The Tap: Friday, April 8, 2016

From Ballotpedia
Jump to: navigation, search
   ← Apr 7
Apr 9 →   

The Tap covered election news, public policy, and other noteworthy events from February 2016 to February 2022.

Review of the day

The excerpts below were compiled from issue #11 of The Tap, which was published on April 11, 2016. READ THE FULL VERSION HERE.

Federal

  • Secretary of State John Kerry made an unannounced visit to Iraq to discuss the ongoing war against the Islamic State and to show support for Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi. State Department spokesperson John Kirby said that the visit aimed to “underscore our strong support for the Iraqi government as it addresses significant security, economic, and political challenges.”

State

  • The Arkansas General Assembly adjourned its three-day special session. Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) called a special session for legislators to vote on his Medicaid expansion plan. Both chambers of the legislature passed legislation that would modify the state’s current Medicaid expansion program that is covering more than 250,000 people and rename it Arkansas Works. The expansion plan would continue to use federal funds to purchase private insurance for people below the federal poverty line, but would charge premiums to participants that are above the poverty line. The legislation would also refer unemployed participants to voluntary work training programs. The House passed the legislation by a vote of 70-30, while the Senate voted 25-10 to approve the legislation. Gov. Hutchinson signed the legislation into law after the special session adjourned on Friday. Lawmakers will need a three-fourths majority in both chambers to fund the Medicaid expansion plan. The Arkansas Legislature will begin its 2016 regular session on April 13.


Preview of the day

There were no items for this day in issue #10 of The Tap, which was published on April 4, 2016. See the "Review of the day" tab for more information.