Contact our Campaign:
479-858-8033
jcloudmd@gmail.com
Elect Dr. Joe Cloud for State Representative
PO Box 1441
Russellville, AR 72811
Committed and Conservative. Join our campaign today!
479-858-8033
jcloudmd@gmail.com
Elect Dr. Joe Cloud for State Representative
PO Box 1441
Russellville, AR 72811
There were 259 additional cases reported at this afternoon’s COVID-19 update. Of those, 57 were from Pulaski County, 14 were from Washington County and 26 were from Benton County.
Health officials say the number of tests has decreased due to the holiday weekend.
There were 9 additional deaths reported in the last 24 hours. Of those, 5 were under the age of 65.
The number of hospitalizations has increased by 32. This is the largest single day increase in hospitalizations since the health emergency began. There are now 83 people on a ventilator.
Commerce Secretary Mike Preston says the number of weekly unemployment insurance claims is gradually decreasing. In April, the number of weekly claims reached 122,000. This week, the number of weekly claims was 97,966.
Secretary Preston said his agency is seeing attempts of fraudulent claims by individuals using others personal information. Several thousand claims have been flagged while the agency is reviewing. If someone is using your information or you are aware of fraudulent claims, you are asked to report it at dws.arkansas.com and file a police report. You can also email ADWS.InternalAudit@Arkansas.gov or call 501-682-1058.
There were an additional 439 cases of COVID-19 reported in today’s briefing. Of those, 77 cases were in Washington County, 46 were from Pulaski County, 36 were from Yell County, and 36 were from Benton County.
Health Secretary Dr. Nate Smith said he is particularly concerned about the rise of cases in Central Arkansas. He said the cases appear to be wide-spread in the region.
The Governor announced today he will be requesting an additional $20 million to secure a contract with General Dynamics for more contact tracers. If approved, it would bring the total to 1,000 contact tracers working in the state.
Contact tracers will be calling from the number:
877-272-6819.
ADH is asking all Arkansans to answer if this number calls your phone. Tracers will be providing you with information about possible contacts and will NOT ask for money.
If you are interested in working as a contact tracer, you are asked to apply at www.gdit.com
As the state began a new fiscal year this week, we received some good news about the state budget.
The fiscal year for the state budget always ends on June 30 and begins on July 1.
While general revenue for Fiscal Year 2020 was $168 million less than the year before, it was $369 million above what economic forecasters predicted in the wake of the health emergency.
This means the budget outlined in the Revenue Stabilization Act for the previous year ended fully funded with $3.2 million in excess.
The Department of Finance and Administration says the fiscal year ended above forecast as a result of the following:
1) Better than expected sales tax collections from retail activity and vehicle sales.
2) Individual income tax payments from filings ahead of the shifted July 15th due date
3) Reduced individual refund claims related to the shifted tax filing date
4) Continued gains in corporate income tax
However, the negative financial impact of COVID-19 was still evident in low annual growth from sales tax and payroll withholding tax.
State budgets are directly linked to how well the economy is performing. The recent revenue reports show while our economy is certainly not where it was a year ago, it is performing better than expected.
The latest unemployment numbers show our state unemployment rate is 9.5%. The national unemployment rate is 13.3%.
As more Arkansans are going back to work, it is imperative that we all continue to do our part to slow the spread of COVID-19. Please continue to practice social distancing and wear a mask in public.
Governor Asa Hutchinson announced Thursday that anybody in Arkansas can vote by absentee ballot in the November elections. Arkansas Secretary of State John Thurston has interpreted the current laws to allow the ability to vote with an absentee ballot due to the COVID-19 pandemic. If you are concerned about the virus, you can request an absentee ballot from your local County Clerk or by going to the Secretary of State website. The deadline for requesting an absentee ballot is October 27 and you must be a registered voter. The voter registration deadline is October 5.
There were 878 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Arkansas today. Hot Spring County had the most with 171 cases, followed by Washington County with 117 cases and Pulaski County with 98 cases.
I’ve been seeing so many false positives that I am having a hard time believing any of the information being provided. I’m not saying this virus is not serious but I do not believe based on info I am finding and stats that it is any more dangerous than the flu. There’s too many contradictions out there and too much of this being politically driven... And I’ll add that I have a lung disease. Masks make it worse so I will social distance but will not live in fear.
Governor Asa Hutchinson announced today that training for Army National Guard troops scheduled for this weekend has been canceled.
The number of active COVID-19 cases in Arkansas has gone down from 5,976 yesterday to 5,757 today. This means that there were more recoveries than new cases today. The Governor also noted that the 10 most populous counties in Arkansas have had downward or flat trend lines in new cases.
