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Trump takes credit for Walmart price cuts

The company framed the move as a summer savings push.

Politics

Walmart said Monday it is <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="cutting prices" data-vars-click-url="https://corporate.walmart.com/news/2026/07/06/walmart-and-sams-club-lower-prices-to-help-customers-make-the-most-out-of-summer" data-vars-content-id="ed2a07d9-bc7f-42f5-af23-39a0b7d24e71" data-vars-headline="Trump takes credit for Walmart price cuts" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://corporate.walmart.com/news/2026/07/06/walmart-and-sams-club-lower-prices-to-help-customers-make-the-most-out-of-summer" target="_blank">cutting prices</a> on thousands of grocery, household and seasonal items at its stores, online and Sam&#x27;s Clubs, news that President Trump sought credit for in a <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Truth Social post" data-vars-click-url="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116874984393383550" data-vars-content-id="ed2a07d9-bc7f-42f5-af23-39a0b7d24e71" data-vars-headline="Trump takes credit for Walmart price cuts" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116874984393383550" target="_blank">Truth Social post</a>.Why it matters: The nation&#x27;s largest retailer is again at the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="center of the affordability fight" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2025/05/17/trump-walmart-tariffs" data-vars-content-id="ed2a07d9-bc7f-42f5-af23-39a0b7d24e71" data-vars-headline="Trump takes credit for Walmart price cuts" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2025/05/17/trump-walmart-tariffs" target="_self">center of the affordability fight</a>, with Trump under pressure to show progress on prices heading into the midterms.

New startup fund lands in Northwest Arkansas

Renaissance Philanthropy plans to make its first investments during Q4.

Business

Nonprofit <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Renaissance Philanthropy" data-vars-click-url="https://www.renaissancephilanthropy.org/" data-vars-content-id="2b8af6fe-608a-482f-b387-8a8794f313d9" data-vars-headline="New startup fund lands in Northwest Arkansas" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.renaissancephilanthropy.org/" target="_blank">Renaissance Philanthropy</a> of New York is expected to announce a fund to invest in early-stage companies and develop local startup talent on Wednesday.Why it matters: The $7.5 million Northwest Arkansas Innovation Fund is aimed at a familiar gap in NWA&#x27;s startup scene: very early capital for founders who are not yet ready for traditional venture investment.

Arkansas wins federal waiver on education rules

The waiver lets Arkansas write one plan for using federal money instead of several

Education

Arkansas can merge four federal education funding streams and cut some federal reporting requirements under waivers approved Tuesday by U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon.The big picture: Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders says the change is &quot;about education, not paperwork&quot; and will free districts to spend more time and money on students. Critics say it could weaken federal guardrails meant to make sure money reaches high-need students.

Gov. Sanders leans on first term in reelection pitch

Sanders is running for a second term against Democratic state Sen. Fred Love and Libertarian Colt Shelby.

Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said that if she&#x27;s reelected, her next term would largely build on the policies she&#x27;s put in motion, with education, another tax cut and public safety still at the center.Why it matters: Sanders is framing a potential second term less around new promises than proving her first-term agenda works.

NWA career programs shift closer to needs

Access and quality still vary widely by district and program.

Northwest Arkansas&#x27; high school career pathways are better aligned with regional job needs than they were a few years ago, a new analysis finds.Why it matters: The region is trying to grow its own workforce as employers need more skilled workers and students look for clear routes into stable careers.

The Agenda: Bonds, NDAs and zoning

Here's what the Fayetteville City Council plans to vote on.

On Tuesday the Fayetteville City Council <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="plans to vote" data-vars-click-url="https://fayettevillear.portal.civicclerk.com/event/1639/files/agenda/4966" data-vars-content-id="d2bca1ee-c1ec-4132-8137-896d7eb206f3" data-vars-headline="The Agenda: Bonds, NDAs and zoning" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://fayettevillear.portal.civicclerk.com/event/1639/files/agenda/4966" target="_blank">plans to vote</a> on:💰 Issuing up to $191.2 million in sales-tax-backed bonds for voter-approved projects, including water and wastewater work, parks, animal services, transportation, fire projects and other city improvements.

Exclusive: Nasdaq program matches interns with startups

The program will offer Northwest Arkansas startups free coaching and pair them with paid student interns.

A new accelerator-style program from the nonprofit <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center" data-vars-click-url="https://nasdaqcenter.org/" data-vars-content-id="b04997c1-300c-4831-b4a3-124df9675111" data-vars-headline="Exclusive: Nasdaq program matches interns with startups" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://nasdaqcenter.org/" target="_blank">Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center</a> will offer NWA startups free coaching and then pair them with paid student interns.Why it matters: The two-year pilot backed by the Walton Family Foundation is designed to help young companies grow while giving college students a clearer path into the region&#x27;s startup economy.

National summit targets disaster gaps

In six and a half years as governor, Beshear has led Kentucky through 15 federally declared weather disasters, the pandemic and other emergencies

News

National disaster leaders gathered in Bentonville this week with a blunt message: Communities cannot keep responding to bigger, more complex crises with fragmented systems and siloed aid.Why it matters: As <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="disasters stack" data-vars-click-url="https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/billions/" data-vars-content-id="3b2c41e5-a887-4ac8-9e74-c35cdd5f7b96" data-vars-headline="National summit targets disaster gaps" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/billions/" target="_blank">disasters stack</a> up and <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="federal disaster capacity" data-vars-click-url="https://apnews.com/article/fema-staff-cuts-kristi-noem-winter-storm-fern-1b3a4ea77c6f299abda3f5046a6b24e5" data-vars-content-id="3b2c41e5-a887-4ac8-9e74-c35cdd5f7b96" data-vars-headline="National summit targets disaster gaps" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://apnews.com/article/fema-staff-cuts-kristi-noem-winter-storm-fern-1b3a4ea77c6f299abda3f5046a6b24e5" target="_blank">federal disaster capacity</a> is thinner than it was before, summit speakers warn, emergency response will increasingly hinge on whether businesses, governments and nonprofits know how to work together before the next storm — or cyber attack or fire — hits.

The Agenda: Sewers, roads and elections

City governments will decide how to spend taxpayer money

Your local city governments have purchases to consider at tonight&#x27;s city council meetings.<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Bentonville" data-vars-click-url="https://bentonvillear.portal.civicclerk.com/event/2098/files/agenda/8944" data-vars-content-id="e4a0c744-6f85-4459-a716-476404ce9c8d" data-vars-headline="The Agenda: Sewers, roads and elections" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://bentonvillear.portal.civicclerk.com/event/2098/files/agenda/8944" target="_blank">Bentonville</a> will vote on:🚽 An amendment to a contract with Olsson increasing the payment by $977,277 for design services related to a 2026 sewer model expansion.🔌 Waiving the bidding process and spending $450,000 to reserve production slots for three future substation transformers. The city notes: &quot;the need to make this purchase is immediate,&quot; and an emergency is hereby declared.🚧 A supplemental agreement with Burns &amp; McDonnell for $267,774 to expand design work on Greenhouse Road improvements. Funding will be provided through a block grant program through the Northwest Arkansas Regional Planning Commission.<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Springdale " data-vars-click-url="https://files-backend.assets.thrillshare.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/3541/Springdale/3151c307-ee34-4c57-a908-45f8bbc03f6a/Official-City-Council-Agenda-Packet-6.23.26.pdf?disposition=inline" data-vars-content-id="e4a0c744-6f85-4459-a716-476404ce9c8d" data-vars-headline="The Agenda: Sewers, roads and elections" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://files-backend.assets.thrillshare.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/3541/Springdale/3151c307-ee34-4c57-a908-45f8bbc03f6a/Official-City-Council-Agenda-Packet-6.23.26.pdf?disposition=inline" target="_blank">Springdale </a>will vote on:<ul><li>🗳️ Calling a Nov. 3, 2026, special election to fill the vacant Ward 2, Position 2 council seat. Candidate filing would run from noon July 29 to noon Aug. 5.</li><li>🚂 An agreement with A&amp;M Railroad for crossing gate and signal improvements tied to the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Sunset Avenue Extension" data-vars-click-url="https://www.springdalear.gov/page/sunset-ext" data-vars-content-id="e4a0c744-6f85-4459-a716-476404ce9c8d" data-vars-headline="The Agenda: Sewers, roads and elections" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.springdalear.gov/page/sunset-ext" target="_blank">Sunset Avenue Extension</a> project for up to $393,520, plus change orders of up to 10% of the original contract price.</li><li>🛠️ An agreement with Clements &amp; Associates/Architecture for the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Rabbit Foot Lodge Phase III" data-vars-click-url="https://www.nwahomepage.com/news/you-ask-we-answer/you-ask-we-investigate-the-future-of-the-rabbit-foot-lodge/" data-vars-content-id="e4a0c744-6f85-4459-a716-476404ce9c8d" data-vars-headline="The Agenda: Sewers, roads and elections" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.nwahomepage.com/news/you-ask-we-answer/you-ask-we-investigate-the-future-of-the-rabbit-foot-lodge/" target="_blank">Rabbit Foot Lodge Phase III</a> restoration project. The design fee is $53,188, based on an estimated $664,854 construction budget</li></ul>If you go: 6pm at Bentonville and Springdale city halls

Experience Fayetteville opens its tourism playbook

The plan is organized around Fayetteville's 10-year Destination Master Plan, a roadmap for sustainable tourism growth.

Experience Fayetteville for the first time this week is making its <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="marketing and sales plan" data-vars-click-url="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/28266711-2026-marketing-and-sales-plan-presentation-1/" data-vars-content-id="b34ab462-ae01-4093-af33-14bf72606977" data-vars-headline="Experience Fayetteville opens its tourism playbook" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/28266711-2026-marketing-and-sales-plan-presentation-1/" target="_blank">marketing and sales plan</a> public, a move meant to make the city&#x27;s tourism strategy more transparent.Why it matters: Experience Fayetteville is funded by half of Fayetteville&#x27;s 2% hotel, motel and restaurant tax — more than $5 million in recent years — and overseen by the city&#x27;s Advertising and Promotion Commission.

Arkansas' main May tax drivers

Individual income tax collections were nearly 13 times corporate collections in May.

Arkansas collected about $316 million in sales and use taxes in May, outpacing $254.1 million in individual income taxes and $19.9 million in corporate income taxes.Why it matters: May shows a more typical post-tax-deadline pattern after April&#x27;s income tax surge, when individual collections spiked to nearly $597 million.

Applications to open for $7M in e-bike vouchers

The Arkansas Tri-Region E-Bike Incentive Program will distribute at least 5,844 vouchers.

A $7 million subsidy program aiming to drive electric bicycles beyond recreation and into everyday transportation for three of the state&#x27;s largest metros will launch in July.The big picture: The goal is to give residents more transportation choices in a region with long distances between cities, challenging topography, and a growing active-transportation network, Tim Conklin, executive director of the Northwest Arkansas Regional Planning Commission (NWARPC), tells Axios.

Business 🏦

NWA career programs shift closer to needs

New startup fund lands in Northwest Arkansas

Trump takes credit for Walmart price cuts

The Agenda: Bonds, NDAs and zoning

Exclusive: Nasdaq program matches interns with startups