Talking about Poverty: Basic Needs
By Kathryn Hazelett Nearly 225,000 families live below the poverty line in Arkansas and Mississippi.[1] While we hear and talk about poverty a lot, we’re not always talking the same language. This is the first post in a series looking at how we define poverty, how we...
Tax-time Savings: A New Whitepaper and a Call to Action
By Janie Ginocchio As discussed in previous blog posts, income tax time is a good opportunity to encourage people to save, as tax refund checks are often the largest lump sum payment a household will receive all year. Southern Bancorp encourages savings at tax time...
Census 2020: Be Counted!
By Kathryn Hazelett Every 10 years, the United States counts its people – all of them. This is the census and it’s happening again in 2020. There is an entire government entity centered on the census – it’s that important. The census looks not only at the number of...
Advocacy 101: Local Decision Makers
By Kathryn Hazelett Editor’s note: This is the final entry in a series of blog posts about the legislative process on the state, federal, and local levels, and what you can do to help create and influence policy as a citizen. Entries from the rest of the series are...
Advocacy 101: Federal Decision Makers
By Kathryn Hazelett Editor’s note: This is the fourth in a series of blog posts about the legislative process on the state, federal, and local levels, and what you can do to help create and influence policy as a citizen. Entries from the rest of the series are linked...
Advocacy 101: State Decision Makers in Mississippi
By Kathryn Hazelett Editor’s note: This is the third in a series of blog posts about the legislative process on the state, federal, and local levels, and what you can do to help create and influence policy as a citizen. Entries from the rest of the series are linked...
Advocacy 101: State Decision Makers in Arkansas
By Kathryn Hazelett Editor's note: This is the second in a series of blog posts about the legislative process on the state, federal, and local levels, and what you can do to help create and influence policy as a citizen. Entries from the series are linked at the...
Advocacy 101: Ideas to Implementation
By Kathryn Hazelett Editor's note: This is the first in a series of blog posts about the legislative process on the state, federal, and local levels, and what you can do to help create and influence policy as a citizen. Entries from the series are linked at the bottom...
2019 Mississippi Legislative Recap
By Janie Ginocchio In our last blog post, we summarized legislation of interest passed in the 2019 regular session of the Arkansas General Assembly. This week, we turn our attention to the Mississippi Legislature. Below is a summary of and links to select laws passed...
2019 Arkansas Legislative Recap
By Janie Ginocchio A few weeks ago, we shared exciting news that the Arkansas General Assembly passed legislation making it easier for Arkansans to save at tax time. But Act 774 of 2019 is not the only bill passed during the 2019 Arkansas legislative session that is...