Surplus-grant ruling costly for monument

Gold Star family tribute out $90,000

Plans for a monument honoring Gold Star families on Arkansas Capitol grounds were tossed into throes of uncertainty Oct. 7.

That day, the Arkansas Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional legislator-directed grants from the state’s General Improvement Fund, from which the monument committee stood to receive $90,000.

With that money effectively yanked from its coffers, the committee finds itself in a tight spot. With grant award letters in hand, the members had inked contracts with an architect, engineer and monument builder, said committee Co-Chairman Paul Garrett.

“To us, it was on the word of the state of Arkansas,” Garrett said in a recent interview.

But for this group of mostly ex-Marines, it’s only a temporary obstacle.

“We’re scrambling, but most of us are former Marines so this isn’t the first setback we’ve ever faced,” he said.

That $90,000 sure would be nice, though, Garrett said, considering the monument committee aims to raise $500,000 for the first-of-itskind monument honoring families whose loved ones died while serving the country.

Indeed, there’s still hope. Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge has argued in court pleadings that grants already awarded — like the two promised to the monument committee — should be honored.

Meanwhile, the group plans to continue fundraising at special events, online and in front of supermarkets.

The monument group is one of many caught in the political crossfire over how to handle local projects, which for years have relied on money drawn from state surplus funds.

In addition to political arguments over how surplus funds should be handled, General Improvement Fund grants have faced other hurdles, including tightening budgets and accusations of corruption from federal authorities.

This year, a former state representative pleaded guilty to a federal fraud charge accusing him of receiving kickbacks for grants he funneled to a Northwest Arkansas college and a substance abuse treatment center; a former state senator, a consultant and an administrator at Ecclesia College face similar charges.

No General Improvement Fund money was distributed this year because of those factors.

The money earmarked for the Gold Star Family Monument came from a pair of grants awarded in 2015.

The group plans to build the monument just outside the west entrance of the Capitol in Little Rock.

It would be part of a system of monuments honoring Gold Star families through the Hershel Woody Williams Medal of Honor Foundation.

The foundation, named for the Medal of Honor recipient who fought in the Battle of Iwo Jima, has 21 monuments dedicated in the United States with 47 more in progress.

The Little Rock monument would be the first to be placed on the grounds of a state capitol. Work on another Gold Star memorial began in Beebe last month, and a dedication is planned for Feb. 23.

The Little Rock group hopes to unveil the monument on Veterans Day next year.

Thus far, with the help of community groups, students, junior ROTC cadets and other volunteers, the committee has raised roughly $60,000 of its $500,000 goal through private donations.

“It’s an aggressive goal, I’ll give you that,” Garrett said. “But we think we can do it.”

Much of the cost comes from the monument’s future location on the Capitol grounds.

The state requires 10 percent of the cost to be set aside for future maintenance.

Additionally, the Capitol sits on the grounds of an old prison, and much of the construction and demolition scraps were simply thrown aside, meaning the monument will require significant groundwork before being erected.

However, Garrett said it is important that the tribute be in a prominent location, so the sacrifices of Gold Star families aren’t forgotten.

It’s difficult to determine how many Gold Star families live in Arkansas, but Garrett estimated it’s more than 1,000.

Former state Sen. Eddie Joe Williams, who has been heavily involved in the project, said general improvement funds aren’t distributed to the recipient on the front-end. Instead, they’re reimbursed. “So once money has been committed, it’s viewed as spent,” he said.

Williams said he plans to continue fundraising while “hoping and praying the judge considers that money spent.”

Donations to the monument fund can be made at any First Arkansas Bank and Trust branch, mailed or submitted through the group’s website: hwwmohf.org/littlerock-ar. html.