Become part of the movement for unbiased, accessible election information. Donate today.
Paul Bookout
Paul Bookout (b. June 30, 1962) is a former Democratic member of the Arkansas State Senate, representing District 21 from April 2006 to August 21, 2013. He served as President Pro Tempore from 2011-2013. He resigned after he was fined $8,000 by the Arkansas Ethics Commission for spending campaign funds on personal items, which ultimately led to a federal conviction of mail fraud in March 2015.[1] A special election was called for January 14, 2014, to fill his seat.
Bookout served in the Arkansas House of Representatives from 1998 to 2004.
Biography
Bookout's previous professional experience includes working as a funeral director.
Committee assignments
2013-2014
At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Bookout served on the following committees:
| Arkansas committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Legislative Council, Chair |
| • Public Health, Welfare and Labor, Vice Chair |
| • Efficiency, Vice Chair |
| • Joint Budget |
| • Insurance and Commerce |
| • Joint Energy |
| • Game and Fish Commission Oversight |
| • Economic and Tax Policy |
| • Legislative Joint Auditing |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Bookout served on these committees:
| Arkansas committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Joint Budget |
| • Efficiency |
| • Legislative Facilities |
| • Legislative Joint Auditing |
| • Revenue and Taxation |
| • State Agencies and Governmental Affairs |
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Bookout served on these committees:
| Arkansas committee assignments, 2009 |
|---|
| • Insurance and Commerce |
| • Public Health, Welfare and Labor |
| • Transportation, Technology and Legislative Affairs |
Elections
2012
- See also: Arkansas State Senate elections, 2012
Bookout ran for re-election in the 2012 election for Arkansas Senate, District 21. Bookout ran unopposed in the May 22 Democratic primary and ran unopposed in the general election on November 6, 2012.[2][3][4]
2010
- See also: Arkansas State Senate elections, 2010
Bookout won re-election to the 14th District seat in 2010. He ran uncontested.[5]
2006
On November 7, 2006, Bookout won election to the 14th District Seat in the Arkansas State Senate, running unopposed in the general election.[6]
Bookout raised $51,458 for his campaign.[7]
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
Arkansas’s Freedom Scorecard
The Advance Arkansas Institute, an Arkansas-based nonprofit research and educational organization, released Arkansas's Freedom Scorecard in 2012 and 2013. The scorecard graded legislators based on how they voted on the principles the group sought to promote. The group identified the following six categories as interest areas tracked by this scorecard: "economic freedom, education reform, good government, personal liberty, small government, and tax/budget policy." Scores range from 100 percent (the highest score) to 0 percent (the lowest score). A higher score indicates that the legislator voted more in favor of the values supported by this group.[8] Bookout received a score of 81% in the 2012 scorecard, ranking 14th out of 34 members of the Arkansas State Senate that were evaluated for the study. Bookout received a score of 56% in the 2013 scorecard, ranking 28th out of 35 members of the Arkansas State Senate that were evaluated for the study.
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Bookout has a wife, Sheryl.
Noteworthy events
Ethics violations
A report by the Arkansas Ethics Commission alleged that Bookout transferred $18,000 from his campaign fund to his personal bank account and spent $5,043 on women's clothing and accessories, $8,402 for home theater equipment and installation and $1,305 for golf equipment. The Commission's report said that Bookout violated four Arkansas campaign finance laws. Bookout resigned on August 20, 2013, the same day that a special prosecutor was appointed to his case to determine whether or not charges could be filed.[9]
In a November 2013 interview with media sources, Bookout's attorney, Bill Stanley, said that the former lawmaker would be returning thousands of dollars to donors who made contributions to his campaign. Although Stanley was unable to disclose exactly how much money would be returned, Bookout previously stated that he would reimburse his campaign $49,000.[10]
Federal conviction
On March 11, 2015, Bookout waived indictment on a federal count of mail fraud and pleaded guilty. As part of a plea agreement, Bookout was required to pay over $150,000 in restitution in exchange for the U.S. Attorney's office declining to make a sentencing recommendation. At maximum, Bookout faced 20 years in prison.[11] Bookout had been due to be sentenced in November 2015, but was given a new sentencing date of March 2, 2016, following a request from his lawyers.[12] On that date, Bookout was sentenced to 18 months in prison with two years of supervised release in addition to the previously agreed upon restitution. Judge Brian Miller also recommended that Bookout take classes while in prison.[13]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Paul + Bookout + Arkansas + Senate"
See also
- Arkansas State Legislature
- Arkansas State Senate
- Arkansas Senate Committees
- Arkansas state legislative districts
External links
- Official Arkansas State Senate website of Senator Paul Bookout
- Legislative Profile from Project Vote Smart
- Project Vote Smart biography of Senator Paul Bookout
- Campaign Contributions: 2012, 2010, 2008 2006 2002 2000
Footnotes
- ↑ thenewstribune.com, "Arkansas lawmaker steps down from Senate seat," August 20, 2013
- ↑ Arkansas Secretary of State, "Election Results 2012," accessed November 7, 2012
- ↑ Arkansas Secretary of State, "2012 Election candidates," March 8, 2012
- ↑ Arkansas Secretary of State, "Official 2012 Primary Results," accessed December 20, 2013
- ↑ Vote Naturally, "General election results," accessed May 13, 2014
- ↑ VoteNaturally.org, "2006 general election results, Arkansas," November 4, 2006
- ↑ Follow the Money, "Arkansas Senate spending, 2006," November 4, 2006
- ↑ Advance Arkansas Institute, "Arkansas’s Freedom Scorecard 2012," accessed January 14, 2014
- ↑ thenewstribune.com, "Arkansas lawmaker steps down from Senate seat," August 20, 2013
- ↑ "Baxter Bulletin," "Attorney: Ex-senator Bookout to return donations," accessed November 19, 2013
- ↑ Arkansas Times, "Former Sen. Paul Bookout pleads to federal felony in expense account abuse," March 11, 2015
- ↑ Associated Press, "March sentencing set for former state Sen. Paul Bookout," December 16, 2015
- ↑ KATV, "Former Arkansas state senator sentenced on federal wire fraud charge," March 2, 2016
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Steve Harrelson (D) |
Arkansas State Senate District 21 2013–August 2013 |
Succeeded by John Cooper (R) |
| Preceded by - |
Arkansas State Senate District 14 2006–2013 |
Succeeded by Bill Sample (R) |
