employment level set a new record for the sector.

The construction sector employed an estimated 47,600 in April, up from 47,500 in March and above the 45,700 in April 2013. The sector is off the employment high of 57,600 reached in March 2007.

NATIONAL, REGIONAL DATA
The BLS report also noted that 47 states had unemployment rate decreases from a year earlier, and one state had and increase and two states had no change. The national jobless rate during April was 6.3%, and was down from the 7.5% in April 2013.

Rhode Island had the highest unemployment rate among the states in April at 8.3%. North Dakota again had the lowest jobless rate at 2.6%.

The April jobless rate in Oklahoma was 4.6%, down compared to 4.9% in March and down from 5.3% in April 2013.

Missouri’s jobless rate during April was 6.6%, down from 6.7% in March and unchanged compared to April 2013.

City Director Pam Weber has decided to not seek re-election to her position 5 at-large seat on the Fort Smith Board of Directors, she confirmed Friday (May 16).

Weber, who began her term on the Board in 2011, said the decision to not run was made with input from her family.

"That was a difficult decision because I have absolutely loved being a city director. There has been no greater honor in my public service career than serving the city of Fort Smith," she said. "But for me and my family, I feel like right now is not the time to seek re-election."

Weber said the process of making a decision involved looking "at what the next few years hold."

"As you know, I have a new grandbaby and a family business. It was a joint decision and after discussing with (my family) — I decided I would never leave my commitment to public service — but I felt it was the right time for a new person to step forward and take my position on the Board."

In discussing her decision, Weber reflected on the last three and a half years and pointed to the creation of a city beautification committee as one of the highlights of her time in elected office.

"I'm proud that Mayor (Sandy) Sanders has asked me to serve on that committee. Some of the things we've done that have been personally gratifying (include) the efforts underway on the I-540 interchanges," she said, mentioning landscaping and tree planting that has taken place at the intersection of Phoenix Avenue, Greenwood Road and I-540, as well as another project planned for I-540 and Rogers Avenue. "Those have been personally very gratifying for me."

Other projects have also ranked high in terms of accomplishments, she said, adding that she was pleased to have been a part of efforts to get sales tax issues passed for fire station improvements, funding for parks projects and funding for the Ben Geren Aquatics Center.

Among the most challenging issues Weber said he and the Board have faced during her time in office has been the budget, which has struggled with lower than expected sales tax revenues. But she said even during the difficult times that have come with the budget, the work has been personally fulfilling.

"The budget has been very challenging the last few years, but the staff and administration has done a good job of managing the difficulties. All of those have been extremely gratifying."

As for what her last six months of service on the Board hold, Weber said beautification efforts will continue to be her focus, as well as promoting Fort Smith.

"Obviously, I want to complete some of the beautification efforts I've started and work with citizens until the very last day. And I want to continue to talk about how wonderful Fort Smith is and (how happy I am to) call Fort Smith home."

Weber's position creates the second vacancy on the Board following City Director Philip Merry's announcement that he would not seek re-election to his position seven at-large seat on the Board. Former City Director Don Hutchings and Parks Commissioner Sherry Toliver have announced their intentions to run for Merry's seat.

As of Friday, the only candidates to have filed to run for Board positions were Sanders and Vice Mayor Kevin Settle, who holds the position six at-large director position. Both are seeking re-election to their respective positions.

The filing period for municipal Fort Smith offices runs from May 14 to Noon on May 29. An election will be held Aug. 12. If needed, a run-off election will be held Nov. 4.

The Arkansas Supreme Court has granted a stay with the May 9 ruling by Pulaski County Circuit Court Judge Chris Piazza that struck down Arkansas’ ban on same-sex marriage.

The stay effectively halts the issuance of marriage licenses for same-sex couples until an appeal of Piazza’s ruling is completed.

Attorney General Dustin McDaniel requested a stay from the state’s high court after Pulaski County Circuit Judge Chris Piazza apparently struck down Arkansas’ ban on same-sex marriages last Friday. Piazza said Amendment 83, which restricted marriage to one man and one woman, violated the U.S. Constitution.

A statement from the McDaniel’s office noted: “As this office stated in its pleadings, a stay prevents confusion and uncertainty until the Arkansas Supreme Court decides this matter on appeal. The Court today made the right decision to issue a stay, as other courts across the country have done in similar circumstances.”

McDaniel has been on record in support of same-sex marriage rights, but has said his duty as Arkansas’ attorney is to defend Amendment 83, which was approved by almost 75% of the Arkansans who voted in the 2004 general election.

The case challenges a statute passed in 1997 and a constitutional amendment to the Arkansas Constitution, approved by voters in 2004. Both exclude same-sex couples from marriage and forbid the state from recognizing same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions.

The case, Wright v. Arkansas, is one of several Arkansas cases and resembles suits in other states. Seventeen states and the District of Columbia allow for same-sex marriages, while 33 states currently prohibit the practice.

According to this report at Arkansas Times, plaintiffs’ attorney Jack Wagoner said he didn't take the stay as an indication of the court's leaning on a final decision. He added that he'll move ahead in a couple of weeks with pleadings in a federal lawsuit also challenging the state bans.