Arkansas officials launch real-time dashboard of state government cost-saving efforts

Arkansas officials launched an online database Wednesday of government cost-saving efforts as part of an ongoing initiative that Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said would “slow the growth of government.”

The Arkansas Forward initiative began in 2024 with a restructuring of the state employee pay plan, a $139 million effort that the Legislature approved in 2025. Since it began, the initiative has identified more than $118 million in ways to save taxpayer money and make government more efficient, Sanders said.

“More than just dollars and cents, this initiative has also changed mentalities within the state government,” she said. 

The Arkansas Forward Dashboard offers a detailed real-time breakdown of changes within state agencies such as technology modernization, infrastructure improvements and consolidation of contracts so multiple offices don’t pay the same company for the same services, said Sanders and Secretary of Shared Administrative Services Leslie Fisken.

The initiative identified several phone and fax lines that government agencies were no longer using, and cutting those lines saves $1.4 million in taxpayer dollars, Sanders said.

Arkansas Explained: What’s happening with state tax cuts?

The Arkansas Legislature has cut income tax rates four times since Sanders took office in 2023. She said Wednesday that Arkansas Forward’s savings efforts will allow the state to continue phasing out the income tax.

In response to questions, Sanders said she would welcome verification of the dollar amounts on the dashboard from Arkansas Legislative Audit, which regularly reviews spending by state agencies and local governments.

“I wish they would spend more time looking at real projects like this instead of the hundreds of hours that they’ve wasted on ridiculous projects,” Sanders said.

Sanders’ office in 2024 criticized Legislative Audit over its “deeply flawed” report about the purchase of a $19,000 lectern for the governor. A local prosecutor later said the audit’s findings did not warrant any criminal charges. 

Another Arkansas Forward initiative Sanders championed last year was the expansion of executive branch office hours, the reduction of remote work and the policy allowing state employees to bring their children between 4 weeks and 6 months of age to work.