Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Senate’s Hendren focused on integrity
Sen. Jim Hendren of Sulphur Springs, who is now in line to be the next leader of the Arkansas Senate starting in 2019, says he cares deeply about protecting the integrity of the Senate and the Legislature. “We’ve had some challenges in that area over the last few years and we have got some work to do, so you will see us taking some steps to try to ensure the integrity of the institution
is protected, that the people understand the expectations that come with serving as a state senator, and that we absolutely represent our people and this institution well,” Hendren told senators Thursday after they formally elected him as Senate president pro tempore-elect by acclamation.
Senate President Pro Tempore Jonathan Dismang, R-Searcy, has served as that chamber’s leader since November 2014. The Senate will consider confirming Hendren as Dismang’s successor on the first day of the 2019 regular session.
Dismang nominated Hendren and was seconded by Senate Democratic leader Keith Ingram of West Memphis. The Senate Republican Caucus voted Feb. 27 to nominate Hendren over Sen. Jimmy Hickey of Texarkana.
Hendren, 54, has served in the Senate since 2013 and was in the House of Representatives from 1995-2001. He is the Senate Republican leader. He is owner of Hendren Plastics that employs about 65 workers. He also is director of operations, plans and procurement for the Arkansas Air National Guard. He is a nephew of Gov. Asa Hutchinson.
“I shared with members of our caucus the first time I saw the Senate I was probably in fifth grade, sixth grade in the gallery watching my dad and probably Keith’s dad down here mixing it up a long time ago,” he told senators Thursday.
Hendren’s father — state Rep. Kim Hendren, who is now a Republican from Gravette — served in the state Senate from 1979-1983 and then from 2003-13. Ingram’s father — Sen. William K. Ingram — served in the Senate from 1963-1981.
Beyond aiming to protect the integrity of the Senate and the Legislature, Sen. Hendren said he will strive for fairness and try to improve the efficiency of how the Senate operates.
The 35-member Senate is made up of 23 Republicans and nine Democrats, after the November resignation of Sen. Eddie Joe Williams, R-Cabot, to accept a Trump administration appointment; the November death of Sen. Greg Standridge, R-Russellville; and February resignation of Sen. Jake Files, R-Fort Smith.
Files submitted his resignation, effective Feb. 9, after he pleaded guilty in federal court to felony charges of wire fraud, money laundering and bank fraud for pocketing state money he obtained for a Fort Smith softball complex and for pledging a forklift he didn’t own as a collateral on a bank loan.
The Senate has seen other former members with legal issues.
Former Sen. Jon Woods, R-Springdale; Oren Paris III, president of Ecclesia College in Springdale; and consultant Randell G. Shelton Jr., formerly of Alma, are accused in federal indictments of participating in a kickback scheme involving state grants. The U.S. Department of Justice alleges that Paris paid Woods and then-state Rep. Micah Neal, R-Springdale, kickbacks in return for $550,000 in grants from them to his college from 2013 to 2014.
Neal pleaded guilty to a conspiracy count in January 2017 for his role in the case and he hasn’t been sentenced yet. Woods, Paris and Shelton have pleaded innocent and their trial is scheduled for April.
In August 2013, Sen. Paul Bookout, D-Jonesboro, resigned from office after a Craighead County circuit judge appointed a special prosecutor to review Bookout’s personal use of campaign funds. In March 2016, Bookout was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for spending $150,000 in leftover campaign funds on personal expenses for himself and his family after pleading guilty to a single count of mail fraud.
Asked what steps he plans to take to ensure the integrity of the Senate, Hendren said in an interview, “We are going to have a more robust orientation for new members and for all of us as we start the next General Assembly.
“We always have had an orientation [after the November general election], but we are going to do some in-depth discussions and training about ethics, about potential pitfalls, especially for the new members, the way they could maybe lead down a path that you don’t want to go down and shouldn’t go down,” Hendren said.
“It is really going to involve a lot of training and discussions with the members about what the expectations are and what the culture needs to be, and how we protect that,” he said. “There is not one specific rule or law change that is going to fix everything. It is going to have to be beginning to build that culture up, what the expectations and what the potential pitfalls are.”
He said the training that he envisions will be broader than just senators’ relationships and interactions with lobbyists.
“It seems like every week there is a story in some state Legislature or in Congress about unethical or improper behavior and that’s just damaging to the entire institution,” said Hendren, who lost his bid for the Republican nomination in the 3rd Congressional District in 2001.
“I’ve read studies where state legislatures are trusted three times more, four times more than Congress is, and we can rapidly change that if we continue to have the kind of failings that we have seen in Congress, whether it to be corruption, whether it be sexual harassment or assault or whether it be just the kind of deal-making that’s outside the bounds of what is ethical,” he said.
Asked about his nephew being the next Senate leader, Hutchinson said in a written statement, “I’ve enjoyed working with Senator Hendren as Majority Leader over the last two years.
“I’ve seen his leadership skills on display, and I’m delighted that he’s able to continue in that leadership role as the new Senate Pro Tem. I look forward to working with him and his leadership team next year,” the Republican governor said.
Asked how he would balance being the Senate’s leader and his relationship with the governor, if Hutchinson wins re-election this year, Sen. Hendren said, “I was here before the governor was here.
“I have a dad down here who votes differently than me half the time,” Sen. Hendren said, referring to Rep. Kim Hendren.
“I think our family loyalty is thick, but not thicker than doing what we believe is right, so the governor and I have had disagreements in this fiscal session, and the Senate and the Legislature have done things apart from what his preference would be and we will continue to do that,” he said.
“I think my loyalty to the governor as a family member will not be greater than my loyalty to doing what’s best for the Senate or best for the voters and the people we represent in our districts,” Hendren said.
Sen. Ingram said the Senate Democratic Caucus has met with Hendren and Hendren “has taken positions in the past that are opposed to the governor’s.
“I think you can look no further than this session. Jim helped usher through the [school] panic button [funding] bill that I am not sure that the governor was in favor for [during this year’s session],” he said.
“In the past, Jim has demonstrated that he is going to stand up for what he believes is best, and whether that fits with the governor’s plans or not, I think he has demonstrated that he is his own man and I think that is all you can ask for,” Ingram said.
Asked whether he and the governor disagreed over funding the panic-button alert system for the public schools, Hendren said, “I am not going to talk about the disagreements that we have in private.
“It’s public and everybody understands the governor vetoed that appropriation [last year], so obviously I came back and some of the situations changed. School shootings are on everybody’s mind and rightfully so and I believed that we need to continue the funding and I believed that it couldn’t wait until we had this fight in January of 2019 and that’s what I did with the help of other Northwest Arkansas senators,” he said.
“There have been other occasions we have policy differences and sometimes we agree to disagree and see what happens. I vote against some of their legislation. I’ve have been asked to carry legislation that I’ve said I’m not going to carry it until you change this, this and this. We’ve worked through things,” he said.