Kelley Linck
Kelley J. Linck | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Arkansas House of Representatives from the 86th district | |
| In office 2011–2013 | |
| Preceded by | Monty Davenport |
| Succeeded by | Greg Leding |
| Member of the Arkansas House of Representatives from the 99th district | |
| In office 2013 – June 3, 2016 | |
| Preceded by | Tim Summers |
| Succeeded by | Jack Fortner |
| Personal details | |
| Born | November 10, 1963 Flippin, Marion County Arkansas, USA |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Single |
| Parent(s) | Ike and Velma Linck |
| Residence(s) | Yellville, Marion County |
| Alma mater | Yellville–Summit High School Arkansas Tech University |
| Occupation | State government official Former tourism official |
Kelley J. Linck (born November 10, 1963) is the chief of legislative and governmental affairs for the Arkansas Department of Human Services in the capital city of Little Rock, Arkansas.[1]
He was formerly a tourism official in Yellville in Marion County in northern Arkansas and a Republican former member of the Arkansas House of Representatives. He represented District 99, encompassing parts of Marion, Searcy, Boone, and Baxter counties, from 2013 to June 3, 2016. Linck previously represented District 86, held by Democrat Greg Leding of Fayetteville, from 2011 to 2013.[2]
Background
A resident of Flippin in Marion County, Linck is the son of Ike and Velma Linck. His grandfather operated the White River ferry crossing near Cotter in Baxter County before the building of the R.M. Ruthvin Rainbow Arch Bridge.[3]
Linck graduated c. 1981 from Yellville–Summit High School in Yellville. In 1986, he procured a bachelor's degree in business administration from Arkansas Tech University in Russellville in Pope County. He is the executive director of the Ozark Mountain Region Tourism Association, Inc., having been affiliated with the organization since 2001. From 1992 to 2005, he operated Rivercliff Cabins and Fishing Service. He has also been a manager for J. B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc.[4] He has served on the North Central Arkansas Regional Economic Development Committee. Linck was formerly the president of the White/Norfork Rivers Outfitters Association and the Chamber of Commerce in Bull Shoals.[2][3] He is United Methodist and affiliated with Rotary International.[2][4]
Political life
Linck lost a bid for the District 86's House seat in 2006.[3] He ran again for that seat in 2010 and defeated the Democrat Wesley Smith 6,835 votes to 3,510 votes for the right to succeed the term-limited Democrat Monty Davenport.[5] In 2012, Linck was redistricted to District 99 for his second legislative term. He defeated the Independent candidate, Anton Such, 8,892 votes to 2,528 votes. No Democrat contested the seat in 2012.[6]
Linck served on the Arkansas Legislative Council and the House committees on (1) Public Health, Welfare and Labor, (2) State Agencies, and (3) Rules.[2][4]
In 2013, then-Representative Linck co-sponsored the proposed spending cap on the state budget, but the bill failed by a two-vote margin in the House. He joined the majority to override the vetoes of Democratic Governor Mike Beebe to enact legislation to require photo identification for casting a ballot in Arkansas and to ban abortion after twenty weeks of gestation. He was a co-sponsor of both of these measures. Linck also supported related pro-life legislation to outlaw abortion whenever fetal heartbeat is detected and to forbid the inclusion of abortion in the state insurance exchange. He did not vote on the measure to make the death of an unborn child a felony in certain cases. He co-sponsored allowing university officials to engage in the concealed carry of firearms in the name of campus safety. He supported a law giving the same power of concealed carry to officials of religious institutions. He voted against reducing the application fee for obtaining a concealed carry permit. Linck voted to prohibit the governor from regulating firearms during an emergency. He voted to prohibit the closing of schools based on a two-year pupil enrollment analysis.He voted to establish a tiered system of lottery scholarships. Linck voted for legislation to make the office of prosecuting attorney in Arkansas nonpartisan. He voted for the bill, signed by Governor Beebe, to permit the sale of up to five hundred gallons per month of unpasteurized whole milk directly from the farm to consumers.[7]
In 2011, Linck voted to allow state standards for biblical instruction and the authorization of school dress codes. He voted to require that driver's license tests be administered only in the English language. He voted for the Capital Gains Reduction Act and for the reduction of taxes on manufacturers' utilities. He voted for the congressional redistricting act.[7]
Linck resigned from the Arkansas House of Representatives on June 3, 2016 to join the Arkansas Department of Health and Human Services.
References
- ^ "Kelley Linck resigns from legislature to lobby for DHS". Arkansas Times. June 6, 2016. Retrieved September 6, 2016.
- ^ a b c d "Kelley Linck, R-99". arkansashouse.org. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
- ^ a b c "Maggie Rotermund, "Linck enters District 86 race", March 8, 2006". Baxter Bulletin. Archived from the original on January 4, 2014. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help); Unknown parameter|dead-url=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ a b c "Kelley Linck's Biography". votesmart.org. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
- ^ "District 86". ballotpedia.org. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
- ^ "District 99". ballotpedia.org. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
- ^ a b "Kelley Linck's Voting Records". votesmart.org. Retrieved January 3, 2013.