Although the first vote has yet to be cast in the November 2022 election, four-term Republican State Rep. Mark McElroy is creating jobs and lower taxes in his newly redrawn District 62. He co-sponsored legislation paving the way for US Steel to build a $3 billion steel mill in Osceola, expected to be operational in 2024 and employ 900.
“These are the kind of good-paying jobs that can comfortably support a family. Salaries start at $60,000 with many paying as much as $120,000 annually. The steel mill may keep a few kids at home, instead of losing the next generations to better employment offerings elsewhere,” he said.
The facility will sit near the border of McElroy’s newly redrawn district, and having grown up in the Arkansas Delta, he said he has “long realized the critical need of reliable, full time employment here.”
McElroy also co-sponsored legislation that reduces or eliminates the Arkansas State Income Tax residents pay.
“This tax relief was greatly needed in the Delta,” McElroy said. For taxpayers earning under $24,700 annually, nothing is owed and for those earning more, it reduces the rate from 5.9 percent to 4.9 percent over the next four years.
“Both of these measures will make a real difference in the lives of people in my district and the surrounding region,” he said.
McElroy’s newly redrawn district includes portions of Arkansas, Desha, Lee, Monroe, Phillips and St. Francis counties, and some of the towns include Arkansas City, Brinkley, Elaine, Gillett, Helena-West Helena, Marianna, Marvell, Snow Lake, Wheatley and Watson.
His district snuggles up to and around Brinkley, DeWitt and Gillett but doesn’t include these towns.
More education, more jobs
“Arkansas legislators need to think beyond what’s easy and ultimately what's best for the voters with a focus on future job creation and education,” McElroy said.
Now as he plans a fifth run, he said his priorities reflect the needs of his district including more secondary degree opportunities close to home, whether it's a four-year or two-year degree or a welding certification.
“In order to attract good jobs, we need an educated or skilled workforce, and I want District 62 residents to be ready to go to work,” McElroy said.
With the recent passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, he said, “We need to focus on upgrading our roads, creating a dependable internet network and replacing old bridges, to name a few of our priorities. It will greatly improve lives. There’s no telling how far these could take Southeast Arkansas.”
His Capitol hill resume
After serving as Desha County Judge for two decades, McElroy started his Legislative career in 2021. He quickly learned how to pick battles, what mattered to his constituents and how state government worked, and since then, he successfully sponsored several legislative bills.
“The stakes are higher as a Representative,” but, he said, it’s not about him but the people who live in his district.
While a freshman representative, McElroy managed appointments to the Joint Budget Committee, the Judiciary Committee and the City, County & Local Affairs Committee, the House Corrections & Criminal Law Permanent Subcommittee of Judiciary, the Joint Committee on Energy and the non-voting Public Health & Safety committees.
It was important to him that he earn a spot on the Agricultural and Educational committees.
“Working on a committee is the only way to really understand what’s going on and what’s driving the issue. I want to be the best informed legislator I can be. You have to be willing to put in the time.” McElroy said.
In 2015 he worked on a levee bill that equalized the amount of money individuals paid within the levee district. Before this bill passed, people living in incorporated towns in southeast Arkansas paid about $200 in levee taxes while those living outside paid 30 cents per acre.
As with US Steel and the income tax cut, sponsoring this bill was a “no brainer,” McElroy said.
His record as Desha County Judge
Like his father, McElroy was a farmer, with its unpredictable ups and downs, but somewhere along the line, he decided he enjoyed politics more. Funny and much like farming, he said it comes with exhilarating highs and depressing lows.
He served as a Desha County Justice of the Peace, then decided to run for County Judge at 36.
In 2012, he decided to run for the Arkansas House of Representatives and won.
As county judge, he said the job taught him one thing, “It’s impossible to make everyone happy.”
But that doesn’t keep him from trying.
As county judge, he picked up trash, removed rundown shacks, even petitioned the state for funds that helped more than 100 Desha Country residents replace their old homes with new, modern ones.
He secured 911 services, free landfill and recycling services for county residents, and all the while, he managed to keep the county roads up to par. He applied for grants to renovate the old Arkansas City School and the Desha County Courthouse.
After the 2007 tornado that devastated a large portion of Dumas, he provided the city with county support.
“It was a hard time for many of Dumas’ residents and businesses, but we all pulled together,” McElroy remembers.
Deep Delta roots
Mark McElroy was about 13 when he and his father Clifford McElroy traveled the dirt roads from the tiny community of Rohwer to Arkansas City. While at the Desha County Courthouse, the youngster was greeted by Dorothy Moore who offered him a piece of candy. Moore, now deceased, worked in the Desha County collector’s office, and now 66, McElroy still remembers asking his daddy as they were leaving, “Is she kin?”
“No.”
Her small kindness later influenced his decision to enter politics and the way he treats his constituents, and said, “I want people to feel like they’ve been treated like family even if I can’t help them.”
McElroy is a lifetime farmer, served for 20 years as Desha County Judge and is now a four-time State Representative. In his spare time, he’s an auctioneer, a stand-up comedian and has acted in movies including “Mud,” “Mr. Christmas,” and “W.”
No matter the job, McElroy approached each with integrity and gave it his all.
McElroy has been married to Teresia for 44 years and they have two children and two grandchildren. He is a lifetime member of the McGehee Church of Christ, and McElroy is unashamedly Republican, pro Second Amendment and pro-life.
For more information, contact Mark McElroy on his cell phone at (870) 222-8217 or email him at mdmcelroy1@yahoo.com.
