Margaret Darter

The court reviewed the Treasurer's report regarding the county's financial standing and received updates from standing committees. New business included the unanimous passage of two appropriation ordinances to amend and supplement previous county ordinances, as well as the approval of a resolution authorizing the County Judge to apply for an Arkansas Rural Community Grant on behalf of the Cato Fire Department.

The Faulkner County Quorum Court meeting included the presentation of the Treasurer's report on the county's financial standing and a discussion of the Legislative Audit Report, which contained no findings for the county. Under new business, the Court discussed and passed three appropriation Ordinances: Proposed Amended Ordinance 26-01, Proposed Ordinance 26-02, and Proposed Ordinance 26-03, which authorized borrowing up to $5,000,000.00. Additionally, the Court appointed Justice Kendrick as the Quorum Court Delegate to the Quorum Court Association.

The Faulkner County Quorum Court meeting involved the presentation and unanimous approval of three appropriation Ordinances under New Business. Specifically, Proposed Amended Ordinance 25-33, establishing the annual operating budget for calendar year 2026, was passed 12-0. Proposed Ordinance 25-34, which amends Faulkner County Ordinance 24-52, was also passed 12-0. Furthermore, Proposed Ordinance 25-35, which repeals and replaces Faulkner County Ordinance 77-23 to establish the functional relationship between the Faulkner County Emergency Squad and the Office of Emergency Management, was passed 12-0 after the second and third readings were waived. The Court also confirmed two appointments: Ancil Lee to the Library Board and Brett McDaniel to the Public Facilities Board. Committee reports indicated that the Budget & Finance Committee has two appropriation ordinances to present, the Courts & Public Safety Committee has one ordinance, the Personnel Committee has two appointments for consideration, and the Infrastructure & Roads Committee received an end-of-year update report.

The committee meeting focused on infrastructure updates and the snow and ice response program. Discussions included the three-year trial of road treatments (Cape Seal), noting that 11 miles were treated in the first year and approximately 23 or 24 miles in the second, with a state aid job planned for the upcoming year. The completion of a newly built bridge to alleviate flooding issues near Guy was reported. A comprehensive review of snow and ice response detailed two responses, utilizing beet juice for pre-treatment, 16,000 gallons of salt brine, 220 tons of sand, 152 tons of salt, and 750 lbs of calcium chloride for steep hills. Changes to the snow program, including a transition from gravity feed dispersion to a spray boom for more uniform coverage, were also presented. Committee questions addressed the use of external engineering firms for larger bridge construction versus in-house expertise for smaller projects, and the performance of the Cape Seal application, which was reported to wear grater blades faster than asphalt due to its hardness but has otherwise held up well.

The primary focus of the meeting was the drawing to determine ballot positions for various electoral races. This included drawing positions for U.S. Senate candidates, U.S. Congress District 2 candidates, state offices such as Governor, Secretary of State, and Commissioner of State Lands, judicial offices including State Supreme Court Associate Justice and Circuit Judge, State Representative District 42 and 57 races, and Conway School District zones two and three. The proceedings involved representatives or designated individuals drawing numbered ornaments from a box containing seven options (numbered 1 through 7) to assign ballot order.