During the recent 2018 Midterm Elections, there was much talk about the duties of our state elected officials.
Most of the elected officials do not complain about their daily grind, while the Legislative Session is going on down in Little Rock.
I asked for and was granted an hour-by-hour capsule of the day-in-the-life of a State Representative from State Rep Robin Lundstrum of House District 87.
Read along and see what a typical day at the Legislature is all about.
By State Rep. Robin Lundstrum
• 12 Midnight: I am still awake, I should have turned off my lamp and gone to bed about 10 p.m., but I am still reading bills late tonight.
• 1:15 a.m. -- Getting ready for bed.
• 1:30 a.m. -- The light goes off. I'll regret this late night in a few hours, I am sure.
• 7 a.m. -- My alarm clock goes off. I pick up my cell phone and discover new text messages and emails. I'll have to hustle as I text the other members of the GOP Whip for a meeting today.
• 8:18 a.m. -- Still getting ready for the day. I am working the phone and eating my breakfast of oatmeal and my morning coffee in my dorm room.
• 8:30 a.m. -- Leaving Capitol Hill, the dormitory for legislators. I'll walk over to Joint Budget, in the cold and rain. I have on my sneakers, with my heels in my bag (that's how we gals roll down in Little Rock).
• 8:59 a.m. -- Budget hearings at the Big Mac -- behind the Capitol. The gavel falls at 9 a.m. and the day is started.
• 9:50 a.m. -- Budget is over and I'm meeting with three other state Representatives concerning three separate bills. Now I am also walking over to the Tax & Revenue Committee meeting in the state Capitol.
• 9:59 a.m. -- Pick up the printed agenda for Tax & Revenue, which has been updated from last night. Some 30 bills are on the agenda for today.
• 11:28 a.m. -- Revenue & Tax breaks for lunch. My husband, Tom, has come to see me. We plan on eating lunch.
• 11:31 a.m. -- Oops! Lunch plans have changed. The GOP Caucus Meeting has been called at Arkansas Republican Party HQ down the street from the State Capitol. Tom will find his own lunch. Tom gives me a ride down to the GOP Caucus meeting. I will hitch a ride back up to the Capitol.
• 12 Noon -- GOP Caucus meeting has Slim Chickens for lunch, buffet style. There is a presentation on "How do you feel about Article V -- yes or no?" And a surprise -- Gov. Asa Hutchinson appears and wants to talk about other issues. We all listen.
• 12:22 p.m. -- Governor goes back to State Capitol. Now various members take turns pitching different bills to Caucus members.
• 12:50 p.m. -- I hitch a ride and then duck into the Bureau of Legislative Research on one bill. Now, I am literally running in heels to the House which is about to go in Session.
• 1:30 p.m. -- Session begins.
• 3 p.m. -- Session ends; I check messages and phone messages around the offices of the House.
• 3:10 p.m. -- In a meeting with the Department of Workforce Service, a Senator joins me for working on a bill with DWS officials.
• 4:30 p.m. -- Finished at DWS and have to head back to the Bureau of Legislative Research to file two bills.
• 4:45 p.m. -- I head to a GOP Whip meeting.
• 5 p.m. -- Out of the Whip meeting, I am calling and seeing in-person other legislators for sponsorship of my bills. Folks are very positive wanting to sign on these bills. Handshakes are made for support.
• 5:30 p.m. -- Headed back to my dorm room at Capitol Hill. Changing into jeans and going out to eat with Tom.
• 7:15 p.m. -- Back from supper, just me and Tom. A nice dinner, we have a lot of schedules to coordinate but well worth it. Now back to work.
• 7:20 p.m. -- Prepping for tomorrow, working on two specific bills, I do this for the next couple of hours, alternating between typing on my laptop, telephone calls and sifting through a barrage of emails.
• 8:20 p.m. -- I stop working on these bills and now concentrate more on the 136 personal and House emails. Some are, of course, from my small business, so I have to find time to try to take care of those issues along with the emails from folks on Legislative business as well.
• 9:20 p.m. -- I am back to focusing on the House Insurance and Commerce Committee meeting tomorrow.
• 10:17 p.m. -- My day is almost done. I call my son, David, to wish him a Happy 21st Birthday.
• 10:39 p.m. -- Preparing for bed.
• 10:45 p.m. -- Lights out. Tomorrow will get here quickly enough.
• • •
Maylon Rice is a former journalist who worked for several northwest Arkansas publications. He can be reached via email at [email protected]. The opinions expressed are those of the author.
Editorial on 02/20/2019