- Associated Press - Tuesday, December 20, 2016

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Gov. Asa Hutchinson said Tuesday that, during Arkansas’ 2017 legislative session, he wants lawmakers to concentrate on topics dealing with his three “Es” - economic development, education and efficiency within state government - while avoiding distractions that could put the state on a national stage.

Arkansas has drawn attention in recent years with a religious objections law that many believed would have allowed discrimination against gays, another law prohibiting abortions if a fetal heartbeat was present and the Legislature’s insistence that Arkansas celebrate a civil rights leader and a Confederate general on the same day.

Lawmakers eventually changed the religious objections bill and courts struck down the abortion law that for a time was the nation’s strictest, but Arkansas still celebrates Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Gen. Robert E. Lee on the same day. Hutchinson wants to split the holidays.

“With my vast experience in legislative sessions - one - I feel confident that there will be some surprises, some unanticipated legislation, there will be some unanticipated controversies and we will just deal with those a step at a time,” Hutchinson said. He suggested that lawmakers hold off filing potentially controversial bills until courts have weighed in on cases from other states.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: Hutchinson is asking legislators to cut taxes by $50.5 million, particularly for lower-income Arkansans, believing that their savings could lead to a bump in sales tax collections down the road. He’s also wants to exempt military retirement pay from taxes, saying it would make Arkansas an attractive place for retired servicemen and servicewomen to begin a second career.

EDUCATION: The governor wants to tie higher education funding to student performance and is also backing teacher training programs. “Our goal is to increase the quality of instruction in K-12,” he said. Hutchinson says he’ll promote a “culture of reading” in Arkansas.

EFFICIENCY IN GOVERNMENT: Some stand-alone state agencies will be shoehorned into various departments and the governor wants to establish “mental health crisis stabilization centers” at the request of both police and mental health workers. His aim is to reduce the incarceration rate of people with mental issues, and he is suggesting a $5 million pilot program to set up three centers.

The governor said he had other items on his agenda, notably highways, libraries and seniors programs, but wouldn’t bring up social issues on his own. He said the items presented Tuesday “capture the essence” of his priorities.

“When I ran for governor, I ran for governor on being the jobs governor, creating more sustained economic growth in this state. That doesn’t mean I’m less pro-life. It doesn’t mean I’m less concerned about other issues. But these are what I believe demand my attention for legislative action,” he said.

Senate President Jonathan Dismang, R-Beebe, said after the governor’s remarks that none of Hutchinson’s ideas appeared doomed from the Jan. 9 start of the session.

“There are going to be areas where the legislative body will put their stamp on,” he said. “I didn’t see anything that would raise a red flag.”

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Follow Kelly P. Kissel on Twitter at www.twitter.com/kisselAP and go to https://bigstory.ap.org/author/kelly-p-kissel to see his work.

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