LeadAR Class 21 Debrief and Public Policy Prep

by Megan Hobbs, LPN, Baptist Family Clinic Malvern RHC - October 31, 2025

The current LeadAR class met via Zoom on Friday, Oct. 24. We began this session reflecting on our recent national study tour in Washington D.C. and continued with preparations for our January session about policy, which will be in Little Rock with a visit to our state Capitol building.  

The group discussed main takeaways from our recent trip to Washington D.C. and overall, the feelings around this trip were as diverse as our class itself. While some felt positively impacted about our meetings and our leaders, others felt disappointed in some events and felt that our group didn’t get real answers about how our legislators are working to help Arkansas. Everyone was grateful for the experience. 

After a great discussion about the D.C. trip, we moved forward into preparing for our January session where members will research and write proposed bills for the Arkansas legislature. We were thrilled to welcome Kristin Higgins with the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture Public Policy Center. Higgins works on the Arkansas ballot issue and voter guides to help inform Arkansas voters about issues at elections and is currently pursuing her doctorate degree in public policy.

Higgins explained the basics of the January session and then began teaching our group all about the ins and outs of how bills are researched and written by Arkansas legislators and groups across the state. She advised that each of us will write a bill to present in the January session, and we should begin by identifying a problem or issue we feel is important and finding a way to address this problem. We will write the first draft of our bill, making sure not to use AI to help. When writing the draft, we should all ask these questions:

• How would local agencies work together to make this a reality, and
• Who would play roles in implementation.

These questions will help us focus on the main points of our proposed bills. 

More than 1,600 bills were filed in the 2025 legislative session with the governor signing 1,026 and vetoing four.  Once a bill is filed, it moves to the appropriate committee for discussion and voting. It is important to make sure our bill goes to the right committee. If a proposed bill passes through committee, it will make its way to the chambers, where it could be voted for, voted down or sent back to committee or referred to study.  

Higgins suggested we contact our local legislators to talk with them about bills they have written and what they think about our ideas. The Rural Profile of Arkansas, an Extension publication, is also a great resource. Our class split into smaller groups a couple of times to discuss our ideas and research for our proposed bills.  

Bills are written in a specific format, and this will be supplied to each of us. Higgins helped us navigate the Arkansas legislature website and taught us to find bills and look at existing laws and codes.  

Participants will receive an email with the day’s presentation slides, examples of parliamentary procedure, and guides to write a bill. All of us are looking forward to hearing what our classmates do for their proposals, and I am confident we can make some real change with bills!

Before the policy session in Little Rock in January the class will meet up in northwest Arkansas to learn and discuss food production and entrepreneurship.