LITTLE ROCK – Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge released a statement following United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit’s decision upholding Texas’s Executive Order prohibiting elective procedures—including abortions—to preserve personal protective equipment in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Rutledge signed on to a 16-state brief in support of Texas’s law.

“Our country is experiencing an unprecedented pandemic and states have the duty to conserve resources like personal protective equipment to ensure we deal with this immediate crisis,” said Attorney General Rutledge. “Like all others who perform elective procedures, abortion practitioners must do their part to help us slow the growth of this terrible disease and save Arkansans’ lives.”

Says, ‘identifying and putting a stop to fake websites that are spreading misinformation’

LITTLE ROCK – Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge today announced a partnership with the University of Arkansas Little Rock (UA Little Rock) and the Arkansas Research Alliance to identify and track COVID-related scam websites and social media disinformation that have rapidly spread with the pandemic. Sites that spread lies, offer fake cures and sell false treatments undermine Arkansas’s efforts to combat this disease and present a hazard to consumers’ physical, financial and online safety. Rutledge is dedicated to protecting consumers and the legitimate business community from these online threats. This collaboration offers a new avenue to quickly identify the bad actors who want to spread misinformation or steal consumers’ money or identity.

“During this phase of the pandemic where fear is peaking, it is extremely important to stop bad actors that are using the internet to offer misinformation, sell fake tests, cures or solicit contributions to fake COVID charities,” said Attorney General Rutledge. “This partnership will ensure we are quickly identifying and putting a stop to fake websites that are spreading misinformation with the purpose of stealing from Arkansans.”

Rutledge’s partnership will include working with Dr. Nitin Agarwal, fellow of the Arkansas Research Alliance and a Distinguished Professor of Information Science at UA Little Rock. Dr. Agarwal and his team of researchers at COSMOS study online behavior to identify and combat threats. They have developed a website that can help people identify, understand, and report misinformation, fake websites, and scams regarding COVID-19, which is published at http://cosmos.ualr.edu/covid-19 for the general public to view. Dr. Agarwal is directing several projects with funding from the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), U.S. Army Research Office (ARO), U.S. Office of Naval Research (ONR), U.S. Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) and U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).

“Working with Attorney General’s office gives us the opportunity to apply our internationally renowned research on malicious cyber behaviors right here at home,” said Dr. Agarwal. “We are confident that this partnership will open avenues for exciting research opportunities and spark innovation.”

To find out more information about COVID scams and fake websites, or file a consumer complaint visit ArkansasAG.gov or call (800) 482-8982.

Says, ‘If our healthcare providers are unable to care for patients, then exponentially more Arkansans could suffer’

LITTLE ROCK – Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge today announced allocating $1 million for the State to acquire lifesaving personal protective equipment (PPE) to be used by doctors, nurses and medical providers in the State to combat COVID-19. The money will be sourced from the Attorney General’s Consumer Education and Enforcement Fund, which consists of monies from lawsuit settlements and not taxpayer dollars.

“This shortage of personal protective equipment is putting our front-line healthcare providers at risk of contracting COVID-19,” said Attorney General Rutledge. “If our healthcare providers are unable to care for patients, then exponentially more Arkansans could suffer.”

On March 20, 2020, Rutledge allocated $3 million, from the same funds, to the Arkansas Economic Development Commission’s Quick Action Loan Program for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Rutledge also has been proactively pursuing violations of price gouging laws since the Governor’s March 11 emergency declaration. Letters were sent to Amazon, eBay and Walmart regarding their proactive measures to prevent price gouging during the COVID-19 pandemic and encouraging them to take further action to stop bad actors from artificially raising prices on basic needs products during this public health crisis.

Rutledge has received over 500 consumer complaints as a result of Arkansas’s price gouging law which prevents individuals or businesses from increasing product prices by more than 10 percent of what the product would have cost prior to the state of emergency declaration on March 11, 2020. Violators can face criminal charges and fines as well as civil penalties of up to $10,000 per incident. Arkansans can report price gougers to the Attorney General’s Office at ArkansasAG.gov or call (800) 482-8982.

Says, ‘Small Businesses are the back-bone of our communities’

LITTLE ROCK - Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge today announced allocating $3 million to the Arkansas Economic Development Commission’s (AEDC) Quick Action Loan Program for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. These funds will be in addition to the $4 million the Governor directed to the same program. The announcement was made during Governor Asa Hutchinson’s daily briefing on COVID-19. The money will be sourced from the Attorney General’s Consumer Education and Enforcement Fund, which consists of monies from lawsuit settlements and not taxpayer dollars.

“This money will be a lifeline for many Arkansas small businesses owners and will help to protect them from the prolonged economic hardships these local job creators are now facing,” said Attorney General Rutledge. “Small Businesses are the back-bone of our communities, and we must do everything we can to help them during these unprecedented times. Uniting our efforts will not only help stop this pandemic and heal those who are sick, but also help jumpstart our state as we recover from COVID-19.”

Since the Governor’s declaration last week, Rutledge has been enforcing the price gouging laws in the State that protect Arkansans. Earlier this week, letters were sent to Amazon, eBay and Walmart praising the companies for their proactive response in preventing price gouging during the COVID-19 pandemic and encouraging them to take further action to stop bad actors from artificially raising prices on basic needs products during this public health crisis.

Arkansas’s price gouging law prevents individuals or businesses from increasing product prices by more than 10 percent of what the product would have cost prior to the state of emergency declaration on March 11, 2020. Violators can face criminal charges and fines as well as civil penalties of up to $10,000 per incident. Arkansans can report price gougers to the Attorney General’s Office at ArkansasAG.gov or call (800) 482-8982.

Says, ‘committed to working with online retail platforms to hold pandemic profiteers accountable’

LITTLE ROCK – Attorney General Leslie Rutledge sent letters to Amazon, eBay and Walmart which allow third-party sellers to offer consumer goods through online retail platforms. The letter notified the companies’ CEOs that Arkansas’s price gouging laws automatically went into effect on March 11, 2020, after Governor Hutchinson’s state of emergency declaration. The letter also praised the companies for their proactive response in preventing price gouging during the COVID-19 pandemic and encouraged them to take further action to stop bad actors from artificially raising prices on basic needs products during this public health crisis.

“Arkansans have enough on their minds right now and paying exponentially inflated prices for basic necessities shouldn't be one of them,” said Attorney General Rutledge. “I am committed to working with online retail platforms to hold pandemic profiteers accountable to the full extent of the law.”

Arkansas’s price gouging law prevents individuals or businesses from increasing product prices by more than 10 percent of what the product would have cost prior to the state of emergency declaration on March 11, 2020. Violators can face criminal charges and fines as well as civil penalties of up to $10,000 per incident. Arkansans can report price gougers to the Attorney General’s Office at ArkansasAG.gov or call (800) 482-8982.

Says, ‘state of emergency triggering our price gouging laws’

LITTLE ROCK – Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge announced an additional free webcast training hosted by the office on Thursday, March 19. The webcasts will be an opportunity for Arkansans to learn from consumer protection experts about the recent price gouging concerns sweeping the state, all from the comfort and safety of their own homes.

“The Governor has declared a state of emergency triggering our price gouging laws,” said Attorney General Rutledge. “This free webcast will allow Arkansans to stay informed from the safety of their own homes.”

Rutledge will be hosting the following webcasts for free to any interested viewers:

• Consumer Protection: Price Gouging - Thursday, March 19 at 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
• Missing Persons Webcast – Wednesday, April 8, 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
• Freedom of Information Act Webcast – Thursday, April 16 at 10:00 a.m. to noon.

Interested Arkansans can sign up for the free webcasts at ArkansasAG.gov or call (800) 482-8982.