David Meeks
| David Mark Meeks | |
 | |
Arkansas State Representative
for District 46 | |
| In office 2011–2013 | |
| Preceded by | Robbie Wills |
|---|---|
| Succeeded by | Mark Biviano |
Arkansas State Representative
for District 70 | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 2013 | |
| Preceded by | Robert E. Dale |
| Succeeded by | Spencer Hawks |
| Born | April 27, 1972 Place of birth missing |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Naomi Meeks (married 2009) |
| Relations | Stephen Meeks (brother) |
| Residence | Conway, Faulkner County Arkansas, USA |
| Alma mater | Greenbrier (Arkansas) High School Samuel W. Wolfson |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Religion | Baptist |
Military Service
| |
| Service/branch | United States Army |
David Mark Meeks (born April 27, 1972)[1][2] is a businessman and an associate pastor from Conway in Faulkner County in central Arkansas, who is a Republican former state representative. His District 70, which he represented from 2013 to 2017, includes part of Faulkner and Perry counties. From 2011 to 2013, Meeks represented House District 46, now the domain of Republican Mark Biviano.[3]
His older brother, Stephen Meeks, is a Republican legislator from neighboring District 67 in Faulkner, Conway, and Van Buren counties.
Background
Meeks was reared in the Springhill Community in Faulkner County in central Arkansas and attended, first, Greenbrier High School but graduated from Samuel W. Wolfson High School in Jacksonville, Florida. He moved from Arkansas to Florida as a teenager because of his father's employment.[3] Meeks received a bachelor's degree in Pastoral Ministries from Trinity Baptist College, also in Jacksonville.[1]
From 1990 to 1995, Meeks served in the United States Army; he received the Achievement and Good Conduct medals. He is a member of the National Rifle Association and Toastmasters International. Meeks and his wife, Naomi, attend Bible Baptist Church in Conway, where he is a Sunday school teacher. He is also n associate pastor and guest speaker at other churches.[3]
In 2003, he worked for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida.[1] He is a director at Pro Care Lawn Management, Inc., in Conway.[2]
Political life
In 2010, Meeks was elected in House District 46, having defeated the Democrat Steve Magie, 5,312 to 4,452 votes. The incumbent Democrat, Robbie Wills, was term-limited that year.[4] In 2012, District 46 was reconfigured to White County. Meeks won his second term in revised District 70, having secured the Republican nomination over Tyrone Price Dooley (born 1943), also of Conway, 1,597 to 593. He then defeated in the general election the Democrat Cody J. Bassham (born 1984), 6,829 to 4,219.[5]
Meeks serves on the Arkansas Legislative Council and is the chairman of the House Aging, Children and Youth, Legislative and Military Affairs Committee. He is also a member of the Judiciary Committee.[1][3]
In 2013, Representative Meeks in District 70 co-sponsored legislation to amend state income tax rates and to place a spending cap on the state budget, but the second measure failed in the House by two votes. He voted to override the vetoes of Democratic then 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 further co-sponsored 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 co-sponsored the measures to empower officials of universities and religious institutions to carry concealed weapons for safety. Meeks opposed the proposal to make the office of prosecuting attorney in Arkansas a nonpartisan position; the measure passed the House, sixty-three to twenty-four. He supported 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.[6]
In 2011, Meeks in District 46 opposed a dress code for public schools; the measure passed seventy-three to nineteen. He backed curriculum standards for biblical instruction in public schools. He co-sponsored the Capital Gains Reduction Act and the lowering of utility rates on manufacturers as a means of attracting new industry to Arkansas. He voted to restrict driver's license tests only in the English language. Meeks voted to prohibit cell phone use in school zones. and voted against the congressional redistricting bill.[6]
In 2014, Meeks sought his third and final term in the House. He was term-limited in 2016.[1]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 David Meeks' Biography. votesmart.org. Retrieved on November 25, 2020.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 David Meeks (Arkansas). Mylife.com. Retrieved on November 25, 2020.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 David Meeks, R-70. arkansashouse.org. Retrieved on December 31, 2013; information no longer accessible ohn-line.
- ↑ District 46. Ballotpedia.org. Retrieved on November 25, 2020.
- ↑ District 70. Ballotpedia.org. Retrieved on November 25, 2020.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 David Meeks' Voting Records. Project Vote Smart. Retrieved on November 25, 2020.
