Candidates face off at FCLI forum

The Faulkner County Leadership Institute sponsored a political debate Tuesday night, hosted by the First United Methodist Church.

The main event, if money spent campaigning decides it, was the debate between incumbent District 30 Sen. Gilbert Baker, R-Conway, and challenger Joe White, D-Conway.

One question asked by moderator David Keith concerned the dueling campaign funds of the most expensive campaign in the state: What does it say about our political system that the two candidates have raised a combined $800,000 to vie for a $15,000 per year job?

Baker said he vowed to his family not to use his private funds for his campaigns, and he's honored that vow. He also hasn't used debt resources, he said. But Baker said he was "not shy about raising money to get the message out" regarding his strong support of conservative government and not shy about raising money to keep himself in a position to effect policies following suit with his beliefs.

White said when he got into this campaign he "had no idea that it would be this expensive."

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White said he set out to self-fund his campaign. That plan, he said, lasted a whole two days. Just as Baker said he wasn't shy about seeking campaign donations to promote his vision of government, White said he would not apologize about using his own funds to promote his.

"Joe White believes the people of this district deserve someone that will put their needs first," he said, adding that he is "going to have enough funds to run a successful campaign."

When asked what bill he would have voted differently on had he been in Baker's shoes, White said he and Baker differ on several issues, bringing up Lt. Gov. Bill Halter's state lottery proposal, which will appear on the Nov. 4 General Election ballot.

White said he supported the lottery because of its intended beneficiaries: Students seeking higher education scholarships. Baker responded that he has voted in favor of the Academic Challenge and other scholarships, but feels a lottery is no more than "a tax on the little guy," and said "it's not way to run a government on gambling income."

A variation of the same question, Baker was then asked what bill he wishes he had voted differently on. He answered that his early approach to efforts to cut the grocery tax was to find other tax revenue to replace the grocery tax funds that would be lost.

Looking back, he said, "that would have been robbing Peter to pay Paul."

Next up were District 45 House of Representatives candidates Linda Tyler, D-Conway, and Bill Fechtelkotter, R-Conway.

Tyler and Fechtelkotter differed mainly on their stance on a unmarried foster/adoptive parent initiative to appear on the Nov. 4 ballot.

Tyler said she supports the initiative that she said will create more much-needed foster and adoptive homes, adding that her personal upbringing in a home marred by "alcoholism and some abuse" is in itself an argument a man-and-wife household is not necessarily safe or stable.

Fechtelkotter said the statistics he's seen indicate that man-and-wife households are, in general, more stable and suitable for raising children. He also said he would support "out of the box" programs including The C.A.L.L. (The Children of Arkansas Loved for a Lifetime), which provides church-based training and support for foster parents to, as Fechtelkotter put it, allow "churches to take responsibility for foster children."

Next up were District 42 Arkansas House of Representatives candidates Val Yagos, D-Jacksonville, and Jane English, R-North Little Rock.

Yagos and English broadly agreed on the issues raised. When asked their thoughts on Gov. Mike Beebe's severance tax increase, the two differed slightly in their responses.

Yagos said she supported the increase, which she said was an agreeable compromise "worked out by all parties involved."

English said she had her misgivings, and that the tax went against her general opinion that the less taxes on entities doing business in the state the better. She also said she would favor a greater portion of severance tax money going to roads and highways.

And finally was a debate between incumbent Conway Mayor Tab Townsell and challenger Randy Herrold.

The main difference between the challenger and incumbent was their stance on impact and permitting fees levied on developers doing business inside city limits.

"Local government needs to be shaved back," Herrold said, also saying "we need to look at how this (impact fee) money is being spent."

Townsell countered that without the impact fee, several new schools would be serviced by "county standard" streets rather than streets built to city standards.

When the question of the Conway City Council's perceived favoritism toward concerned neighbors over property owners wishing to develop their land was raised, Herrold brought up the recent Pennington lawsuit, alluding to an inequity in the fact that the developer, though it was not required, submitted detailed plans for a development that proved controversial with the neighbors along with the rezoning request while the rezoning request alone would, he said, likely have been approved on its sole merits.

"The way it's presented goes a long way," Herrold said.

Townsell countered by saying that each rezoning application must be judged in isolation and based on all available information, and that no "cookie cutter" approach to such decisions is applicable. He also mentioned the Cadron Valley PUD rezoning, in which a very vocal group of concerned neighbors was overruled in favor of the developer after a public vote on the issue was approved by the council.

(Staff writer Joe Lamb can be reached at 505-1238 or by E-mail at joe.lamb@thecabin.net. Send us your news at www.thecabin.net/submit.)