Block, Upload, Automoderated users, edit, move, protect, rollback
57,799
edits
Changes
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
Created page with "{{Infobox officeholder | name=Stephen A. Meeks | image=Stephe Meeks of AR.jpg | birth_date=October 30, 1970 | birth_place=Trenton, Michigan | residence=Greenbrier, Faulkn..."
{{Infobox officeholder
| name=Stephen A. Meeks
| image=Stephe Meeks of AR.jpg
| birth_date=October 30, 1970
| birth_place=Trenton, [[Michigan]]
| residence=Greenbrier, Faulkner County, Arkansas| death_date=
| death_place=
| death_cause=
| office=[[Arkansas]] State Representative
| term_start=2011
| term_end=2013
| preceded= Eddie Hawkins
| succeeded=Jody Dickinson
| offce2=Arkansas State Representative
| term_start2=2013
| term end2=
| preceded2= [[Gary Stubblefield]]
| succeeded2=
| party=[[Republican Party|Republican]]
| alma_mater=Florida State College
| occupation=Computer technician
| religion=[[Independent Baptist]]
| spouse=Jennifer Brickey Meeks
| children=Rebecca Meeks
| relations=[[David Meeks]] (brother)
| branch=[[United States Army]] Reserve
|service_years=1987 to 1993
|rank=Combat engineer and cargo specalist
}}
'''Stephen A. Meeks''' (born October 30, 1970),<ref name=stephenmeeks.org>{{cite web|url=http://www.stephenmeeks.org|title=Stephen Meeks'|publisher=stephenmeeks.org}}</ref> is a [[Republican Party|Republican]] state representative from Greenbrier in Faulkner County in central [[Arkansas]]. Since 2013, he has represented District 67, which includes portions of central Faulkner County, including the cities of Greenbrier, Holland, Vilonia, Wooster, and western Conway. From 2011 to 2013, he represented House District 47.<ref name=smeeksark>{{cite web|url=http://www.arkansashouse.org/member/282/stephen-meeks|title=Stephen Meeks, R-67|publisher=arkansashouse.org|accessdate=December 31, 2013; material no longer on-line}}</ref>
Meeks' younger brother, [[David Meeks]], is a Republican representative for House District 70.
[[Flor==Background==
Meeks was reared in rural Springhill in Faulkner County, Arkansas.<ref name=fbmeeks>{{cite web|url=https://www.facebook.com/pages/Representative-Stephen-Meeks/139422687733?sk=info|title=Representative Stephen Meeks|publisher=facebook.com|accessdate=December 31, 2013}}</ref> In 1988, he graduated from Greenbrier High School and thereafter, he relocated to [[Florida]] where his father was transferred by an employer.<ref name=fbmeeks/>
In 1997, Meeks obtained an Associate of Science degree in Telecommunications Engineering from Florida State College in [[Jcksonville]], [[Fllorida]], then known as Florida Community College. He then procured an Associate of Arts from the same institution. A former educator, Meeks taught Astronomy from 1997 to 2003 at Florida Community College and Bay Meadows [[Baptist]] Day School in Jacksonville, simultaneous with his duties at Florida Community College.
While in Jacksonville, Meeks was the president of the Northeast Florida Astronomical Society. A military veteran, he maintains a strong interest in astronomy, space flight, and amateur radio. He earns his livelihood as a computer technologist. Meeks and his wife, the former Jennifer Brickey, a Florida native, are members of Faith [[Baptist]] Church, a theologically independent and [[conservative]] congregation in Greenbrier.<ref name=smeeksark/> They have one daughter.
From 1987 to 1993, Meeks was a member of the [[United States Army]] Reserve. He was a combat engineer and a cargo specialist.<ref name=fbmeeks/>
==Political life==
In 2010, Meeks was elected in House District 47, having unseated the incumbent [[Democratic Party|Democrat]] Eddie Hawkins, 4,841 votes to 3,921.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ballotpedia.org/Arkansas_House_of_Representatives_elections,_2010|title=District 47|publisher=Ballotpedia.org|accessdate=November 25, 2020}}</ref> In 2012, District 47 was reconfigured to include Jackson and White counties. Meeks won his second term in revised District 67 by defeating the Democrat Sam Lane, 8,002 to 3,003.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ballotpedia.org/Arkansas_House_of_Representatives_elections,_2012|title=District 67|publisher=Ballotpedia.org|accessdate=November 25, 2020}}</ref> He was unopposed in the 2014 election for his third term.
Meeks serves on these legislative committees: (1) House Revenue and Taxation, (2) House Agriculture, Forestry and Economic Development, and (3) Joint Budget. He is the House Chair of Special Language, a subcommittee of Joint Budget. He is also the chairman of the Advanced Communication and Information Technology Committee.<ref name=smeeksark/>
Representative Meeks in 2013 in District 67 co-sponsored legislation to amend state income tax rates. He voted to place a spending cap on the state budget, but the measure failed in the House by two votes. He was the primary House sponsor of and successfully led the override of a [[veto]] of Democratic then [[Governor]] [[Mike Beebe]] to enact legislation to require a photo identification for casting a ballot in Arkansas. He also voted with the majority to override Beebe's veto of legislation that would ban [[abortion]] after twenty weeks of [[gestation]]. He further supported related pro-life legislation to ban abortion whenever fetal heartbeat is detected, to forbid the inclusion of abortion in the state insurance exchange, and to make the death of an unborn child a [[felony]] in certain cases. He voted to empower university officials to carry weapons for campus safety. He did not vote on a proposal to make the office of prosecuting attorney in Arkansas a nonpartisan position. He supported the bill, signed by Governor Beebe, to permit the sale of up to five hundred gallons per month of [[Louis Pasteur|pasteurization]] whole milk directly from the farm to consumers. He also developed legislation to create the most comprehensive light pollution law in the country, aimed at getting state and local governments to use cheaper, more efficient outdoor lighting.<ref name=votingrecords/>
In 2011, Meeks in District 47 co-sponsored legislation that gave religious institutions the freedom to choose if they wanted weapons on their property. He opposed a dress code for public schools. He backed curriculum standards for biblical instruction in public schools. He co-sponsored the Capital Gains Reduction Act. He voted to reduceutility rates on manufacturers as a means of attracting industry to Arkansas. Meeks abstained on the congressional [[redistricting]] bill.<ref name=votingrecords>{{cite web|url=http://votesmart.org/candidate/key-votes/119135/stephen-meeks|title=Stephen Meeks' Voting Records|publisher=Project Vote Smart|accessdate=November 25, 2020}}</ref>
Without opposition, Meeks was re-elected to a third term in the House in 2014. He retained his seat again in 2016 and 2018.
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meeks, Stephen}}
[[Category:Arkansas]]
[[Category:Michigan]]
[[Category:Florida]]
[[Category:Educators]]
[[Category:Politicians]]
[[Category:Republicans]]
[[Category:Conservatives]]
[[Category:Pro-Life]]
[[Category:United States Army]]
[[Category:Baptists]]
| name=Stephen A. Meeks
| image=Stephe Meeks of AR.jpg
| birth_date=October 30, 1970
| birth_place=Trenton, [[Michigan]]
| residence=Greenbrier, Faulkner County, Arkansas| death_date=
| death_place=
| death_cause=
| office=[[Arkansas]] State Representative
| term_start=2011
| term_end=2013
| preceded= Eddie Hawkins
| succeeded=Jody Dickinson
| offce2=Arkansas State Representative
| term_start2=2013
| term end2=
| preceded2= [[Gary Stubblefield]]
| succeeded2=
| party=[[Republican Party|Republican]]
| alma_mater=Florida State College
| occupation=Computer technician
| religion=[[Independent Baptist]]
| spouse=Jennifer Brickey Meeks
| children=Rebecca Meeks
| relations=[[David Meeks]] (brother)
| branch=[[United States Army]] Reserve
|service_years=1987 to 1993
|rank=Combat engineer and cargo specalist
}}
'''Stephen A. Meeks''' (born October 30, 1970),<ref name=stephenmeeks.org>{{cite web|url=http://www.stephenmeeks.org|title=Stephen Meeks'|publisher=stephenmeeks.org}}</ref> is a [[Republican Party|Republican]] state representative from Greenbrier in Faulkner County in central [[Arkansas]]. Since 2013, he has represented District 67, which includes portions of central Faulkner County, including the cities of Greenbrier, Holland, Vilonia, Wooster, and western Conway. From 2011 to 2013, he represented House District 47.<ref name=smeeksark>{{cite web|url=http://www.arkansashouse.org/member/282/stephen-meeks|title=Stephen Meeks, R-67|publisher=arkansashouse.org|accessdate=December 31, 2013; material no longer on-line}}</ref>
Meeks' younger brother, [[David Meeks]], is a Republican representative for House District 70.
[[Flor==Background==
Meeks was reared in rural Springhill in Faulkner County, Arkansas.<ref name=fbmeeks>{{cite web|url=https://www.facebook.com/pages/Representative-Stephen-Meeks/139422687733?sk=info|title=Representative Stephen Meeks|publisher=facebook.com|accessdate=December 31, 2013}}</ref> In 1988, he graduated from Greenbrier High School and thereafter, he relocated to [[Florida]] where his father was transferred by an employer.<ref name=fbmeeks/>
In 1997, Meeks obtained an Associate of Science degree in Telecommunications Engineering from Florida State College in [[Jcksonville]], [[Fllorida]], then known as Florida Community College. He then procured an Associate of Arts from the same institution. A former educator, Meeks taught Astronomy from 1997 to 2003 at Florida Community College and Bay Meadows [[Baptist]] Day School in Jacksonville, simultaneous with his duties at Florida Community College.
While in Jacksonville, Meeks was the president of the Northeast Florida Astronomical Society. A military veteran, he maintains a strong interest in astronomy, space flight, and amateur radio. He earns his livelihood as a computer technologist. Meeks and his wife, the former Jennifer Brickey, a Florida native, are members of Faith [[Baptist]] Church, a theologically independent and [[conservative]] congregation in Greenbrier.<ref name=smeeksark/> They have one daughter.
From 1987 to 1993, Meeks was a member of the [[United States Army]] Reserve. He was a combat engineer and a cargo specialist.<ref name=fbmeeks/>
==Political life==
In 2010, Meeks was elected in House District 47, having unseated the incumbent [[Democratic Party|Democrat]] Eddie Hawkins, 4,841 votes to 3,921.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ballotpedia.org/Arkansas_House_of_Representatives_elections,_2010|title=District 47|publisher=Ballotpedia.org|accessdate=November 25, 2020}}</ref> In 2012, District 47 was reconfigured to include Jackson and White counties. Meeks won his second term in revised District 67 by defeating the Democrat Sam Lane, 8,002 to 3,003.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ballotpedia.org/Arkansas_House_of_Representatives_elections,_2012|title=District 67|publisher=Ballotpedia.org|accessdate=November 25, 2020}}</ref> He was unopposed in the 2014 election for his third term.
Meeks serves on these legislative committees: (1) House Revenue and Taxation, (2) House Agriculture, Forestry and Economic Development, and (3) Joint Budget. He is the House Chair of Special Language, a subcommittee of Joint Budget. He is also the chairman of the Advanced Communication and Information Technology Committee.<ref name=smeeksark/>
Representative Meeks in 2013 in District 67 co-sponsored legislation to amend state income tax rates. He voted to place a spending cap on the state budget, but the measure failed in the House by two votes. He was the primary House sponsor of and successfully led the override of a [[veto]] of Democratic then [[Governor]] [[Mike Beebe]] to enact legislation to require a photo identification for casting a ballot in Arkansas. He also voted with the majority to override Beebe's veto of legislation that would ban [[abortion]] after twenty weeks of [[gestation]]. He further supported related pro-life legislation to ban abortion whenever fetal heartbeat is detected, to forbid the inclusion of abortion in the state insurance exchange, and to make the death of an unborn child a [[felony]] in certain cases. He voted to empower university officials to carry weapons for campus safety. He did not vote on a proposal to make the office of prosecuting attorney in Arkansas a nonpartisan position. He supported the bill, signed by Governor Beebe, to permit the sale of up to five hundred gallons per month of [[Louis Pasteur|pasteurization]] whole milk directly from the farm to consumers. He also developed legislation to create the most comprehensive light pollution law in the country, aimed at getting state and local governments to use cheaper, more efficient outdoor lighting.<ref name=votingrecords/>
In 2011, Meeks in District 47 co-sponsored legislation that gave religious institutions the freedom to choose if they wanted weapons on their property. He opposed a dress code for public schools. He backed curriculum standards for biblical instruction in public schools. He co-sponsored the Capital Gains Reduction Act. He voted to reduceutility rates on manufacturers as a means of attracting industry to Arkansas. Meeks abstained on the congressional [[redistricting]] bill.<ref name=votingrecords>{{cite web|url=http://votesmart.org/candidate/key-votes/119135/stephen-meeks|title=Stephen Meeks' Voting Records|publisher=Project Vote Smart|accessdate=November 25, 2020}}</ref>
Without opposition, Meeks was re-elected to a third term in the House in 2014. He retained his seat again in 2016 and 2018.
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meeks, Stephen}}
[[Category:Arkansas]]
[[Category:Michigan]]
[[Category:Florida]]
[[Category:Educators]]
[[Category:Politicians]]
[[Category:Republicans]]
[[Category:Conservatives]]
[[Category:Pro-Life]]
[[Category:United States Army]]
[[Category:Baptists]]