SUMMARY: The community mourns the death of 6-year-old Odin Upton, whose body was found near his Gentry home after a full-scale search involving K-9s and helicopters. Although foul play is not suspected, the investigation remains open. Friends and neighbors are rallying to support the grieving family, organizing donations through an online meal train to help with groceries, funeral costs, and daily essentials. Bethany Cain, a family friend, highlights Odin’s playful spirit and notes the family has another child starting school soon. The Benton County Sheriff’s Office expresses deep sympathy for the family during this heartbreaking time.

Friends mourn and rally support after death of 6-year-old Odin Upton

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by Jacob Fischler, Arkansas Advocate
August 8, 2025

Several congressional Democrats on Friday slammed the Trump administration’s announcement it will cancel nearly $7 billion in grants to fund solar energy projects for low-income households, saying the move was illegal and would raise families’ energy prices if allowed to proceed.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sent notices to states and other recipients of grants through the Solar for All program, which Democrats created in their massive 2022 taxes, energy and domestic policy law, that the agency was canceling all unspent funds from the initiative.

The EPA said Republicans eliminated the federal fund that distributed the program’s money in the “one big, beautiful” law President Donald Trump signed on July 4.

On Thursday, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said on social media the law terminated the agency’s legal ability to distribute the funds.

Low-income communities priority for Arkansas’ $93.6 million federal solar grant

“The bottom line again is this: EPA no longer has the authority to administer the program or the appropriated funds to keep this boondoggle alive,” Zeldin said in a video posted to X. “With clear language and intent from Congress in the one big, beautiful bill, EPA is taking action to end this program for good. We are committed to the rule of law and being a good steward of taxpayer dollars.”

The move sparked a backlash from Democrats in Congress and the states, who said that rescinding the already-obligated funding violated the law.

“We are appalled and outraged at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) blatant and unlawful termination of $7 billion in federal funding for the 60 organizations that received awards through the Solar for All program,” the five Democratic members of Oregon’s congressional delegation wrote in a Friday letter to Zeldin and White House Budget Director Russell Vought.

“Solar for All funding has been approved by Congress and signed into law, and cancelling or rescinding these obligated funds is a violation of the law and the Constitution.”

Letters to 60 states, organizations

The 60 recipients of the grant awards, mostly state governments but also tribes and some multistate projects, received letters from the EPA on Thursday informing them the grants were being cancelled.

The letter sent to Oregon’s Department of Energy said the reconciliation bill Trump signed on July 4 rescinded the authorization and appropriations for the fund.

“Any attempt to continue the program’s administration, in the absence of any authorizing legislation or appropriated funds for that purpose, is no longer legally permissible,” the letter said.

“The EPA has been weighing options for the future of the Solar for All program and has made the decision to terminate the SFA program and existing grants because the EPA no longer has a statutory basis or dedicated funding to continue administering and overseeing the nearly $7 billion outlay to approximately 60 grant recipients.”

The letter said the EPA realized that recipients “may have begun to rely” on the program for preliminary budgeting and staffing decisions. But it said that “due to the early nature of such expenditures, we expect any harms to interests suffered to be remedied and remediable.”

In a statement Friday, the Oregon Department of Energy said it had already spent “significant administrative funds” to launch the program later this year, and hinted a legal challenge may come soon.

“The federal funding has already been obligated to Oregon, and the Oregon Solar for All Coalition,” the department statement read. “We are surprised and disappointed to hear the U.S. EPA is moving to rescind these already-obligated funds. ODOE will work with our partners, the Governor’s Office, and Oregon’s Attorney General to consider next steps to ensure these funds continue to serve Oregonians as intended.”

‘A betrayal’

Like the Oregon Democrats, New Jersey Democratic Rep. Frank Pallone, the ranking member on the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee, said the move was illegal and predicted it would raise energy prices.

“The Trump Administration is stealing from working families in broad daylight,” Pallone said in an early Friday statement. “This money was intended for our constituents and communities to help lower energy bills. Clawing these funds back isn’t just brazenly illegal – it’s a betrayal by this Administration of working families who will now pay higher energy bills just so Republicans can grind their axe against clean energy.”

Other Democrats, including Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs, also focused on the economic impact.

“President Trump ran on lowering costs and creating jobs,” Hobbs wrote on X. “Gutting Solar for All will do the exact opposite. It makes our air dirtier, our energy bills higher, and our economy weaker. I will continue to fight for the clean and affordable energy future Arizonans want and deserve.”

Democrats created the Solar for All fund as part of the $27 billion Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund in the law they passed without any GOP support in either chamber and President Joe Biden signed in August 2022.

The Solar for All fund was meant to bring the benefits of solar power to 900,000 households in low-income communities, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

According to a list on the EPA website, the awardees included the Executive Office of the State of New Hampshire; Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources; the Maine Governor’s Energy Office; the Alaska Energy Authority; the Oregon Department of Energy; Washington State Department of Commerce; Bonneville Environmental Foundation in Idaho; Tanana Chiefs Conference in Alaska; New Jersey Board of Public Utilities; Maryland Clean Energy Center; Pennsylvania Energy Development Authority; Virginia Department of Energy; West Virginia Office of Energy; Department of Environment and Conservation Tennessee; Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet; North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality; South Carolina Office of Resilience; the Solar and Energy Loan Fund of St. Lucie County, Inc., in Florida; the Capital Good Fund in Georgia; Minnesota Department of Commerce; the State of Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy; the State of Ohio Office of Budget and Management State Accounting; Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation; Indiana Community Action Association Inc.; New Mexico Energy, Minerals, & Natural Resources Department; State of Louisiana Department of Natural Resources; Hope Enterprise Corporation in Arkansas; the Missouri Environmental Improvement and Energy Resources Authority; the Center for Rural Affairs in Nebraska; Colorado Energy Office; Utah Office of Energy Development; Bonneville Environmental Foundation in Montana; Coalition for Green Capital in North Dakota; Coalition for Green Capital in South Dakota; Executive Office of the State of Arizona; Nevada Clean Energy Fund; Hopi Utilities Corporation in Arizona; and other programs that covered multiple states and tribes.

Arkansas Advocate is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Arkansas Advocate maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Sonny Albarado for questions: info@arkansasadvocate.com.

The post Trump EPA claws back $7B in solar funding already promised to states appeared first on arkansasadvocate.com

Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Center-Left

This content primarily presents a perspective aligned with Democratic viewpoints, emphasizing criticism of a Trump administration decision to cancel funding for a solar energy program aimed at low-income households. It highlights concerns about legal and economic impacts raised by Democrats, while providing context about the program’s origins in Democratic-led legislation. The coverage is generally supportive of clean energy initiatives and frames the cancellation as harmful, reflecting a center-left bias without extreme partisanship or overtly ideological language.

by Tess Vrbin, Arkansas Advocate
August 7, 2025

Arkansas Administrative Office of the Courts Director Marty Sullivan began serving on a national board of judicial administrators July 30, according to a Thursday AOC news release.

Sullivan’s term on the board of directors for the Conference of State Court Administrators (COSCA) will last three years. COSCA consists of the chief executives of the court systems in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories.

Sullivan has worked for AOC since 2003 and served as Judicial Branch Education Director from 2007 to 2017, when he was appointed director by the state Supreme Court’s then-Chief Justice, John Dan Kemp.

He has a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Arkansas and master’s degrees from Michigan State University and the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, according to Thursday’s news release.

Sullivan’s “vast experience” in judicial administration makes him “a valued addition to the COSCA Board of Directors,” COSCA President Corey Steel said in the release.

In a statement, Sullivan said he is “honored” to serve on the board of “an institution that plays a vital role in strengthening the administration of justice in our country.”

“I have deep respect for my colleagues and am humbled by the trust they have placed in me,” Sullivan said. “I look forward to contributing to policy efforts that positively impact the lives of citizens who rely on our nation’s courts.”

Arkansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Karen Baker attempted to fire Sullivan and nine other AOC employees in January. Five of the other six justices blocked Baker’s attempted unilateral decision, calling it “retaliatory” and beyond the scope of her authority.

The same five justices made an employment agreement with Sullivan in December, guaranteeing him job security until the end of 2032 and nearly $1.6 million in pay over that time. The agreement came after Baker, who had been elected but not sworn in as the state’s first female chief justice, entered Sullivan’s office without his permission when he was absent on Dec. 4.

Arkansas Supreme Court chief justice says dispute over her authority could lead to litigation

Baker “was observed looking throughout Mr. Sullivan’s office, including the area behind his desk” and harassed AOC staff, according to a human resources report on the incident made public in March.

On Jan. 13, Sullivan asked Baker to stay away from the AOC offices and not to communicate with his staff, pending the conclusion of a review by the state’s judicial discipline commission.

Baker filed an administrative civil appeal with the Supreme Court against Sullivan later in January; the litigation is still pending.

COSCA works closely with state Supreme Court chief justices “on issues of mutual interest,” according to Thursday’s news release.

Arkansas Advocate is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Arkansas Advocate maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Sonny Albarado for questions: info@arkansasadvocate.com.

The post Arkansas courts director elected to national board of judicial administrators appeared first on arkansasadvocate.com

Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Centrist

The content presents a factual and balanced report on the professional achievements of Marty Sullivan and the internal disputes within the Arkansas judicial system. It avoids partisan language or ideological framing, focusing instead on institutional roles, official statements, and documented events. The coverage of conflict between judicial figures is presented with references to multiple perspectives and official sources, reflecting a neutral tone without favoring any political side.