Little Rock, Arkansas
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Portions of this article were taken from Wikipedia
Little Rock City is the capital city in U.S. state of Arkansas. It is the largest city in the state. The Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) had a population of 709,901 people in the 2011 census. The MSA is in turn included in the Little Rock–North Little Rock–Pine Bluff, Arkansas Combined Statistical Area, which had a population of 886,992 in the 2011 census, making it the 47th largest combined statistical area in America. As of the 2010 US Census, Little Rock had a population of 193,524. It is the county seat of Pulaski County.
Website evaluation
- Main article: Evaluation of Arkansas city websites
Last rated on July 16, 2012.
The good
- Budget reports are available [1]
- Elected officials' names and contact details are posted.[2]
- Administrative contact details are available on some individual department webpages.
- Agendas [3], schedules [4]and minutes are available for City Council Meetings. [5]
- Information on bids and proposals are available [6]
- Financial audit reports are available. [7]
- Building permit and zoning forms and information are available.[8][9]
- Revenue totals are posted in budget documents.[1]
The bad
- Administrative contact details are not reliably posted.
- Lobbying information is not posted.
- Tax rates are not posted.
- There is no information on accessing public records.
Budget
In crafting the FY 2012 budget, lawmakers faced an $8 million budget gap. Much of that gap was closed when voters approved a one cent sales tax increase in September, 2011.[10] Overall operating expenditures totaled $219,272,074, a 14.7% increase over the 2011 adopted budget.
Public employees
Elected officials
The City elects ten members to the Board of Directors. Current members include:[2]
| Member | Position |
|---|---|
| Erma Hendrix | Ward 1 |
| Ken Richardson | Ward 2 |
| Stacy Hurst | Ward 3 |
| Brad Cazort | Ward 4 |
| Lance Hines | Ward 5 |
| Doris Wright | Ward 6 |
| B.J. (Brenda) Wyrick | Ward 7 |
| Dr. Dean Kumpuris | Position 8 |
| Gene Fortson | Position 9 |
| Joan Adcock | Position 10 |
The current Mayor is Mark Stodola. Stodola was began his first term in January, 2007. He was elected to a second term that began in January, 2011.[11]
Administrative officials
The City operates under a Council/City Manager form of government. The City Manager's Office provides centralized administration of the day-to-day operations of the City. The Current City Manager is Bruce T. Moore. Moore was appointed to the position on December 17, 2002. He had served as Assistant City Manager since April, 1999.[12]
The current Assistant City Manager is Bryan Day. Day previously served as the Director of the City's Parks and Recreation Department.[13]
Salaries
The 2012 operating budget contains $108,123,085 in personnel costs. Police, fire, and AFSCME personnel received a 3% pay increase in 2012. Non-uniform non-union employees are eligible for a merit based 3% pay raise.[10]
A database maintained by ArkansasOnline.com shows 20 City employees that earned over $100,000 in annual salary in 2011. The 5 highest paid city employees were:[14]
| Name | Title | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Bruce T. Moore | City Manager | $168,920.00 |
| Mark A. Stodola | Mayor | $160,000.00 |
| Victor A. Fleming | Judge | $138,321.00 |
| Mark D. Leverett | Judge | $138,321.00 |
| Alice F. Lightle | Judge | $138,321.00 |
| Thomas M. Carpenter | City Attorney | $133,000.93 |
| Stuart Thomas | Chief of Police | $131,090.00 |
| Bryan M. Day | Assistant City Manager | $126,584.00 |
| Donald B. Flegal | Director of Human Resources | $117,340.00 |
| William C. Mann III | Chief Deputy City Attorney | $116,247.00 |
Pensions
In 2012, the city increased its pension contribution from 4% to 7% of an employees' salary. Employee contributions remain at 3.5%.[10]
Lobbying
Information is not provided on taxpayer funded lobbying.
Taxes
In September, 2011, voters approved a one-cent sales tax hike. The previous sales tax had stood at 1/2 cent for the past 17 years.[10] The tax increase included a 5/8-cent operations tax and a 3/8 cent ten year capital tax. As a result of the increase, the 2012 adopted sales tax revenue budget included a 41.3% increase over the 2011 original budget. 58% of General Fund revenues come from the City's sales tax.[10]
Transparency & public records
External links
- Little Rock, Arkansas
- City of Little Rock Conventions and Visitor Bureau
- Little Rock, Yahoo! Travel
- Little Rock on About.com
- Little Rock, Arkansas, City-Data.com
- University of Arkansas at Little Rock
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Reports
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Mayor and City Council officials
- ↑ Agenda
- ↑ Meeting Schedule
- ↑ Minutes
- ↑ Bids and Proposal
- ↑ CAFR
- ↑ Building Permits
- ↑ Zoning
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 FY 2012 Budget
- ↑ Mayor's Office
- ↑ Meet the City Manager
- ↑ Meet the Assistant City Manager
- ↑ City of Little Rock Salaries, ArkansasOnline.com
