Milton Nicks

Milton J. Nicks Jr.
Member of the ArkansasHouseofRepresentatives from the 50th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 2015
Preceded by	Fred Smith
Personal details
Born	(1950-10-03) October 3, 1950 (age 69) Earle, Crittenden County Arkansas, USA
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Joann Nicks
Children	Four children
Parents	Mr. and Mrs. Milton Nicks, Sr.
Residence	Marion, Crittenden County
Occupation	Baptist Church pastor Construction businessman Former Arkansas State Police officer

Milton J. Nicks Jr. (born October 3, 1950) ^[1] is the Baptist pastor of the Mount Pilgrim Baptist Church in Earle, Arkansas. He is a Democratic member of the Arkansas House of Representatives for District 50, which includes Crittenden and Cross counties in the eastern part of his state. ^[2]

Nicks resides in the larger city of Marion, also in Crittenden County. He is the chief executive officer of Nicks Construction Company. Like his colleague Dwight Tosh of Jonesboro, Nicks is a retired officer of the Arkansas State Police. He is a trustee of the Crittenden County Crime Stoppers Board. Nicks is a former trustee, who served under gubernatorial appointment, of Arkansas State University-Mid South, formerly known as Mid-South Community College, an institution in West Memphis. He is a former vice president of the Chamber of Commerce and is a one-time board member of Crittenden Regional Hospital, both in West Memphis. ^{[2] [3]}

Nicks defeated incumbent House District 50 Democrat Fred Smith, a former professional basketball player, in a low-turnout primary held on May 20, 2014. Nicks polled 1,109 votes (67.1 percent) to Smith's 544 (32.9 percent). Nicks was then unopposed in the November 4 general election. If reelected in 2016 and 2018, he is eligible to serve in the House until January 2021. ^[4]

Representative Nicks holds these committee assignments: (1) Joint Performance Review, (2) City, County and Local Affairs, and (3) Public Transportation. ^[2] Nicks is the chaplain of the Arkansas Legislative Black Caucus. ^[5]

In February 2015, Nicks was one of twenty legislators who opposed House Bill 1228, authored by Republican Bob Ballinger of Carroll County in northwestern Arkansas, ^[6] which sought to prohibit government from imposing a burden on the free exercise of religion. ^[7] Representative Camille Bennett, a Democrat from Lonoke, called for a reworking of the legislation. ^[8] She claimed the Ballinger bill would establish a "type of religious litmus test" which could impact nearly any law under consideration by the legislature. ^[6] Ballinger's bill was subsequently signed into law in revised form, SB 975, by Republican Governor Asa Hutchinson. ^[9]

References

1. "Milton Nicks, Jr". intelius.com. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
2. "Milton Nicks". arkansashouse.org. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
3. "Milton Nicks, Jr.'s Biography". Project Vote Smart . Retrieved April 14, 2015.
4. "District 50". ballotpedia.org. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
5. "Arkansas Legislative Black Caucus" (PDF). March 16, 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 17, 2015. Retrieved April 17, 2015.
6. "Opponents of Religious Freedom Bill Point Out Law Differences, Possible Unintended Consequences". Little Rock, Arkansas: Fox Channel 16. April 1, 2015. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
7. "HB 1228". Project Vote Smart. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
8. "Indiana, Arkansas try to stem religious objections uproar". Atlantic Broadband. April 3, 2015. Archived from the original on April 14, 2015. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
9. "Gov. Hutchinson signs revised religious freedom bill; HB 1228 recalled". Little Rock: KTHV-TV. April 2, 2015. Archived from the original on April 6, 2015. Retrieved April 14, 2015.

Preceded by Fred Smith	Arkansas State Representative for District 50 (Crittenden and Cross counties) Milton J. Nicks, Jr. 2015–	Succeeded by Incumbent