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County Lines Magazine
County Lines is the official publication of the Association of Arkansas Counties. It is published quarterly. For advertising inqui- ries, subscriptions or other information re- lating to the magazine, please contact Scott Perkins at 501.372.7550.
Executive Director / Executive Editor Chris Villines
Managing Editor Scott Perkins
AAC Executive Board: Mike Jacobs – President
Roger Haney – Vice President
Judy Beth Hutcherson – Secretary-Treasurer Sherry Bell Sue Liles
Rhonda Wharton John Montgomery Faron Ledbetter Gene Raible Will Jones
Debra Buckner Jim Crawford Jimmy Hart
Leonard Krout Bill Gipson Marty Moss Debbie Wise
National Association of Counties (NACo) Board Affiliations
Alvin Black: Public Lands Steering Committee. He is the Montgomery County Judge.
Roger Haney: Board of Directors. He is the Wash- ington County Treasurer and is also on the Telecom- munications & Technology Steering Committee.
Ted Harden: Finance & Intergovernmental Affairs Steering Committee. He serves on the Jefferson County Quorum Court.
Haze Hudson: Transportation Steering Committee. He serves on the Miller County Quorum Court.
David Hudson: Vice Chair of NACo’s Justice and Public Safety Steering Committee. He is the Sebastian County Judge and member of the Rural Action Caucus Steering Committee.
Mike Jacobs: NACo Board of Directors, the Mem- bership Committee and the Agricultural & Rural Affairs Steering Committee. He is the Johnson County Judge.
COUNTY LINES, WINTER 2013
Lobbying from all corners
ness of county government, and the incomparable position the Association of Arkansas Counties has as our lobbyists move about the State Capitol, constantly working on preservation, improvement and modern- ization of county government in our state.
A
t the time of this writing, we are well into the 89th Arkansas General Assembly. As the session has progressed, something that has struck a chord with me is the unique-
Chris Villines AAC
Executive Director But before I go much further, I must admit the connotations of the word “lob-
by” leave a bitter taste with most. Te original meaning finds its roots in the act of meeting with members of parliament or congress in “lobbies” of the Capitol or hotels in order to influence political decisions. However, I much prefer synonyms like “campaign for” or “educate.” Our work is not marked by bearing gifts to swing votes our way… and we are not seeking personal gain as an outcome of our efforts. Tere is something very credible and noble when the goal is an improved system of county government — for all Arkansans. It is something I am proud of when I consider the passion with which we pursue legislative action.
Back to the original point, I am amazed at the overwhelming abilities and
diversity of the AAC legislative team. Te people representing you work tirelessly during a legislative session to represent you well – and 60 to 80 hour workweeks are common for all involved – including many of you who make every effort to educate your own legislators on our interests.
We could not do this without the willingness to work and ability shown by legislative director Jeff Sikes, legislative chair and Randolph County Circuit Clerk Debbie Wise, Mark Whitmore, Wes Fowler, Scott Perkins, Eddie Jones, law clerks Brandy McAllister and Lindsey Bailey, and intern Kirk Ross. And were it not for Jeanne Hunt I’m not sure we’d know which way is up from day to day. Te team assembled here at the association is much like a symphony.
Here, very different talents come together to make great music. Some of us are better with numbers, some better with certain personalities, some have the historic background to educate as to what brought county government to this point, some with the pragmatism to communicate the 50,000-foot perspective why, and some with the eye for detail to flesh out the how.
Tere is no easy way to communicate the breadth of county government repre- sented by the AAC. Many of my counterparts at associations across the country deal with one or two positions within their counties. In fact, they often work with
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Director’s Desk
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