Senator Bart Hester of Cave Springs represents Senate District 33, which includes the cities of Bentonville, Rogers, Centerton and Cave Springs in Benton County. He was elected to the Senate in 2012 and took the oath of office on the first day of the 2013 session.
Senator Hester was elected again to be the Senate President Pro Tempore of the 95th General Assembly. Only two other people have severed two terms as President Pro Tempore in modern times.
Senator Hester is a member of the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee, the Senate City, County and Local Affairs Committee, the Senate Interim Committee on Children and Youth Committee, the Senate Rules, Resolutions and Memorials Committee, the Joint Budget Committee, Arkansas Legislative Council and the Legislative Joint Auditing Committee. He is a member of the Legislative Facilities Committee.
Senator Hester believes in holding down the size of government and reducing government debt. He has been a consistent sponsor of legislation to lower taxes and reduce regulatory burdens on business. Also, his legislative priorities include bills to improve foster care and adoption services.
During the 94th General Assembly, Senator Hester sponsored legislation to promote permanency and to strengthen kinship placements for children in foster care. He also sponsored legislation that promote tourism in Arkansas.
In 2021 Senator Hester co-sponsored legislation that requires public schools to teach about the Holocaust. Other bills amended eligibility for scholarships and change the process of getting a driver’s permit. Senator Hester co-sponsored bills on public health directives and property rights.
In 2017 and 2019, Senator Hester was the Senate Majority Whip and Senate Majority Leader respectively. In 2017, he co-sponsored legislation to provide $50 million in income tax relief to lower-income families. In 2015, he co-sponsored legislation to provide $100 million in income tax relief to middle class Arkansas families.
A native of Green Forest, he is a 2001 graduate of the Sam Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas with a bachelor’s degree in Business Management. While working on his degree in Fayetteville, he lettered for three years for the Razorbacks’ varsity baseball team. His business interests are in real estate and construction.
